I know folks don't like comment moderation, because they've told me. This is just a temporary thing, however, and I'll be returning to regular commenting tomorrow or the next day. Respectable exchange of ideas and links is how bloggers create a virtual community, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I even appreciate interacting occasionally with some of whom I don't agree, as long as they stay within the bounds of decency.
This week, though, I will say that it's gotten to the point where my patience and tolerance were stretched thin - it's been quite an experience.
I remember reading Ann Althouse's page some time back, and she had gone to moderation. That's generally not like her, as Althouse has a reputation as having some the most vigorous comment threads in the blogosphere. One of the commenters at the thread pretty much summed up what it's like to have a tsumami of idiots flooding your blog:
Unfortunately, when moderation is off during a siege like this, some of us have seen how it is possible for one person to create havoc by posting dozens of irrelevant, highly personal, and often harrassing posts to various threads within the space of minutes.Denial of service. That's really what it's all about. Folks should read over the Pam Spaulding's thread, as well as at Pandagon, where a lot of these crazed trolls originated.
I guess it is the blogger equivalent of a sustained denial of service attack.
I don't need to go on too much about these depraved vermin.
One of the most interesting things about all of this was not just Pam Spaulding's unhinged lies, but how the meme went from my alleged deceit and ignorance of conservative allegations of gay bestiality, to implicit allegations that conservatives engage in bestiality (here). That was followed, I kid you not, by an essay on "Donald the buffalo-humping moose," and then by a concavus chest-thumping victory dance for "for the nihilist, troll forces."
Seriously.
In any case, that's enough troll-feeding. As noted, comment moderation will be disabled soon, but I'll be deleting abusive comments and obssessive "gotchas" as they come in. If folks have a problem with American Power, they should start a blog and have a blast proving their godlessness to the world.
More later, dear readers ...
16 comments:
Is it not ironic that the left-wing that claims diversity and the free flow of information and thought are the ones that come to our blogs and troll with Daily Kos talking points? Sometimes, I think that they do not even READ the post they are ranting about. As I noted on my blog when I had to institute comment moderation-My blog, my rules!
Appreciate the track back Don, and the compliment. One piece of nonpartisan advice though: the "More later, dear readers" sign off is coming off as kind of cheesy. I'm not saying that you shouldn't have a signature for your posts but that one just doesn't sound like you. One man's opinion...
We'll suffer through it Donald, it's not your fault. Just part of the cost of being popular.
The thing of it is, having you moderate, shut down, shut up, or in any way change what you've been doing, has never been my intent.
I mean, I'm not perfectly behaved by a long-shot, but neither am I particularly abusive, either in language or in tone. When you post something, I reply to what you and/or your readership says, pretty much like any other person who comments here. The only difference I can see is, I don't stroke your ego, and don't expect a Donnie-treat ("You're so right (to agree with my every word). Thanks for posting!!") and a pat on the head in reply.
I don't wish to keep you quiet; I just wish to respond to that neocon/con/"traditionalist" vision of the world with a different perspective, and that's pretty much all I do when I comment here. While I haven't ever done a count, I'd guess that my comment frequency is not all that different from that of some of your other regulars, though I will admit that there have been particular posts where I've ended up in discussions with three or four people simultaneously, and am answering each of their comments with one of my own. On the other hand, there have also been posts where I haven't commented at all, so it all evens out...
While you claim to get e-mails from secret admirers expressing disgust for my wanton ways, one or two of your fellow conservatives have said publicly (some on this blog even, though I'll be damned if I can find any of them now) that they don't understand why you so dislike me. They think I'm as wrong as you do, but they don't see where I'm particularly mean or abusive like you claim I am. With a few exceptions (mostly return blows, rather than first strikes), I can agree with that assessment (except about that "being wrong" part, of course... 8>)
I understand that you prefer to see me as "one fruity yet obssessed, generally abusive moral relativist with an unhealthy addiction to trolling for 'gotchas' who has been commenting here", but I don't see what I do to you as being all that different from what you do yourself to other bloggers. The only difference between us is, I'm more apt to do it right here on your own blog, rather than cutting the lines to which I wish to reply from this "offending" blog, then scurrying back to my own & pasting it in, sharing my observations with my ideological peers, rather than you, the person who said the thing with which I so disagree. I have little interest in pats on the back or "a million hits" (Rule 3, is it?); I'm looking for a conversation and an exchange of ideas, and I've no problem walking into the lion's den to find it.
