21 December, 2008
Blog Note: Commenting Policy, As Such
Recent events have caused me to reflect on how I handle comments on this blog. As I recall, the only comments I've ever deleted from my blog have been spam. Today that will change.
The comment in question is was so breathtakingly racist that I'm a little embarrassed that I've left it up as long as I have.
Anyone who has read this blog for more than twenty minutes has probably figured out that I have had all of the racism, misogyny, homophobia and other forms of "othering" than I can stand. In case you might have missed the memo, bigotry isn't funny or edgy or clever. It's exactly the opposite of those things: It shows that the person making such jokes or comments lacks the imagination--much less empathy--to, even for a moment, consider what life is like for someone that doesn't have a place at the big Table of Privilege. Or maybe the commenter can and it is just so different to his/her experience it is just too scary, so anyone who is different must be belittled. But the purpose of this post is not to delve into the psychology of bullying, so I'll move on.
Why did I wait so long to remove the comment? I wanted to be sure I wasn't reacting to my anger and my somewhat bruised feelings (there is a little more to this story than just an exceedingly bigoted comment, the details of which shall remain private). Over the last several years I've been very conscious of wanting my actions to move me forward, toward a positive outcome, rather than my reflexive, street-brawling thowing of feet, fists and/or words, or stuffing my feelings deep down inside me and putting on a brave face for people who say deliberately hurtful things, all of which only served to fuel my anger and didn't resolve anything.
So, after reflecting on the situation I have decided to institute a commenting policy on this blog. And what that policy boils down to is this: This is MY blog and I don't actually have to put up with that shit. Therefore:
* You are free to disagree with my views on, well, whatever.
* You are even free to leave a comment saying you disagree with me, bonus points if you can explain your point of view and, you know, initiate a discussion.
* Hell, I don't much care if you resort to calling ME names: Believe me, I've heard them ALL before.
Just know this: If you leave a hateful, bigoted or sexist comment, with no discussion value whatsoever, the comment will be deleted. If these kinds of comments become commonplace around here, then I will start moderating comments, so you will lose that instant gratification of seeing your hate pop right up on the intertubes.
If it turns out that I have to moderate comments, then I may as well just turn commenting off altogether. I'd hate for it to come to that because I do like the two-way communication that a commenting system facilitates. However, I have a limited amount of energy to devote to cleaning up after people and I have even less patience.
If you want a place to spew racism, sexism, homophobia or whatever hate you're selling today, there are plenty of free blogging services out there: I suggest you try one out.
I now return you to your regularly-scheduled programming.
Labels: personal responsibility, Why it is
~~ victoria on 8:34 PM ~~ 0 comments
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