I'm Tom Diffenbach, a political consultant specializing in dynamics of action, not an academic, and also a person who has owned, operated, used, and studied websites and lists for years. I value aoir for its resources and also as a case study of sorts. At times I observe recognizable behaviors in this list and wait to see if anyone mentions them. One recent example was the discussion of some not-so-important subject (I already forget:) during the holidays. This fits a pattern of lists cycling thru a period where everyone, including those who at the moment perhaps don't have anything to contribute academically or professionally, get to share a comment or two. It helps to rejuvenate a list but also contributes at least temporarily to reducing the quality of its content. Currently the "rules or no rules" discussion so common to lists is on our front burner. I recall one medical-legal list where a "no rules" attorney insisted on posting occasional crude humor arguing that it was welcomed (or at least not objected to) by many. Soon after, he created a somewhat competing list where he was very much the rule-maker and disqualified his humorous type of posts from his list to maintain its professionalism. That might suggest to you what this political consultant see as a prospect that aoir should consider: that serious professionals on this list, openly or quietly, will find or start a similar list. The issue isn't so much whether there should be rules but whether an internet researcher can find a list that better fulfills an internet research mission. With respect, Tom