Preparing to launch a “flame”.
A couple of things have happened this week that has made me look at this blog just a bit differently than in the past.
- I’ve had to ask for help for the very first time in moderating comments as I’ve run out of hours in the day. Thanks Jeez.
- I’ve had one of the most stressful weeks ever in trying to juggle all the workload with this blog, including a wildland fire that has made 5 of my 6 employees absent today. The phones are quiet at the moment and nothing had broken (yet) in our 50 or so servers.
- The realization that I’m going to have half a million unique page views this month
- Some very rude and juvenile comments were posted as of late by anonymous commenters, some of which I’ve simply deleted wholesale. Some I’ve banned. The trend for this has been upwards.
- I’m not getting other important work done, such as getting the surfacestations.org database updated as new stations are surveyed, and I need to deploy my Stevenson Screen paint experiment again. One of the screens has been damaged my a recent windstorm (knocked over, anchors pulled out).
- I’m falling behind in email correspondence.
As I review my time, I find that a good portion of it goes towards managing this blog. It has become a hungry insatiable animal. While I have no lack of material for postings, doing the moderation/management is becoming a bit much. It is often irritating as well as time consuming.
Faced with a choice of giving up blogging (as Roger Pielke did for awhile) turning off comments altogether (as Roger Pielke did when he returned to blogging) or changing the way comments are handled, I’m considering the latter.
One of the things that has always bothered me about blogging and commentary is that the “anonymous cowards” (as Slashdot calls them) generally have the upper hand. Science bloggers like Tamino and Eli Rabbet fall into the “anonymous coward” category, as do many of the rude posters here and elsewhere. Some like “Dano” and “TCO” have whole careers based on snark. Who are they? I don’t know/don’t care, as they are irrelevant. But, they waste everybody’s time nonetheless.
Being anonymous or using a handle allows you to say any stupid, hateful, inciting, derogatory, or otherwise negative thing you want and have no accountability for your actions. At the same time, your opinion or writings is generally worthless as it can’t be verified. Anonymity IMHO, serves only the purpose to allow bad behaviour while protecting oneself or one’s reputation from any real damage.
On the other hand, people that put their name out there with their work or writings, such as John Coleman, Roger Pielke, Joe D’aleo, Basil Copeland, John Goetz, Steve McIntyre, David Smith, Evan Jones, Jim Goodridge, Warren Meyer, and many others (I’m sorry if I missed anyone), including myself, often get viciously criticized for putting their word and reputation on the line every day for writing something they believe in.
The “anonymous cowards” that publish blogs or comments take no such risks when they criticize or challenge. They can work for NASA, be a member of the IPCC, work for a science organization, be a professor at a university, and can taunt, castigate, or criticize in any tone they wish, all without risk to their professional or private reputation.
So today, when I got some angry anonymous comments, one of which came from a NASA employee (which I know because WordPress.com automatically puts the source IP next to each comment, that’s not something I had to search for) it made me think about “why am I taking all the risks”?
Peilke and D’Aleo solved the problem by turning off comments. I like comments because they give myself and others new perspectives, but I don’t like the easy “drive by vitriol” that sometimes springs forth from anonymity. The commenter “MA” recently provided an example of the worst sort of that.
My father, God rest his soul, always told me to “stand behind my words”. I do that, by putting my name on everything that publishes here. I’ve taken a lot of heat for doing so.
So I’m considering this:
Change of policy – all commenters must use their real name and have valid reachable email. The name would be published, the email would not.
Sure, that will anger some folks, but at the same time it will also force those that wish to comment to choose their words carefully, to act responsibly, and to be courteous of others. It will also cut down on the volume of comments that need moderation.
I figure if you have something to say, and what you have to say is useful, factual, and important enough to add to the discussion, you’ll have no problem putting your name to it. Right?
Ok have at it. I’ll make a decision next week.
While the decision is completely yours, Anthony, there is a good reason for remaining anonymous. There are a lot of crazies out there who WILL look someone up and do things to them. While the odds might be up there with lightning striking you, it has been known to happen.
I agree with you, it is after all your blog and you can do what you like. Go for it.
If I were named John Smith it would take no guts to put my name down.
Top this anybody: Steven Stanley Stipulkoski 🙂
When they come to take me away, I won’t be hard to find.
Thank you for this blog. I am constantly blown away by considering the amount of work to produce this public service. I think the comments are a good source of expanded and tangental thought regarding the topic when they are not just an emotional opinion, eg. MA. Do whatever you need to in order to make your life easier. You have set a high bar for the honest exchange of information. It is people with your level of integrity that make the world a better place to be in.
I’ve seen your blog posted on the Hawt Post section many times, but never came to visit.
Personally, I think it’s a shame that “comment bullies” feel they can have the upper hand and feel the need “get their jollys” by ridiculing someone else’s viewpoints/standards/ideas and ideals, in the meantime staying anonymous to protect what dignity they have left. Interacting with commenters is the bread and butter of blogging and generally misunderstood by the unblogging community as a whole. Then again, they are very few in number these days.
Great place, I’ll be visiting again.
I would prefer some sort of registration process tied to a real name, etc.
I’d like to keep my current handle.
Real first name, real email address. really in Calgary.
Full names is fine by me. Anything so long as you keep this great blog going.
Mister Watts, do what ever you like, but never stop your blog. Cut off the comments altogether, registration whatever, but go on with your good work.
