if you want filtering and automatic ordering i can only repeat: use facebook.
if you want to retain your power, try to use the most general tools possible to achieve exactly the filtering and ordering that you need. we all already did that, but you say a standard (that says nothing about it's implementation) is better than some implementation (that you barely know, and might be fitting the original intention of your standard better than your implementation). i will never create an nntp discussion forum because with mail i can reach more disciples. you'll see if you don't use e-mail they'll overthrow you. reading mailing lists is not the only thing that requires clever filtering, priorization and reordering. since e-mail is a standardized international human right^W^W service. i was already forced to deal with all it's suckyness. solved problem.