Bill Chambers

Tim A. Connor (connort@pacificu.edu)
Wed, 8 May 1996 21:41:17 -0700 (PDT)

I concur both with David's decision to remove Bill from the list, and
with his reluctance. Free speech is not the issue--Bill is not being
punished for having unpopular ideas, he is being excluded for violating
norms of civility. I'm sure he construes it otherwise--in his last post
he stated with satisfaction that all his anticipations had been
confirmed, and I doubt that he would have had it any other way.

My regret has to do with the fact that Bill's ideas seemed interesting,
original, and pertinent to many salient problems in PCP and psychology
generally. Early on, I posted him privately to express my distaste with
the airing of personal grievances on the list, but also to encourage him
to continue his postings on theoretical and methodological questions.
Unfortunately, it became clear that he had developed much of his theory
as a way of construing his personal tragedy and was unable to see the two
as separate, so any disagreement (or even a withholding of agreement, as
in Lois's admirable effort to draw him out in a positive way) became a
personal attack.

I stayed out of the discussion because I lack the level of expertise to
contribute much to the discussion of statistical approaches to grid
analysis. I'm not sure in retrospect that passive neutrality was an
appropriate response, but I doubt that anything would have made a
difference. I do think that this list was more tolerant of Bill's
behavior and more willing to seek the value in what he had to say than
any other I have participated in would have been. I think it speaks well
for PCP that people rarely if ever responded to Bill with the kind of
vituperation he dispensed so freely.

I hope that those who have left can be encouraged to return. I also hope
that there are those on the list who are sufficiently familiar with Bill's
ideas to maintain them as a presence in our discussions (Finn?). It
seems to me that he has something of real value to contribute, if he can
ever bring himself to offer it in an acceptable manner.

Regards.

Tim

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Tim Connor, M.S. "Psychotherapy is not
Pacific University an applied science, it
School of Professional Psychology is a basic science in
2004 Pacific Avenue which the scientists
Forest Grove, OR 97116 USA are the client and his
<connort@pacificu.edu> therapist"
--George Kelly
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