Spontaneous_Order@yahoogroups.com
Guidelines for Membership and Posting
A discussion forum on ideas, principles, and polices that help create a good society. F
A Hayek popularised the concept of Spontaneous Order--the order that is a result of human
action but not of human design. The order of the clock, or the army or the firm is a
result of human design. But the order of the market, language, law, and morals is a result
of purposive human action and not of a design of a human mind. Hayek contended that the
most critical institutions of a good society are the result of human action but not of
human design.
SO works well when the rules of interaction are well defined. The ethics of discourse
requires a simple rule: Argue about the ideas, not the people who put forth them. No
personal attacks; no ad hominems. Anyone who violates this basic ethics of discourse shall
be removed from the discussion list.
Yahoogroups.com has many facilities that you can use. Do spend some time familiarizing yourself with its features. All emails (sometimes called "posts") sent to Spontaneous_Order are archived there, accessible only to members. Spontaneous_Order is in the yahoogroups.com public directory.
To Subscribe: just send an email to
Focus: We discuss various current and topical issues with a classical liberal / libertarian viewpoint. Our emphasis is generally on issues concerning India.
Traffic: This is a medium-traffic list, with instant posting privileges for members. Whatever you send to Spontaneous_Order@yahoogroups.com goes to the entire list. Currently we do not moderate the list—i.e. no one reads and approves the email, it goes through automatically, provided it comes from the email address at which you are subscribed
Here are a few rules that would make life easier on the group.
Always "sign" your name at the end of your comments, including your name, affiliation, and email address so that other subscribers who wish might contact you directly. Something like:
---------------------------------------------------------------
Samarjeet Gurm
Research Associate, Centre for Civil Society
K-36 Hauz Khas Enclave New Delhi 110016
Voice :(91-11) 26521882 Fax :(91-11) 2651 2347
http://www.ccsindia.org
---------------------------------------------------------------
Notes of "I agree!" or "I disagree!" clutter the list; please keep these notes private.
Trim out the bulk of previous messages in replies. Quote selectively from posts that you are responding to, avoiding the mistake of posting your own comments at the end of a very long quoted message.
Never send a post without a clear subject header. And use an informative "subject" header, a line which clearly labels the content of your message.
Check that you are mailing your message to the appropriate recipient: purely personal messages to the person's private email address, and messages for all subscribers to the mailing list. Never use the list for sending purely personal email.
Spontaneous_Order have people from all over India and some from abroad as well. We should be sensitive to the cultural and disciplinary diversity of the list.
Be civil. We’re here to debate issues—keep ad hominem comments to yourself.
Ignore obnoxious postings or postings by cranks.
Avoid personal wrangling and irrelevant conversations.
Never post commercial solicitations or advertising to the list.
Never use the list for surveys or partisan purposes or announcements.
If you forward any published material like an article, remember to include complete references, including the URL if the material is webbed. Preferably the references should be complete enough for scholarly purposes.
Avoid excessive posting to the list and make an effort to keep the list free from clutter.
Never send virus warnings the list. The list does not allow attachments and any attached viruses are automatically deleted.
The cultural and disciplinary diversity of the list
Members of Spontaneous_Order come from all over the world (largely from India), from dozens of different cultures and a great diversity of different disciplinary communities, each with their own unique and in part autonomous linguistic traditions and background of understanding.
Please be sensitive to the fact that others may be speaking in a different disciplinary language, using familiar words with an unfamiliar significance specific to the shared background understanding of a particular community of scholars. Other terms and notions, which may seem basic to one community, may in fact be completely unfamiliar to another community. Queries across disciplinary boundaries even about the most simple matters of basic vocabulary should not be scorned, but instead need to be handled by specialists with a spirit of charity, sympathy, and cooperation. Discussions on Spontaneous_Order are unavoidably often interdisciplinary. Be sympathetic to inquires from scholars in other fields who may speak in a different disciplinary language.
A reminder about the special nature of e-mail
Because of the special nature of an electronic community it is important for all list members to reflect on the important differences between face-to-face oral communication and written communications via e-mail. In the medium of symbolic communication typical behavioural clues and connotations available in face-to-face verbal communication are missing. If someone posts an uninformed or rude message the appropriate thing to do is to ignore it, reply privately, or contact the list owners. Watch the tone of your comments and replies. Remember there are no voice inflections or body language accompanying messages. Also note that the use of capital letters is considered a form of shouting and is difficult to read, and is therefore considered rude and annoying.
Problems or Information
If you have any problem, or would like more information, please contact:
Parth J. Shah