Thousand thanks,
Freddie, Switzerland
Anthony –
On many sports blogs, registration is a required barrier to comment. While you can still use a handle, you must provide your real name and a real email that must be verified by responding to a bounce back email. In the profile that is set up, the commenter can choose to let others see their real name and/or email when clicking on the handle. When someone from a rival team attempts to register and then post an obviously inflammatory comment, that account is banned (and assumably the IP address gets flagged). I am not sure how much time that would take initially, but once set up and running it could allow for most comments to be “trusted” from those that always follow the rules that you establish.
However, if you have to turn off comments and just post stuff like they do at ICECAP, then I am sure we will all understand. All-in-all, I like the ability to comment, but hate the trolls that offer up random papers and then state “show me where I am wrong.”
there are always a-holes in the world, its just best to brush ’em off your shoulder and keep on trudging on
Hang in there.
I have witnessed the worst in humanity.
Best wishes.
Wells
If you don’t want to put your name to a comment you cannot expect anyone to give it credence. So don’t send it, and if you do send, don’t expect someone else to publish it for you.
Just seems common sense to me.
How could anyone object?
Denis
The main point is the subject of the post and maybe you could put the comments into two categories (serious and non-serious). Keeping out the warmers is a mistake you will be doing exactly what they are doing to skeptics etc. For example RC has no link to CA. This weakens the position of RC because most serious sites link to CA.
I don’t think he wants to exclude contrary points of view. He just wants to clear out the guttersnipes.
Refinements to my earlier comments.
I recommend registration. I recommend it be automated with email response so admins/mods do not have to approve registration manually. Use capchkas to filter out ‘bots. This would reduce labor requirements.
I recommend filtering out all free email accounts, yahoo, gmail, hotmail, etc. A banned troll would need to keep registering domains or use another effort-consuming endeavor to break in repeatedly and it will not be worth it to them. It will take the troll ten times as much effort to get in as it will take us to ban them again. The asymmetry of this will greatly reduce labor on our end and quickly discourage trolls. Comcast, Shaw, ATT and other consumer email addresses would be allowed.
Posts need not be premoderated (or perhaps posts from users who have passed a probationary period). This can speed up the pace of discussions and again reduce labor.
Anthony
The concern of some of us at universities and research institutions that if we used our real names what we write could later be used against us is geniune. One of my geology professor colleagues at another university had disciplinary action launched against him by an AGW’er student who wasn’t happy with the lack of emphasis on the GW ‘doomsday’ in his lectures.
Is there some way you could check out those of us at universities or research institutions once (most of us have websites) and put us on an ‘approved’ list (or not) but not use our full names for publication on the blog?
I think your new policy is a good one. I read your blog regularly and really appreciate the cogent comments (both supportive and questioning) by your readers and associates. The “snark” detracts and wastes everyone’s time!
Keep up the good work. Full name fine for most.
Suggest selective pseudonyms where posting would jeopardize jobs, risk violence etc. BUT require full name, address, & phone to verify to quality for select few who need it.
Anthony and/or jeeztheadmin, my full name is in my e-mail address. Is that good enough?
Anthony,
I agree with your new policy. Why should we have to waste our time reading stuff that people are not willing to stand behind by using there real name. Snarky crap just wastes people time. Snarky crap by anonymous coward is a waste of band width.
Russ
jeeztheadmin,
Not letting users use “free” mail accounts would cut me out. I use gmail. I could come up with another email account, but I like gmail.
I think this just shows that there is no one, perfect, solution. If I understand Anthony’s problem and concern, I think handing off moderation to a group of trusted individuals would take care of the problem. I participate in a forum associated with a particular individual with pretty high standards and this person gives his moderators full reign to snip, ban those who violate policies, etc. What is different about this venue is that in a forum the post is typically posted, and if is inappropriate it gets cut. Here, with moderation, offending posts would never see the light of day.
Does WordPress support registration, or can that be tacked on? I’m okay with registration, but if it is automated, I’m not sure that will fully address the issue; moderation will still be needed.
I appreciate the support Anthony has received from those who will continue to support the blog even if he turns off comments altogether. I will too. But I agree whole heartedly with those who see the free exchange of ideas in comments as constructive and educational, and would hate to see that disappear.
I’m ambivalent about prohibiting aliases or screen names. I use my own name here, but I’ve used nicknames elsewhere. I think the concerns that some have about using their real names are genuine and valid, though. The abusers obviously hide behind their anonymity, but that is not the only reason for anonymity, so I don’t think requiring real names should be a mandate.
Again, I think the best solution will be handing off the task of moderation to others, so Anthony can concentrate on news postings, his work on surfacestations.org, making a living, and getting on with life. He’s created an interesting community here, and I hope it continues, and isn’t scuttled by the incredible bitterness and pettiness that some bring to the discussion the topics covered by this blog.
Basil
Anthony:
You probably haven’t read all this massive outpouring of advice, but if you get this far, I would suggest that their country be added to their name. On this site, and on SC24, I’ve seen references to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain, Mexico, Germany, Norway, and the USA – truely an international group.
Tom in Texas (still in USA).
oops… just saw Switzerland above.
Thank you for the enormous effort in maintaining the blog. I read it nearly every day. It is surely your prerogative to do whatever seems to limit the workload.
My real name, by the way, although not complete name.
eeztheadmin (14:58:03)
“I recommend filtering out all free email accounts, yahoo, gmail, hotmail, etc.:”
Do you have an idea of the percentage of posters using free email accounts? The percentage of unacceptable posts coming from such accounts? I would suspect that abusive and inconsiderate posts do not come from fixed e-mail providers, and certainly not from university or research institute ones.
If it is so, it can be easier to monitor, putting more stringent requirements to free addresses.