Comment Policy
I’m aiming for lively and intelligent debate. Above all, it has to be civil.
This means no food fights. No ad homs, no slurs, no personal insults, no name calling, no speculation of another commenter’s political or ideological motives, no guilt-by association, no nastiness, and no excessive sarcasm. If you have personal axes to grind, check them at the door.
Savage Minds offers excellent advice to keep in mind:
Please understand that some people live to provoke. If you engage such people in any way you make their day. They don’t care about winning an argument as much as getting your goat. So if you would rather not see comments by such people, the best strategy is to ignore them. The chances that you are going to change their views are slim-to-none, and the low-level of the resulting debate is unlikely to be edifying for the other readers.
Regarding moderation: All first time commenters will require approval. After that, the door is wide open (though any comment with two or more links will still require approval).
I’m not a fan of editing (snipping) comments. If I think a comment is inappropriate for any of the above listed infractions, I’ll just delete the whole thing and email you personally to explain why. Repeat offenders (three strikes you’re out) will be banned from the site.
Since I have a life outside this blog, please be patient as I might not always spot an offensive comment in a timely manner. Those who feel that an offensive comment has eluded my eye, please feel free to let me know via email.
Lastly, if any of you have suggestions on how to improve this policy or the comment software (or want to recommend a better one), please leave a comment.