wrote:
or is all this trivial bickering about posting of commercial items more
frustration venting because of cabin fever?

I don't think it's trivial and I don't bicker just to bicker
even during cabin fever season. I truly believe that commercial
advertising in rec.* groups diminishes their usefulness and
undermines what it is they are supposed to be about. We are
here to share information, not to be inundated with commercials.

I'm getting on my soapbox with flame retardant underwear
snip
It's not
like I have to do anything but ignore the post if I don't like it.

So people who don't want to be SPAMmed on a non-commercial
newsgroup should ignore SPAM posts but people who don't like
complaints about SPAM should feel free to fire away ? I mean,
why didn't *you* just ignore the SPAM complaints ? Another
example of do as I say, not as I do.

snip
Another personal view that I have is, I feel it is much worse to
use vulgarity (especially in this group because I know of a couple of
18 yr old boys that lurk) than it is to post on topic, fishing related
product announcements.

In my opinion SPAM is much worse than the occasional swear
word but I have reported the so-called Illinois Fisherman to
his ISP although I kinda doubt anything will ever come of it.

snip
I'm amazed that the anti-Advertisement posters use the 'waste of
bandwidth' argument to backup their point, all the while, wasting
hundred's of times the bandwidth to make the point.

That's not one of *my* arguments. I'm quite happy to post SPAM
complaints here all day long without worrying one whit about
bandwidth.

snip
Also, IS it really important to point out someones
gramatical/spelling errors?

Important ? No. But when someone calls me an Idiot in the same
post that he misspells pompous the irony is too delicious to
ignore. ;-)

--
Ken Fortenberry