The Bully Pulpit

I just had to say something about the new commenting system at the ER ... no anonymous comments.

I used to agree. As a reporter, obviously I grew sick of savage bastards calling my mother a whore and other things when I wrote a story about some meth head getting arrested. Now I welcome it.

Just kidding. But seriously, a newspaper Web site can drive itself nuts policing all the comments that come in, or they can clamp down entirely and ruin what has become one of the most prolific forums for free speech in the modern age. But there is a third path: I prefer the Topix system, predictably, in that it allows the commenters to police themselves. If someone posts something offensive, and three people report it as such, we take it down. If a particular forum gets so out of hand that it can't be so easily controlled, then we shut down that particular forum.

But anonymity, while painful at times, allows a level of honesty that isn't available otherwise. Therefore, we'll be keeping our comment system as is. Comment away, but know that if you piss of too many of your peers, you're likely to be taken down.