Rules for commenting and moderation on my work
Unfortunately, we appear to live in a world where explicit rules and guidelines are increasingly needed. "Civility" is no longer a common word in people's vocabulary, and disagreements are feared, become polarized, and lead to hasty and extreme reactions.
Here are rules and general statements of intent for (first) posters and (second) myself, with regards to comments on my work.
For those posting comments/responses
1) Above all else, if I tell you that something isn't allowed, do not repeat the behavior.
2) No language that is commonly understood to be attacking/offensive, intended for self-promotion, or spam is allowed.
3) When criticizing or making suggestions, try to word things clearly and positively. This can be hard sometimes. Don't seat it; just keep this in mind.
4) Check this list before making another comment, because the rules or statement of intent may be updated.
Statement of intent:
Be thoughtful with regard to what you are posting and how others may respond to it. Aim for civility, clarity, and fairness. It's a good idea to write something, take a break, and then re-evaluate your response before posting.
For me
1) Above all else, when a commenter says that you are being unfair or are wrong about something, double-check your sources, arguments, expectations, and assumptions
2) Follow the intent of the rules & statement for commenters
3) Follow this order of actions for moderating responses:
+ Explain why a comment was questionable or inappropriate/unwanted - wait up to a day or two for a response if the comment isn't a big problem [Educate first!]
+ Ask that commenters change their own responses if the text is problematic - wait up to a day or two for a response [Enable people to show their character.]
+ Edit a comment to remove problematic language but keep their sentiments clear (rather than deletion) when possible [Preserve the posts.]
+ Delete comments when problems are extreme or dominate the post [Remove posts that contradict the intents of the above rules & statement.]
4) Allow commenters to make arguments for why their posts should be fine/viewed as acceptable, and thoughtfully evaluate their words. [Engage personally and carefully.]
5) Offer to discuss issues in private. [No one needs to worry about being embarrassed during an ongoing discussion.
6) Do not ban commenters from posting unless they post multiple comments in violation of the rules. [Recognize that people sometimes make mistakes, may eventually agree to the rules while disagreeing with your beliefs and statements, and might change their minds about issues of contention in the future.]
7) Do not make public the names of commenters whose posts you have deleted. [Don't be a jerk. If disagreements can't be settled, all related posts should be removed in order to help people more easily purge feelings of negativity.]
Statement of intent:
Don't be quick to take action. Focus on working things out so that both parties feel that they don't have to worry about further conflict - even if they disagree about some things.
