Stanton's second letter to Rev. Harrington

November 18, 1997

Rev. Donald J. Harrington, C.M.
President, St. John's University
8000 Utopia Pkwy.
Jamaica, NY 11439

Dear Reverend Harrington:

Since I wrote you on November 13 about being banned from the CD list administered at St. John's Internet server, I have experienced additional consequences and threats from St. John's personnel.

Based on that letter, the St. John's server administrator Paul M. Karagianis permanently locked me off all lists on the St. John's system.

Mr. Karagianis is very angry at me because he says I have endangered a service St. John's provides for thousands of persons facing critical physical and emotional issues who belong to support groups on this server. I fervently hope that I have not done so and I can't believe this will happen. Moreover, I had no idea before writing you that the St. John's server was primarily for this purpose, as well as for lists of free intellectual exchange.

But I do want you to be aware also of notices like the following which Mr. Karangianis has addressed to me and published on the Internet. The specific impetus for this message was a message written by Tomec Smith in support of my position. I have never met Mr. Smith, who defended me and the two other CD listmembers who were banned from CD (after which he was likewise expelled from CD).

I now understand that many lists on the St. John's server help people to communicate freely with others who share emotional/physical et al. issues and to thus seek respect and control of their lives. For this reason, I am very struck by the tone of derision and disrespect in Mr. Karagianis's messages.

But I think the most serious aspect of this mail from a St. John's staff member is a threat that he will publish my name to thousands of people with serious, emotion-laden problems and tell them I am victimizing them. He is willing to do this in retaliation for my first letter to you and for discussing on another list my being banned on a St. John's list. Mr. Karangianis seems to feel that, in signing onto the St. John's server, I sacrificed my rights as a citizen. Does his threat against me violate any St. John's University policies? It seems to be an effort at intimidation.

Sincerely yours,
Stanton Peele, Ph.D., J.D.