Comment Rules

There is a lot of information here, and some differences of opinon are to be expected. We don’t want to overburden site visitors with rules, but sensible guidelines for posting never hurt. Here are the two rules you need to follow. They basically boil down to being civil, though the anonymity of the Internet frequently makes it easy for people to avoid doing so.

Rule #1: Be nice. This is an opinion blog, and a place where people can and should argue passionately for their point of view if it differs from that of the authors. But there’s a difference between arguing with passion and arguing with hostility. If you can’t find a way to express your viewpoint without insulting other commenters, or getting strident and self-righteous — say, equating your opinion with fact, and deriding other people for not seeing the truth of your words — then either tone down your words until they’re more respectful to other people, or don’t comment. Talk about the article content, not other posters.

Rule #2: We reserve the right to unapprove, remove or edit any comments posted on this site which do not adhere to Rule #1.