Is That Legal?

It seems you take a lot of comment abuse here. I didn't know law professors could rile up people so.

I'm happy to discuss ideas with anyone, anytime. But there is some sh*t I will not eat, and ungrounded pesonal abuse is tops on the list. I adopted this policy at both my work and my personal blogs: First offense, warning; second offense, banning -- no warning, no discussion, no appeal.

Since that policy has been in place -- about three months now -- my visits in both places have gone up about 50% despite a moderate (and unrelated) drop in posts.

Abusive commenters poison the atmopshere not just for themselves and the blogger, but also for innocent third parties who happen by and, perhaps, might be inclined to join the conversation if they know they won't be subjected to unwarranted grief.

Besides that, my (personal) blog might not be much, but it's mine and has been for coming up on five years. I see no reason whatever to reward abusive commenters' bad behavior with a forum that I, not they, have worked to build.

But, hey, if that approach works for Sally, more power to her.

I didn't find this to be a terribly threatening abusive comment. I found it kind of amusing and so responded in kind. If you want to see the incredibly "marxist" post that sparked such vituperation, here it is.

Not have a blog to experience insults on my own, the best thing I would to with abusive commenters is to ignore them. Spending any time on crap is a terrible waste.

There is also the abusive or racial blogger. On a group blog it's too difficult to stop reading the blog. One on one I just stop reading abusive bloggers and blogs with too many abusive commenters.

Sally: Yeah, I saw it already. One of the not-so-fun things about being a long-time Republican is coming to grips with the incredibly high levels of 1) denial and 2) projection coming from some of my political fellows. Anyone screaming "Marxist" at any attempt as mild as this to come to grips with the unsavory parts of our heritage has all the intellectual credibility of a guy putting on sunscreen before stepping out into a blizzard. And frankly, the older I get, the less time, and tolerance, I have for stupid people. Sue me. :-)

Whew, I saw my name in that comment thread and got scared for a minute :>)
Sally and I e-mailed about that post and she was very kind and helpful to me. My associative law rev article should be out soon, I hope.

Oh Ann, your comments are always welcome, never abusive! Congratulations on your article.

Of possible related interest:
http://www.nyu.edu/classes/siva/archives/003895.html

I suspect that those who ideologically disagree with Greg's comment might be more prone to find it "abusive" than those who are more sympathetic towards his point of view.;-D

I wouldn't have directly called someone a bigot individually, but the fact remains that the politically-correct elite of this country have directed a considerable amount of bigotry towards the South. I didn't find Sally's original post particularly bigoted, but Southerners are starting to grow weary of being dumped on.

Slavery has been over with since 1863. Jim Crow was officially legislated out of existence in 1964. It's time to more explicitly recognize the progress realized in that part of the country. I don't ask that we ignore history; let's just restore balance by recognizing the new reality and restore civility by replacing rhetoric with reason.

Just as one can applaud the courage of our troops in Iraq without applauding their cause, we can applaud the courage of Confederate troops during the War for Southern Independence without applauding their cause, too. Courage is always courageous regardless of where and how it's directed.

Well Anchorage Activist, I live in the South, and I can't go anythere without encountering a street, a park, a monument or a government building that commemorates the Civil War in some way. Even the street that I live on, built only none years ago, is named after a civil war figure. What about the courage of the soldiers who fought in other wars? Shouldn't it be their turn at some point?

As far as progress here, let me take you on a tour of the public schools of South Carolina, particularly in rural areas, and then we can talk.

Anc Ac, my family has been here in the South since 1719, and honestly, a great deal of the abuse directed at the South is deserved. From the ignorance of Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson in Virginia to the murder-by-nicotine that passes for an industry in North Carolina to the Beatitudes-raping attitude of the Alabama legislature and Alabama Supreme Court to the platform of the Texas GOP (seriously, go read it; it's like the Taliban with a drawl), this region is -- hell, takes pride in being -- a target-rich environment.

You don't have to like iced tea, NASCAR, black-eyed peas, butterbeans, redneck attitudes and backwards-ass economic policy to be a good Southerner. I sure as hell don't, and people like me aren't exactly rare around here. So don't believe the hype.

Dear Anchorage Activist:

First, I am a Southerner. Two of my great-great-grandfathers died in the battle of the Crater. I know a little bit about Civil War history.

Second, exactly what do you mean, in the context of this discussion, about "restoring balance"? What can you point to in my post that is incivil, that is rhetoric not reason; and what can you point to in the personal attack directed at me that is civil, that is reason not rhetoric? Of course, this is a rhetorical question. So the bigger question is, exactly where is this radical "rhetoric" you are talking about?