Over the past few days, and out of sight from most of my regular readers, a blizzard of invective has been flying over my original post concerning the anti-war protest of Manhattanville College basketball player Toni Smith. After sitting around unnoticed for a day or so, the post began to percolate through the databases of a number of search engines -- helped along by a link from Brad Messer, a radio talk show host in San Antonio, Texas.
And, as folks began to find the post, a lot of folks, essentially composed of people who aren't regular readers of Off Wing, began to leave comments. At first, I was happy to see it, as most of my limited number of readers rarely have much to say. Unfortunately, earlier this evening, one commentor deigned to use a particularly noxious racial epithet -- one that I felt moved to delete. In turn, I've also suspended the ability of readers to leave comments for that particular post.
It's clear to me now that Off Wing may very well have turned a corner when it comes to its readership, and that despite my proclivity to let folks police themselves, it was time to issue some guidelines as to how to behave when leaving a comment. Here's the result:
One of the features of my Weblog that I value is the ability to interact with my readers via the Comments box. It's better than email, it's more convenient, and allows my readers to discuss issues with one another as well. Unfortunately, from time to time, some readers fail to follow what I consider to be some basic rules of decorum. To make things clear, here are my rules for the way things work here at Off Wing:[1] Use your own name. Do not make something up. Do not pose as another commenter. Anonymous pamphleteering has a proud tradition in political discourse, but my blog isn't the place for it.
[2] Please use a valid e-mail address. The comments feature produces an auto-email that is sent to me to help me keep track of things, and it isn't uncommon for me to get in touch with my readers this way.
[3] Stick to constructive commentary. Do your best to engage the ideas being discussed, rather than getting personal.
[4] Please stay on topic. Don't leave a comment for "topic one," in the comments box for "topic two". If you have something to say that isn't germane to the discussion, send a personal email instead.
[5] Fail to follow these guidelines, and your post may be subject to deletion, and/or your commenting privleges may be revoked via IP banning.
Again, I've been blessed with some great readers, and the fact that anyone spends time reading my amateur sportswriting is as gratifying as it is mystifying. Thanks for stopping by, and please keep reading.
UPDATE: One other thing: I didn't come up with these guidelines all on my own. I took a look at plenty of other blogs -- too many to count as a matter of fact -- before settling on the above.
