paraplaying (and bullies)

[Curtis Clark]

At 21:20 2004-04-06, Ken Kinman wrote:
>        Au contraire again.  Paraphyletic groups were often schoolyard
> bullies in the past.  Then came the strict cladists, the new schoolyard
> bullies that swung the pendulum too far the other way (a reactionary
> elimination of ALL paraphyly).

That's really easy for you to say, to divert attention away from your bullying.

>        My recent classification of Diptera shows that the Kinman System
> can accomodate important intermediate taxa.

Your, your, your. The *Kinman* System. Important to *you*, and any taxa
that can't be accommodated are just the detritus of those strict cladists.

>I could certainly do this for Class Reptilia as well.

And it would still be a bully.

>My concern is how many such intermediate taxa would be optimal (resisting
>the cladistic temptation to keep formally oversplitting ad nauseum).

Some would content that the Archosauria is not an "intermediate" taxon.

>I am willing to compromise and be flexible,

No you are not. You have precluded a formal Archosauria.

>I am trying to create a bigger, more flexible, sandbox that we can all share.

As long as it follows your rules. Explain again why that isn't bullying?

>If I am a bully, it is nothing compared to the bullying strict cladists
>have done with their inordinate control of purse-strings and editorial
>heavy-handedness.

Yeah, let me whip out all my big fat grants.




--
Curtis Clark                  http://www.csupomona.edu/~jcclark/
Web Coordinator, Cal Poly Pomona                 +1 909 979 6371
Professor, Biological Sciences                   +1 909 869 4062