A Quick Note on Comments
I just wanted to give you the heads up that I have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to comments I would not want to associate with online. I support free speech and free expression but there are limits. I’ve been running a website for 22 years and I have always maintained a fairly strict comment policy. I’ve been online a long time. I know how dark it can get.
That said, I’ve had to permaban a few users of late for crossing that line. I must take responsibility for everything on this Substack, including the comments. I don’t always see them or read them but I notice if something is off the rails. If you are being attacked or someone has crossed the line, let me know.
I’m not anti-gay or anti-trans or anti-Jew or anti-Black, none of those things. The Left has taken sensitivity to words too far, without a doubt. But I hope that doesn’t boomerang back in the other direction. The last thing we need is actual Nazis. If you’re using an obviously bigoted slur against someone else you will be banned.
That said, I wanted to thank you all for the lovely Birthday wishes a couple of weeks ago. I said thank you on the podcast but for those who don’t listen, thank you. It was such a nice thing to read and I so appreciate your kindness best wishes.
I’m working on a piece that I should have posted in a day or so.
I'm guessing this was spurred by my comment about Dachshunds being the superior canine and that all other breeds might as well be cats.
I can see now how that could be insensitive to both (inferior breed) dog and cat owners, as well as furies.
I'll strive to be better.
I dunno, I'm absolutely for free speech, the first amendment, the agon & dialectic that need to be gone through to reach the truth, but with that said, there are ethical standards that govern participation within both family & community and we all know inherently, intuitively, in the gut that we need to respect boundaries and the dignity of every person & that bullying, slurs, mockery, bigotry, & cruelty just have no place. As we know, all of the hardest & most complex things in life can be said without any of that & without impugning another's character. If we each can't hold ourself to the fundamental standard of basic cordiality & decency, we'll maybe we just don't get the floor. That's not denying anyone their rights or freedom. Isn't it just acknowledging that there are some simple basic patterns that pertain to social life & the public space to which we all need to adhere? Isn't this why the study of manners has an ethical dimension? Laws of hospitality, proper patterns of engagement... Thank you, Sasha, for keeping this space cordial.