So as not to go off topic in another post I’m going to create a post regarding my comment policy.
No anonymous comments.
I may let some fly but most I delete. Sometimes I acknowledge the comment I deleted, sometimes I don’t, and delete it forever so it doesn’t even register.
I have various reasons for my policy, but let me point out four:
1. My blog. As in I own it. Please do not confuse this with public space as it isn’t. I’ve created a space, which in all honesty was for the sheer entertainment of 5 people. And if I’m playing hostess, I’d like to know who my guests are.
2. Tone. I’ve noticed that sites that allow anon comments, no questions, can get fairly nasty. Not that InShaw has been free of such nastiness, it is just that I can put a cap on it or steer it in another direction. Also I truly believe that people will think before they post if they have to sign a name to it, thus moderating their tone.
3. Clarity. There was a post long time ago where there were at least two different anon posters. This was confusing to me and annoying.
4. Quirk. I just don’t like anonymous posts. They get on my nerves. I find them somewhat annoying on other people’s blogs, but other people can do what they want.
Yes, I recognize that by saying yes to my policy I’m saying no to some other things. One poster commenting on the comment policy mentioned privacy. Well, the thing is your IP address is tracked here by one of those buttons I put on the blog. I put it there to see how local my audience is, beyond those 5 people. If you want to be undercover, get AOL, Comcast, Quest, or Verizon and read the blog from home because a dozen regulars come from those IPs, so you can hide in the crowd. Or subscribe to the feed via some RSS aggregator like Bloglines, which I use to keep track of over 50 blogs & podcasts. Second, I don’t demand real names. I probably never will. I will demand that you pick an identity. Call yourself Bob, Jane Doh!, HRH Queen of Caffeine, the Raj of 9th St, whatever. However names like Phallic Cheney, or cruder, no. Anyway, my real name isn’t spelled Mari, and technically, legally, according to the woman in Personnel who wasn’t being particularly helpful, the name that EVERYONE calls me… apparently not my real name. Well, according to her.
Since I’m on the topic of Internet IDs, cultivate your real name in the places it should be. Also be aware of those other people who share your name. There is a woman running around with the simplified version of my name selling real estate in Seattle. When you throw in the initial, then it is pretty much 90% me, 85% in the right places, such as the history/ library/info sciences forums, things I’ve created for work, on lists of participants for conferences, etc. Your mamma might of given you a stupid middle name but thank her, because my friend Dr. So N Soh, PhD (obviously not his real name) who dabbles in SubjX as an amateur, keeps getting mixed up with Dr. So Han Soh, PhD who does SubjX as his profession. And there is a Dr. So Soh, MD, but he lives in Atlanta and there is little chance of confusion.