Note to trolls

This is my blog, not a publicly owned free-for-all; you do not have the right to consume my comments threads with flame wars. If you want to do this, you should start your own blog, where you can launch interpersonal attacks to your heart's content. Here, I expect you to add to the conversation, or leave us.

I have used my deleting tools very lightly, because I want to be welcoming, and because once you start deleting people's comments, its hard to ensure that you do so evenhandedly. However, we're in a new wave of trollery, and I'm getting complaints again. So if your comments fit any of the following models:

1) Almost all of them contain personal insults directed against another commenter

2) You find yourself posting entire comments dedicated only to expressing your dislike of other people on the thread who have NOT been making personal attacks.

3) The proofs you offer consist largely of stating that your opinions are self evidently obvious and people who disagree with you are amoral morons.

4) They provoke multiple people into complaining about your hostility

Chances are good you are a troll. And chances are better than even that in the near future, I am going to start deleting your comments and leaving snarky notes in their place.

There are plenty of commenters who disagree with me vehemently, and are also valued members of the community; if you find yourself unsure as to how to leave a comment without trolling, try asking yourself WWFD (What Would Freddie Do?). Remember, Smokey the Bear says, "Only you can prevent flame wars".