There was a time when the Internet was the Wild West.
It was a new frontier and no one was exactly sure what it was or where it was going.
But there was a lot of optimism about the Brave New World and what it meant for the democratizing of commentary. Power to the People, and all that.
We were down with that and we embraced the new ethos with enthusiasm and the commitment we thought necessary to see it through.
We’re here to tell you that this noble experiment, with regard to our comment sections, surely has proven itself.
It has proven itself a failure.
The idea that readers would police themselves and discipline those who broke an unspoken etiquette was hopelessly naïve.
Our comment section descended into the sewer.
We stayed the course as long as we could stomach it. But we can’t stomach it any longer.
Effective immediately, any comment that, in our judgment, is intended to insult, belittle or deride a commentator will not be approved.
Our goal is to create a constructive community and a place where readers want to go to read and be heard, without fear of reprisal. In short, a marketplace of ideas rather than a battlefield of ad hominem attack.
We will do the best we can to referee fairly.
We are committed to building an intelligent and respectful community of comment.