[email protected]

Commentary on a complaint on the side from someone who has left the list but
because of the way yahoogroups works is probably still getting the mail.
(It takes a day or so for the requests to leave lists to be fully processed by
yahoo's system, it seems.)

-=-Stop telling me what I could have done and ask yourself what you could
have done. If I have done anything to offend you then I apologize. Have I
offended you? -=-

I'm doing what I'm willing to do and interested in doing, which is providing
a discussion for serious unschoolers. There is a beginning unschooling list
(I'm not on it, which should make it "safe," right?) called Unschooling
Basics, and there's another list for unschoolers with children younger than
official "school age" and they're both linked and easily joined here:
_http://sandradodd.com/lists/other_ (http://sandradodd.com/lists/other)


-=-I have gotten several messages in my inbox from other people from the
group who feel that I am doing good but won't post that at the group because
they are afraid of being attacked and misunderstood. -=-

No one is ever required to post.
No one as far as I know is probited from starting her own yahoolist to
discuss unschooling however she wants. If anyone wants to start a yahoogroups
list with a different focus or tone and announce it on this list, that would be
fine.

-=-It is my understanding that the group was intended to support
unschoolers not alienate them.-=-

The group's description is below. When people say "support group" they seem
often to mean that others will coo and sympathize and say "there there" and
"good mom." There are such lists out there. They don't specialize in really
helping people understand any higher ideals, they specialize in cooing and
empty sympathy. When my neopets pet says "You are the best owner ever!" it
makes me feel good, but it's not real. All the cyber-pets say that to all the
cyber-owners.

-=-A little kindness goes a long way.-=-

My focus is unschooling, not individuals who admit they don't care about
unschooling. There are six billion and some people in the world. I don't care
as much about the economics of rice farming or the Antarctic ice shelf or
what happened to the Wankel engine as I care about unschooling. That seems
entirely normal and reasonable to me.

If I'm equally "kind" to everyone regardless of whether their arguments and
posts support unschooling or not, I'm being kind to no one. The list won't
function. If the list "supports" things that lead away from or sabotage
unschooling, those who really want to move directly toward better unschooling will
wander away.

I'm not an alcoholic, but my mom was and I've been to AA meetings with her.
I was never a La Leche League leader, but I attended meetings for years.

At AA meetings they don't "support" people who want to keep drinking for now
and maybe stop gradually.
La Leche League leaders are not obligated or expected to spend one moment of
their time advising a mom on how to schedule bottle feedings.
I'm volunteering my time and energy, as are the many excellent regular
posters whose words are quoted on computers and refrigerator doors all over the
world now, and I don't know about them, but I can't be expected to go a long
way kindly supporting school at home.



If this quote doesn't come out clearly, it's here:


_http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AlwaysLearning/_
(http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AlwaysLearning/)


Description
Category: _Attachment Parenting_
(http://groups.yahoo.com/dir/Family___Home/Parenting/Attachment_Parenting) Discussion for homeschooling fans of
John Holt, whose books Learning All the Time, Never Too Late, and Teach your
Own have made unschooling a sweet and viable option for thousands of families.

This is a moderated group, with trapdoors for the uncooperative. (Not
moderated in the advance-approval way, but in the be-nice-to-play way.) It's an
idea group and is intended to lean more toward pure unschooling than neutral,
general homeschooling discussion--there are hundreds of general homeschooling
discussions for newcomers. It's to focus more toward how people learn no
matter where in the world they are, rather than on what's legal in any particular
country or jurisdiction.

If you have questions or complaints, write to SandraDodd@...




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