Beginning today, Friday, September 29, OB Rag administrators will enforce the Comment Policy that has been on the books since 2010. We hope this will keep out the trolls. Commenters who’ve been making comments here for weeks, months or longer will not be affected.
For the last months or so, we’ve had a very lax attitude about new commenters and gave folks the benefit of the doubt that they would not stray off the page and violate our very reasonable standards. We’ve always had trolls, people who come on to the site and stir the pot up on whatever issue with their comments.
Recently, there’s been an outbreak in troll comments and we just need to tighten up some. Starting today, we’ll only accept and publish comments that do not have a bogus email address — see below. In other words, in order for a comment to be posted, the commenter must disclose their true identify to the administrators — and no one else. Email addresses will not be posted with the comments. As long as a valid email address is included, commenters may use an anonymous “public” name.
Here’s part of our Comment Policy:
It’s our sandbox. We reserve the right to moderate the comments made to this site according to our values, which include respecting diverse opinions and diverse backgrounds, as long as they are respectful of the writers and visitors of this site. You can disagree with someone and be civil. We also reserve the right to close comments on a post at any time.
Getting to know you. The first time you comment here your comment will go into moderation, so please don’t repost. Once it has been approved your subsequent comments will appear right away as long as you use the same name and email address. Change your email or use a different name, you go back to moderation. If you leave an obviously bogus email address or hide behind a user-name that serves to bring attention to someone other than yourself, don’t expect to see your comment posted.
Stay focused, respectful, truthful. We will delete comments that are abusive, off-topic, use excessive foul language, include personal attacks or include intentionally misleading or false information.
It’s a shame that stuff like this is rampant. If it were up to me, everyone posting on any public media would be required to use their real names. That would put a big damper on the idiots.
Is it much more expensive to change to a user ID and password system?
Yes, but at least you know who you are dealing with, while I have no idea who I’m dealing with. Whatsoever.
Like many before you, it seems you entirely missed the point of my reference. No surprise.
With the rise of violent MAGA Fascists egged on by Trump, like what has happened at his rallies, or from his social media threats who can look up addresses on the internet and then go to people’s houses to attack them; or doing that fun guns-out kick in the doors & windows SWAT raid with a bogus 911 call (as a huge majority of cops are authoritarian GOP/MAGAT voters anyway love doing this judging by their reported actions). So it probably isn’t a real bright idea to use the name that is on your driver’s license as this can easily lead to people shooting at your house or, you know, actually breaking in and hitting you with a hammer.
Somehow I don’t think this is going to get any better in the next year, ya know? Even if the ex-president does end up in jail (like I would if I cheated on my taxes like he did), I expect some seriously bizarre and very unhinged reactions from the cultists that adore their dear leader. He goes to jail and they go bonkers. Good, *uck ’em and the horse they rode in on (probably Ronnie Reagan’s horse!).
So I’m against using the first/last ‘real’ names that leave one open to retaliation. This country has gone loony, Geoff.
Besides, the websites know everybody’s emails and therefore have a link to the actual person using it. Unless, of course, they’ve done some internet trickery and have multiple sham accounts but most people don’t bother.
sealintheSelkirks
Wait… did someone delete those comments? I was going to come and yell at whoever posted them, what gives?
They violated our comment policy.
Okay, what’s going on with this? My comment is in the ‘recent comments’ list to the right but erased from here. How does this work again?
sealintheSelkirks