“Homeward Bound” aka “The Rules Post”

Looks like its time to give it another go. I’ll try to put something up daily, it may be a link to a single article or a link post, depending on my time available, and there seems to be some interest in having multiple contributors, which is an idea I heartily endorse and am pursuing now.

Now to the messy part, and the one that I’m sure is going to turn a few of you off: the discussion-thread rules. I know some folks are looking for surety and a place where the rules aren’t arbitrary. To that end, I’m going to codify the rules I’ve always worked under here, but haven’t really spelled out:

This is a blog about progressive news and politics, and the first two items below include ideas that are in direct opposition to progressive values,  and don’t have any place here. There are plenty of places you can discuss such topics, and we ask politely that you not post such content here, both because it’s anti-progressive and out of respect for your host(s) wishes. The second two are up for discussion and possible modification of their limits, definitions, etc. Feel free to propose any other rules you think I’ve missed.

There are only four rules, and if you’ve posted here in the past, you’ve managed to not run afoul of them, even if you didn’t know them explicitly, so I doubt anyone will be affected by them:

• No Racist/Bigoted  posts or comments. This is includes but is not limited to antisemitism, antifeminism, homophobia or any other sort of racism or bigotry.
  
• No Anti-Science posts or comments. This includes such things as anti-vaccine, “chemtrail”,  or other such anti-science beliefs. This does not include criticizing companies for their business practices.
• No personal insults launched at myself or other blog commenters. I consider this a severe offense, and banning is on the table, depending on the severity of the insults. This does not apply to public media or political personalities. Telling someone they’re wrong is not an insult.
  
• Pornography or other offensive material. This can cause crawlers to down-rank us and limit our audience reach. Not the way I want it, just the way Google wants it. Besides, no one really wants to see your junk!

Any content that conforms to the above will be removed at the moderators’ discretion, with a comment explaining the reason. A commenter would have to try, very hard, to get themselves banned, by repeatedly, deliberately, posting content listed above. If this were to happen, moderators will be 100% transparent about the reasons for banning.

What will never happen:

• No one will be banned for disagreeing with myself or anyone here.
• No one will be banned for holding any views the posting of which we discourage.
• No one will be banned or censured for posting or commenting on other sites.
• No comments, etc. will be “disappeared” without notice of why it was removed (commenters may remove their own comments at their discretion.)
• No comments will be removed merely because a moderator dislikes the opinion.  (If you think Nickleback is the best band ever, for instance.)
  

This post will be pinned to the sidebar, and available as a menu item, available always. Any changes or additions to the rules will be discussed with my commenters and implemented with their advice and consent. Well I hope these simple and sensible rules are acceptable, but if, as a commenter, you find these rules an unbearable burden, then I am saddened and will surely miss your contributions.

Thanks,
Willbur

(And now, here’s a picture of a cute kitten, for absolutely no reason whatsoever.)