Thanks for pointing this out to me and others, Christina. If I may, apologize to the list and especially to Claudia here...I'm sorry.
 
No excuses except that I jumped the gun and reacted to something that I shouldn't of, and in the wrong way. And to come off sounding like a martyr to boot!
 
I only meant to express that I was hoping that some members are dissuaded from continuing a discussion -which if I felt the need to I could have done so independently, apart from reply to a post. And really, I should not be so concerned with others. And I've already stated how much this list has helped me - and I shouldn't, myself be dissuaded from a few discouraging remarks or concern by what others may or may not be encouraged or discouraged by.
 
No doubt, this is a little new to me. I've been out of work fro over 2 years and even the work I do now...I'm basically on my own! Obviously a little out of touch with things after being out of the loop!
 
Again, sorry all. Pam
 
In a message dated 8/26/2005 11:08:01 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [log in to unmask] writes:
I believe that we all have freedom of speech.  I believe that as
professionals we must discuss issues and understand how others are
dealing with them.

I also believe that we should be able to have frank discussions without
name calling, brow beating or inflammatory statements.

Let us learn from one another.  If one of us were to house an exhibit on
such topics, would not our visitors come from varied walks of life and
share varied opinions?  Is it not our place to educate and to stimulate
discussion amongst individuals?  Would we stand in our institutions and
belittle our visitors?  Would we offer an exhibit on a controversial
topic and not expect to recieve both positive and negative comments? 
Would we openly call our visitors some of things that we have called or
insinuated about our colleagues?

All opinions are valid.  They are opinions.  Those opinions tell us
truths about those individuals.  What is real to one is not to another. 
However, we need to acknowledge those differences and learn from them. 
We can not just criticize that which we do not agree with or which
doesn't suit our tastes.

The opinions expressed here would likely mirror those of your visitors. 
Should we not learn from that and thank each other for being frank and
honest?

I hit the delete button more often than not on this listserve.  I am
sadden my that because I feel there are some really valid and
interesting opposing viewpoints which if shared in a way that
facilitated our learning from one another could help us in understanding
the challenges facing the museum community.
Christina M. Myatt
Theatrical Programming Coordinator
Putnam Museum
1717 West 12th Street
Davenport IA 52804
563.324.1054 ext. 207 (phone)
[log in to unmask]
 
Pamela Silvestri, Museum Assistant
Northeast States Civilian Conservation Corps Museum
Shenipsit State Forest
166 Chestnut Hill Road
Stafford Springs, Connecticut 06076
(860) 684-3430
 ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).