sysadmin's time just because someone on his/her system was having a
bad day.
5. Send a chilly note to the miscreant. Kay Klier's version is "Your
post to rec.pets.cats was inappropriate to this news group. Please do
not post similar material here again." Kay often receives an apologetic reply to this note. Other times, the flamer simply disappears
from the newsgroup. Occasionally, someone will reply abusively. If
that happens, you can forward the reply to the writer's system
administrator and ask to have the person gently reminded of proper
network behavior.
Netiquette recommends solution 5 (above) for several reasons:
It always feels better to take action.
As world events demonstrate, ignoring those who are childishly
screaming for attention doesn't always make them stop. Better to
gently point out the error of their ways; at least you tried.