Someone posted a poll on College Misery (in the upper right-hand corner) titled "Should ANYONE Be Allowed to Comment?" The overwhelming majority at this point have posted yes. I did not, but for this reason:
There was a problem with "anyone" posting when the blog started just a few short weeks ago with people posting nasty "anonymous" comments. The solution was to make people sign in with some sort of account. For the most part, it worked. Nasty, inappropriate comments dropped dramatically...or, at least, now had a name attached to them. Many people have opened multiple accounts (or just use them as a matter of course) but at least we all have some idea who is posting what. Trends are obvious. Affinities are obvious. I have a collection of people whose comments and posts I look forward to reading. I like knowing (at least via semi-reliable pseudonym) who is saying what to whom.
Do I think comments should be exclusive to members of the blog? Absolutely not. I have no desire to be part of some little private club where we can all pat ourselves on the back because we agree with one another. Ick.
Do I think just "anyone" should be able to leave a drive-by comment without going through the hassle of signing in and letting everyone know who they (pseudonymously) are? Nope. It's well-known in blogging and forum posting that sign-in requirements reduce disruptive trolling and general spamming. And that's why I voted no.
I wonder what specific thoughts everyone else has about this matter.
UPDATE: As three posts below indicate, it's easy to pretend to be someone else in blog commenting. This indicates to me that the blog is probably doomed. :/
Is this due to my response to your comments on a post? I hope not. If so, just because I don't want to join the club doesn't make me a troll. I did sign in, albeit with an old Blogspot account. And I am not really going to create a new one just so I don't seem to like a drive-by to you. This is especially true given the frequency with which I really feel the need to comment. I am content, for the most part, to read and leave the comments to much funnier folk than me. I like to think folks here aren't thin-skinned, and would definitely find a better waste of my time if they are. Maybe TMZ or Smoking Gun, lots of snowflake action to laugh about there.
ReplyDeleteI read this post as objecting only to anonymous commenters, who are already blocked. And I agree that anonymous commenters should be blocked; that sieves out 98% of the random meanness.
ReplyDeleteBut I read the question itself to mean "should we disallow all comments entirely?" And I don't think we should. I'm enjoying reading the comments as much as I'm enjoying reading the initial posts. Just, no anonymous commenters, please; that's just asking for trouble.
@Merely Academic - There was a short while the other day when anonymous commenting was unlocked again, and people took advantage of it. And the anonymous comments contributed nothing to the discussion, just things like, "Your [sic] a lousy fucking teacher" and nothing else.
ReplyDeleteI do think people should be required to sign in in some way ("in in" - is that right?), whether it is through Blogger, TypePad or whatever. People will still be snarky/bitchy, but having to sign in will more than likely cut back on the pointless nasty comments and spam.
this morning I see that the vote has tightened to 39 (Y) and 31 (N). But my real question is, are there only 70 votes? why would we worry about who comments if there's only 70 people reading the page a day?
ReplyDeleteI've attempted to clarify the "comment" poll that went up yesterday by replacing it with 2 related questions.
ReplyDeleteSure, posters should be allowed to comment. I don't care about the meaningless nasty shallow responses; I skip them and read the meat and potatoes.
ReplyDeleteWhat I absolutely do not want is student bloggers here -- no snowflakes generating posts! Proffieflakes, yes. They're entertaining. TAs? Sure. They teach (some of them teach a lot) and supervise students.
Undergrad snowflakes? No. In the comments section, it's probably unavoidable. But their take on the academy, as given in original posts? No. Absolutely not. I don't give a single solitary shit about it -- not here. Do I care IRL? Sure, and I'm certain most of us do. But as this site has risen from the ashes of RYS, I say let the snowflakes go to RYP and have at it. I don't go to RYP and pee in their clubhouse; they should stay out of ours.