Veteran Math-Teach poster Jonathan Crabtree <http://bit.ly/WjHjUG> posted a comment on my entry "Do We Learn All the Math We Need For Ordinary Life Before 5th Grade? at <http://bit.ly/RQkucu> on my blog "Hake'sEdStuff." Unfortunately Crabtree's comment is misleading, confused, and ill informed.

Crabtree states [my insert at ". . . . [[insert]]. . . ."]:
"Regarding your etiquette on copying content and your defence on Math Forum. . . . [["Discussion List Etiquette" (Hake, 2013) posted on Math-Teach and EDDRA2]]. . . . . : 'No, I did not ask permission to share the anecdote (from a closed discussion forum) with Math-Teach and other lists, nor do I think it's necessary to ask permission.' (Note: my parentheses.)Some may applaud you for your 'logic' as it may encourage them to continue making copies of and redistributing copyrighted content without permission. I don't."

Crabtree fails to mention that he is quoting my response to Michael Paul Goldberg's (2013) post "Re: Do We Learn All the Math We Need For Ordinary Life Before 5th Grade?" in which Goldberg wrote [my inserts at ". . . . [[insert]]. . . ."; my CAPS]:
"Frankly, though, I do wonder about Richard Hake's decision to share an anecdote from a list that is not open to the public. . . .[[EDDRA2 with CLOSED archives at <http://yhoo.it/iNTxrH>]]. . . .  , with folks in this particular venue . . . .[[Math-Teach with OPEN archives at <http://bit.ly/eOTrs1>]], given the predictable comments it has evoked. We now have a few of the usual snakes and vipers commenting on Susan Ohanian, a very bright person indeed. I think he has done her a serious disservice, PARTICULARLY IF HE DIDN'T REQUEST PERMISSION BEFOREHAND."
Therefore my statement "No, I did not ask permission to share the anecdote with Math-Teach and other lists, nor do I think it's necessary to ask permission" was obviously meant to mean  "No, I did not ask permission to share the anecdote with Math-Teach and other lists, nor do I think it's necessary to ask permission FROM SUSAN OHANIAN (**not** from the EDDRA2 list.)

Crabtree then goes on to state: "You will often find a copyright notice at the bottom of forums. All content posted on math forum, for example, is copyrighted to the Drexel University." 

I can find no such stricture at MathForum.  In fact at the latter's "Privacy Policy" <http://bit.ly/vhidk7> it's stated (my CAPS): "PUBLIC FORUMS: This site makes mailing lists, web discussion forums, live chats (vmt) and message boards available to its users. Please remember that ANY INFORMATION THAT IS DISCLOSED IN THESE AREAS BECOMES PUBLIC, and that you should exercise caution when deciding to disclose your personal information."

The above privacy policy statement is consistent with the statement from "In Defense of Crossposting [Hake (2005a)] that I quoted in Hake (2013)[bracketed by "HHHHH. . . . "]:

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
A few of the anti-cross-posting (ACP) arguments that I have seen, followed by my pro-cross-posting (PCP) responses are as follows:

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ACP1. A poster to list DL-A may not want her/his comments spread to other lists DL-B,C,D,. . .  by means of a cross-poster to DL-A,B,C,D,. . ..

PCP1. In my opinion:

(a) MATERIAL PLACED ON THE WEB IS AUTOMATICALLY IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN . . . . . [[my CAPS on 20 Jan 2013]]. . . . , and therefore subject to propagation throughout the internet and beyond - as a visit to Google <http://www.google.com/> will verify.

(b) Confidential, restricted, or sensitive information should, in my opinion, NEVER be placed on the web.

(c) If DL-A subscribers think their posts to DL-A are so problematic that will not bare the scrutiny of subscribers to DL-B,C,D. . .then they might be well advised to avoid posting even to DL-A.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
***************************
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH 


Crabtree ends his diatribe with "I respectfully request you reconsider your public stance on the matter of breaching both copyright and the very standards people expect of academics."

Unfortunately Crabtree, an Australian, appears to be oblivious of the "Fair Use" provision of U.S. Copyright law, Title 17 of section 107. "Fair Use" applies since my post of the Ohanian anecdote was "distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes." For more information go to the Cornell University Law School sites  <http://bit.ly/eNseEp> and <http://bit.ly/qyWm2Y>.

As an aside, Susan Ohanian herself at <http://www.susanohanian.org/> has for many years been freely transmitting copyrighted material under the protection of the "Fair Use" provision of U.S. Copyright law and, as far as I know, has never been threatened with lawsuits.

Richard Hake, Emeritus Professor of Physics, Indiana University
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REFERENCES [All URL's shortened by <http://bit.ly/> and accessed on 20 Jan 2013.] 
Goldenberg, M.P. 2013. "Re: Do We Learn All the Math We Need For Ordinary Life Before 5th Grade?" online on the OPEN! Math-Teach archives at <http://bit.ly/V8bB0I>. Post of 15 Jan 9:54 PM  (the MathForum fails so specify the time zone).

Hake, R.R. 2005a. "In Defense of Cross Posting," online on the OPEN! AERA-L archives at <http://bit.ly/iZhS2i> Post of 24 Jul 2005 to AERA-L and various other discussion lists. See also Hake (2005b, 2010).
Hake, R.R. 2005b. "Cross-Posting - Synergistic or Sinful?" online on the OPEN! AERA-L archives at  <http://bit.ly/oaRDYa>. Post of 1 Nov 2005 08:37:12-0800 to AERA-L and ITForum.
Hake, R.R. 2013. "Discussion List Etiquette (was Do We Learn All the Math We Need . . . .)", online on the OPEN Math-Teach archives at <http://bit.ly/11CinNN>. Post of  16 Jan 2013 11:29 AM to EDDRA2 and Math-Teach,