From: Le@yabbs
To: htoaster@yabbs
Subject: psychologically speaking
Date: Sat Apr  2 10:34:15 1994

Not that I'm a psychology wiz, but I have to ask after reading that
article, where was Nathaniel?  What did we really know about him?
We don't know why he was shy and socially isolated.  We don't know
what in his background left him vulnerable to the MUDaddiction.
I think to look only at the MUD as the cause of his death is absurb.
The MUD was the symptom, not the disease.  While I agree that being
moral and reasonable in cyberspace is a nice ideal, let's face the
fact that as merely another aspect of human existence, why expect it to
be any more perfect.  There are a range of personalities on the net
just as in the real world.  To expect them to all stick to a moral
code is unrealistic.  As for netaddiction in and of itself, it really
has many differenyt levels.  I used to spend hours on BBS's, and I'll
admit that my grades might have suffered because of it, but luckily
they didn't.  But I told people that BBS's are like my TV, I don't
sit mindnumb in front of a TV for hours every night.  If I had not been
BBSing for hours, I seriously doubt that I would have been doing my
homework.  The BBS would not have been to blaim.  I think the
first question that should be asked if the time on BBS's/MUD's get
out of hand is, "What are you not getting in your real life that
you get here?"  Just a thought.