I read something interesting lately that pertains to Internet discussion groups such as this forum. Apparently a lot of libel/slander cases filed against posters and web sites hosting Internet forums are being thrown out. The reasoning is that not only is what is said to be considered in such cases, but also the context in which it is said or written. Internet forums are purportedly considered to be places where heated arguments arise at the drop of a hat, so what is said (written) is regarded as having been said in anger or with some other strong emotion attached rather than intended to be testimony, so to speak, about the truth of a matter. <P>For example, suppose that, in an argument on the street, a lot of yelling takes place, then one of the participants in the argument screams to another, "You're mother wears Army boots!" (or something even worse, if you can imagine anything worse than that). This person cannot be successfully sued for slander because of the context. It is improper to assume that the person was claiming that this was a true statement; it was an insult made during an argument, not intended to be truthful testimony about someone's attire. And it is to be assumed that no one takes such statements seriously.<P>So in a way, the hotheads are doing us all a favor in helping our little discussions to be classified as heated arguments by crazed and obsessed individuals. Nor should we complain when no one takes us seriously; this cloud has its silver lining.<BR> <BR>