Comment Policy

Let me start out my comment policy by stating that I absolutely despise comment policies.  I think that in today's world they should be absolutely unnecessary.   I think that I should just be able to say "don't act like the south end of a northbound horse or I'll delete and possibly ban you" and be done with it.  Or better yet, I shouldn't have to say that because it should be obvious to any decent human being and even the majority of indecent ones.

I also think that comment policies are a pain because there will always bee that one asshat that looks for a loophole and remain technically within the parameters of the policy.  I hate those games.  So let me start my own comments policy with a disclaimer:

This guy broke my comment policy.

In the end, I am the final arbiter of what comments are acceptable and unacceptable.  In the end, I'm the final arbiter of whether someone gets exiled to Tartarus.  I'll try my best not to be arbitrary about those decisions.  I'll try my best not to be an ass about it.  But in the end, if I think you're playing games, I'm willing to let you and anyone else think I'm an ass if it'll end your games.

So with that said, let me set out a more reasoned comments policy.

Comments that are polite, civil, and respect the dignity of this blog's author and those who comment here will always be welcome.  Even comments that disagree with others -- even me -- will be welcome as long as they are polite, civil, and respect the dignity of everyone present.

Comments that include name-calling, vilification, or the dehumanization of others will not be tolerated.  Commenters who repeatedly engage in any or all of the above will be banned.

Comments that denounce non-heterosexual orientations,  the state of being transgender, or entering into same-sex romantic and sexual relationships as immoral or a matter of mental illness will also not be tolerated.  Commenters who do so more than once -- yes, you get exactly one warning on this one -- will be exiled to Tartarus and banned from this blog.  Hey if you want to believe that, that is your right.  However, this is not the place to express such a belief.  There are plenty other websites where you are free to do so.  Feel free to visit them instead.  Quite frankly, I doubt you'd say anything on the subject that I haven't heard dozens of times before anyway.

Respect of other religious views as well as atheism and agnosticism is mandatory.  Do not diss any religion or atheism.  Do not use this blog as a platform to try and prove that your religion or atheism is better than anyone else's, let alone everyone else's.  Do not proselytize.  Feel free to tell us what you believe and even why you believe it.  But if you cross the line into telling others what they should believe or why they should believe it, your comments will be deleted.  Continue to make that mistake, and you can expect to be banned.

Do not pretend to know the mind of others better than they know it themselves.  Do not speculate about others' motivations for doing or saying something.  Do not play armchair therapist.  Accept what people are telling you as their reality.

Along those lines, do not trivialize the experiences of others or how it has impacted them.  Just because you don't think such an experience would affect you the same way or to the same degree does not mean it shouldn't affect them the way it has.  Even if you've had a similar experience and it didn't affect you the same way, don't assume that it shouldn't have affected them the way it did.  You are not them, and not everyone is like you.  Nor should everyone be like you.  If you try to make others like you, your comments will be deleted.  If you keep it up, you'll wish you had only been banished to Tartarus.

Be respectful.  Be insightful.  Be entertaining.  Be nice.  Or else.