My American Nihilist blog is closer to what you do yourself, dealing with you & other bloggers and certain socio-political celebs with whom we disagree from afar, by link and quote. That place is built around your penchant for a particular word--rendered almost meaningless through misuse and inane repetition--that you fire off at commenter and far-off blogger or politico alike. Our blogroll is nothing more than a list of folks with blogs that you've called a "nihilist," for any reason or none, in the last 6-8 months. And like Doctor Biobrain commented at an AmNi post, I'm starting to wonder too, whether "it won't turn out that EVERYONE is a nihilist; excepting, of course, Associate Professor Donald Douglas, who is the one man of true principle in this world.", at least, if one were to ask you, anyway.
In any case, my point is, I bear you little ill will, and I certainly don't want to stop you from blogging. I would prefer that you take off the blinders and try to see the world (or at least one little tiny part of it) from another perspective, but I really don't expect you ever will. If you do, great. If not, you continue to serve as a bad example. Either way, I'm not attacking you, at least most of the time... I'm just commenting on your blog (and now, given your moderation & threats of mass deletions once you turn the moderation off, here, as well.) I'm sorry that my doing so so offends you, but I'd imagine that those you "hammer" and attempt to "take down" (assuming that they notice, given that you tend to do these things somewhat out of their sight) feel pretty much the same way about you...
The real problem is, you got caught with your proverbial pants down with that comment about gay marriage, bestiality, and the conservative penchant for linking the two, and alot of people saw your Superman underoos, and wanted to compliment you on how well you wear them. (Pam's blog is fairly large itself, and even from there, the story was caught by one or two liberal blog aggregators, spreading it yet wider.) I wouldn't like it if it happened to me, either... ...but then, I didn't make the foolish comment; I only replied to it.
"My blog, my rules!"
I don't think lefties get it, Mark. Thanks for visiting.
"Cheesy?"
JBW: Geez, and I've never made fun of that earing you've got up there ... One man's opinion...
Thanks Philippe. You're always welcomed to comment. This part is so true: "Without comments the blog dies."
"Just part of the cost of being popular."
Thanks for hanging with me, AA ...
I wish everyone (including this poster) would keep their posts relevant and without excess wordiness. If find the verbiage boring and at my age I fall asleep
at the keyboard. None of you are very exciting, except Grace Explosion, so have some pity !
I have found that by taking the comments and turning them into a post debate will usually run them off, the left cannot debate ideas.
It was long overdue. There is no way one can allow all comments and expect a productive debate. People can always create their own blogs. One reason I started my blog, several years ago, was because I didn’t want to cut & paste volumes on to other people’s blog.
Sarge Charlie said:
" ... the left cannot debate ideas ..."
No, they can't. Leftists lie, distort, impugn and do everything but actually debate on factual and ideational grounds. Look at Repsac3's comment above, which is comment spam, for a simple example of the phenomenon.
Even more interesting, is the total hypocrisy. Repsac3's the master hypocrite.
Repsac3:
You've created a blog that functions for nothing other than an attack platform against me. PrivatePigg called you out, for what you and your truly nihnilist friends do is wrong. I attack people on the basis of ideas. You call people "fucking cowards" and host slanderous essays on "Donald the Moose" who humps buffalos. Then all of you go into a victory dance at the sight of comment moderation at my blog. And you claim you're not out to intimidate?
I don't habituate your comments. I don't have FIVE BLOGS dedicated to taking you down (as you do for me). You are obssessed, and as my e-mailers routinely report, you are truly sick:
"As for repsac3, I think he has some kind of psychological problem ... a complex of some kind."
I did not get caught with my pants down, Repsac3. Nothing I said at my post has been contradicted by anything anyone's written about all of this in the last few days.
You need help, man, and it's not just in my head, with my "blinders."
Now, go somewhere else and respond to this post if you want. Leave a link here, if you like. But quit your obssessive polluting of American Power, with your deranged trolling and truly certifiable delusions.
Thanks Philippe: Of course, I'm not "bad ..."
Repsac3's not in his right mind.
Just trying to help, Don. And I have two earrings, thank you very much.
LOL...nice way to throw us a link!
And who would've guessed; we're now moderating as well! You right - meatballs wrong.(Hey,imagine that... square meatballs)
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