<VV> Problem? Not much!

[kaczmarek at charter.net]

Many of you were on VV before me (summer 97). Many have come on since. 
For the benefit of those only around the last couple of years--

VV is pretty tame these days.  Sure, there's off topic stuff.  Not too much, and not so much as it cannot be tolerated. 

In the days before and during my 2 years as Chairman, things could get pretty wooly here.  Of course this was no reflection on Dennis or myself,  the seperate Talk List wasn't in existance long before I took over, but even once most of the non-Corvair stuff was on Talk, there were still plenty of flame wars to referee, and the famour Vendor Wars, and much more.  That stuff is pretty much over.  People still get pissed, as people will. But the frequency is very low.  If you know anyone on the Porsche or the Miata lists, as an example, you'd know what I mean.  The Riviera list had a row about 8 months ago that nearly destroyed the entire club.  We have no such issues. 

I'm staying in the background as much as possible, mostly because I don't have the time to research answers for people. And I send most replies off list. 

Overall, though Garth may not think so, he has it pretty easy.   

For those who are upset with the current level of off topic or other such issues, IMO it's worth screening thru anything you might consider BS to get the "meat" of what transpires here.   We've come a long way since the days before the Internet, when if you had a question, you had the choice of 

1.writing them out and sending them to Cal or Lon to answer when THEY had time. 
2. polling your Clubbies, and getting more opinions than you had Clubbies
3. if not a Club Member, coming to a show and engaging folks you don't know in discussion, and hope whoever you are talking to knows what THEY are talking about. 

I find V V a MUCH more subtle way to get knowledge from a collection of good people with  hundreds of years of experience working on these cars. Had I only had this in 87. How much easier it would have been! 

Hank