Tag Archives: comments

Question about agenda-driven comments

13 Replies

You touched on some things that I have been trying to say in blogs where ever I can.

That comment was made on one of my recent posts, referring not to what I’d written, but to someone else’s comment. The exact subject matter isn’t important. I’m curious what others think of the tactic. I’ve noticed some people that go around and comment on other people’s blogs in what seems to be an agenda-driven way. That is, they have a certain issue they are passionate about, and look for every chance they can to expound on that issue… on other people’s blogs.

Is that how it should work? To my thinking, if you’ve got something that you feel needs to be said, enough that you will try and expound it on numerous blogs, it seems that you should be writing your own blog. I’ve cut off one commenter who tried to drive almost every discussion to a discussion of one particular doctrine. Was I incorrect in doing so? Shouldn’t comments follow the general topic of the post? Or am I being dictatorial in expecting everyone in The Kitchen to discuss what I want discussed?

What do you think, o gentle readers?

Comment policy… suggestions?

15 Replies

I block spam. I do at times edit comments. I delete some comments. (The vast majority of deleted comments, by the way, were written by me.)

I don’t usually moderate comments, except when certain someones are being a little too feisty and I’m going to be away from my computer for a long period of time. With a good spam filter, I see little to no reason to delay comments from going through. We’re going on four years, and this hasn’t been a problem yet.

However, listening to advice here and there, I decided to establish a comment policy, partly to make things a little less arbitrary. (Be it known, however, that I do consider myself to be the arbiter here. I’ll try to be reasonable, but in the end, I will make the decisions regarding what goes on in The Kitchen)

So what should I put in said comment policy? The standard stuff about profanity, spam, etc. seems unnecessary, but I may put it in. My number one rule is that you will not be abusive to other commenters. I want this to be a safe place to express ideas. I’m not always good at that, but I try.

What other guidelines should be in place?