Mid-Morning Open Thread

I have posted a Commenters Bill Of Rights below the fold. It is from another blog, written by a smart guy, who also knows this blog and its peculiar habits quite well. Some of it applies perfectly...some of it less so.

The catalyst is the unmistakeable downturn in the comments. Ad hominem attacks are becoming the norm, and they shouldn't. Cliquish, exclusionary behavior is becoming commonplace, and it shouldn't. Slavish adherence to memes over substance is sometimes overwhelming the threads.

"Smart but very, very vulgar" was accurate once, and we should be proud of that description. Perhaps we shouldn't rush to devolve to simply, "very, very vulgar."

• You have the right to comment – for as long as the owner of the blog feels like granting it to you.
  
• You have the right to be banned at any time, for any reason, real or imagined and for any period of time from minutes to years.
  
• You have the right to have your comment deleted for any reason without any explanation.
  
• You have the right to point out someone’s poor argument. You do not, in turn, have the right to be offended when someone does it to you.
  
• You have the right to have an opinion – you do not have the right to demand that everyone value your opinion or even care about your opinion.
  
• You have the right not to take anyone’s opinion seriously – you do not have the right to demand that someone take YOU seriously.
  
• You have the right to sarcasm as form of “argument” as long as you understand that sarcasm conveys absolutely no truth and no fact.
  
• You have the right to an explanation for being banned. That explanation may or may not come before you are banned.
  
• You have the right to be civil.
  
• You have the right to be a bigot – just not on this blog.
  
• You have the right to be free of purely ad hominem attacks.

Shorter Commenters Bill of Rights:

Don’t be a dick.

posted by CBD at 09:35 AM

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