No such thing as a "harmless fool".

On the blog I'm no longer allowed to comment on (well, the most recent such, anyway) there is a tendency to allow commenters to present "arguments" that have been thorougly debunked sometimes in the very thread that they've just popped up in by other commenters with varying levels of probity, head-shaking bemusement, sarcasm and levity.


There is a concern for "civil discourse" which outweighs the concern for actually requiring that commenters who are making the same "argument"--with no basis in fact and an obvious lack of concern for the truth--not deliberately obfuscate, equivocate or simply tell lies.

My well known antipathy for liars and their enablers is not the issue, here. The issue is; What can be done to stop liars from dominating conversations, derailing threads, sowing discord  and otherwise turning the process of commenting into a shitstorm of "Fuck you, you fucking fucker!" jabs and counter punches?

I don't propose banning people for saying things I don't like, or for using a lot of profanity and intemperate remarks. What I do propose, for those who are serious about the blogs being places for discussion instead of name calling and shouting, is that they pay at least as much attention to the comments that are "civil" and, simultaneously, completely (and often deliberately) untrue.

If the truth is less important than civility, we are truly and deeply fucked.

I have moderated my comments here for quite some time. It's not because I actually give a damn what some troll thinks of me. It's also not because of their bluster and threats. It's because I prefer not to have to check my blog on a frequent basis to see what some hate-filled idiot has decided is required of him to post--so he can salve his wounded ego.

I saw the news about the moronazi in VA who decided that running his car into a crowd of Anti-fa demonstrators was the best way to make his point that he's a better person, 'cuz WHITE and PatriotiKKK.

Shortly afterwards, I went to a blog and saw this:

"If he's a domestic terrorist so is BLM and Antifa. They've each caused more death and destruction than this guy."

posted by Ghetto Tarzan.

I am virtually certain that the guy is completely full of shit, but I did ask for citations. And, now, rereading his comment I have to go back and edit MY comment to reflect that I will still need citations to check his math.

The level of politesse, here or anywhere else is of little concern to me if the truth is the first casualty of such policies.