If you can't say something nice, don't say it

Sage advice. There is a correlary. Use e-mail for communication that is informative in nature only. If there is an emotional component, walk down the hall or pick up the phone. If you have something difficult to say, say it to someone's face.

In the brave new world of electronic communication, participants seem to have been absolved of any need to act within the boundaries of such social mores. Anything goes, everything escalates, and a sort of numbness takes over.