Do you want the ability to control comments in your blogs?

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Do you want the ability to control comments in your blogs?
by Anonymouse
27-Sep-2010
 

I was planning to write a blog today and suggest once again that Mr. Javid allow us the ability to control and delete the comments in our blogs and noticed that Shazdeh beat me to it!  But that’s ok I’ll write mine as a poll question and ask that you please vote Yes or No to this poll question:

Do you want the ability to control comments in your blogs?

Please use the comments section below and cast your Yes or No vote in the subject line.  You can add your rationale in the body of the comment if you wish (or write your own blog) but please vote and I’ll tally the votes later this week and provide it here.  Mr. Javid has provided a shabdol-azimi tarof that he’ll consider it for future but having a poll and some votes would help him decide one way or another.

This suggestion would not apply to Articles, just Blogs and News items since we have the ability to edit and/or delete our Blogs but not Articles and this is clearly stated in the procedures when you sign up and I think it is ok.

It is true that i.com is Mr. Javid’s house and he can do whatever he wants.  However, we “rent” the blog section (also known as the belog section :-) from him and we “pay” him with our contributions.  So I think it is only fair that we decide who should be our “guest” in our “rented apartment”. 

Should Mr. Javid tell us; let this guy stay in your place for a while and the guest may have more guests of his own so prepare for that as well and send me a flag if something goes wrong?

Obviously something will go wrong and I think we can all agree that things certainly do go wrong and the problem is that Mr. Javid does not see the wrong as some of us do.  It depends what your definition of the word “is” IS! He says that personal attacks will not be tolerated but if the “guest” gift wraps the attack, it’ll be tolerated.  Here are some examples, some made by a self-proclaimed guilty party:

- You write a piece about being Iranian-American and want to discuss the loyalties between the two countries, when the first comment you receive lashes at you for being an “exile”.

- You are an Iran Iraq war veteran and want to write a piece to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the start of the war and discuss your memories and Islamic Republic’s behavior during the war with fellow Iranians when an internet trolls asks you for the detail of your service and if you don’t respond he’ll throw a tantrum and calls you a fraud and more.

- You want to write a piece about Bahai’s participation in the constitutional revolution when a self-proclaimed Bahai basher lashes at you for having such thoughts.

Now if we’re given the ability to control the comments in our blogs, like other sites do, some of the above bloggers in those examples may choose to keep those comments.  Not everyone is the same and one size does not fit all.  However, we will know that the blogger had an option and made a choice to allow the “gift wrapped” personal attack or an irrelevant or off topic comment to stay.

The attackers have a choice to say whatever they want in response to a particular blog in their own space and their own writing in a separate blog if there is dying desire to do so.  No one is stopping them. Mr. Javid will have overall control of the comments or close a blog for further comments as he does already.

I should also mention that I wouldn’t want the comment control option if the IP address of the bloggers is identified as a result.  Other sites (Blogspot, Wordpress or Huffington post to name a few) allow the commentators IP addresses to be shown but in the past i.com’s admin has stated that the IP address can remain hidden and not disclosed.

The argument that Mr. Javid provides is to be the “bigger person” and “ignore” them.  But why should we?  Why should we be “treated” with an “anti-Iran” comment by an internet troll?  What did the bloggers in the examples I provided do wrong?  All they did was to contribute to this website in good faith.  The guilty parties are the ones being rewarded by getting a free pass to do this again and in more blogs.

I sincerely appreciate Mr. Javid’s work and responsibilities and I think he’d admit that since going to an all registered forum i.com has become much better and his own workload (on anonymous comments staying in his approval queue) has been reduced by at least 80%.  So let’s take this other step and make it better and easier.  i.com can do better.  At least tell us why not?  If it is democracy or practicing it, well there are laws under democracy and the most important part of the democracy is the rule of law and not applying it selectively.

This blog got longer that I wanted to so I leave you with the poll question once again with a Yes or No vote option and we can discuss more if you like.  Please vote!

Do you want the ability to control comments in your blogs?

-----------------------------

Update: Oct 3, 2010

Let's keep the voting open so others can still vote.  I'll keep the voting open until we are free at last!  Free at last! Thank god almighty we're free at last, to delete comments in our blogs!

------------------------------

Update: Oct 5, 2010

This blog was blocked by Mr. Javid apparently because some users couldn't sit still!  You see if I had the option to control comments in my own blog I'd have deleted the comments that caused this blocking by the Editor.  To all who voted NO and worried about censorship, take a look at the end result of this one example.  Censorship for ALL not just a few users.  I once deleted a numerous commented blog of mine which made some unhappy.  Having my blog blocked here is there a difference?

Anyway I'm eliminating two other users' votes because they couldn't sit still either or as Mr. Javid would call it who couldn't "ignore" it :-)  To those who'll say the voting was a sham and no one should be eliminated, etc., I'd say take it easy!   Final tally is 7 YES and 23 NO.

Oh well at least I got to say the last word! 

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more from Anonymouse
Shazde Asdola Mirza

Hey, what happened to my vote?

by Shazde Asdola Mirza on

Anyhooo, based on the long-standing tradition of Iranian elections of the past 100 years ... the YES wins!


Anonymouse

Final count -------------->> 17.125 NO and 6 YES <<-------------

by Anonymouse on

I'm also counting maziar58's YES vote in another blog.   

Everything is sacred


Anonymouse

DK jaan thank you for your YES vote and interesting links.

by Anonymouse on

Interesting links you got there!  Payvand doesn't allow comments anymore so you may want to consider going back.  It is a tough job monitoring all the comments and many abuse it.  Again this is why I gave credit in this blog and my comments to JJJ for what he does who has stayed with it.  Otherwise we'd be back to the old i.com

We all live with it but is it really not necessary.  None of these NO votes seem to want to answer me about whether they're worried about themselves deleting (too many or too little or none) comments or others? 

Everything is sacred


Darius Kadivar

Anon jaan

by Darius Kadivar on

Only if I cannot respond back ... Yes !

Otherwise I really don't mind although when it comes to some of my creative blogs with no particular political statement intended and I see irrelevant provocative comments aimed merely by malice than anythingelse it can be sometimes irritating to read them given that often those blogs are addressed to non Iranians who wish to learn about our cultural bonds with the West.

Some of my articles have been referenced in books like WE ARE IRAN by Nasrin Alavi

Or in Wikipedia as for this particular article

Iranian Pioneers in French New Wave Cinema by Darius KADIVAR


which I only published on PersianMirror because it doesn't allow comments.

I have since stopped writing even for payvand.com where I contributed regularly before they included a comments section and only got slanderous provocative reactions including from the former capt_ayhab under a different pseudonym aimed merely at pressuring the editors of payvand not to publish me.

Fortunately payvand ignored those slanders but I just felt It was not worth the energy if one is merely to get insults or provocative comments after trying hard to please the readers.

I don't mind answering people on specific questions when they contact me personally by email on a specific contribution but when their aim is merely to destroy or distract attention from the subject at hand it can become annoying.

I have learned to live with it ...

 

 


Anonymouse

Final vote tomorrow, so far 17.125 NO and 4 YES

by Anonymouse on

Everything is sacred


reza007

yes and add

by reza007 on

thumb up...thumb down or you like it....you don't like it..to comments


Anonymouse

VPK I'm glad ur finally leaving it at "that". Thank u 4 ur vote.

by Anonymouse on

Everything is sacred


Veiled Prophet of Khorasan

Anonymouse

by Veiled Prophet of Khorasan on


Stop the jumping from one point to another and try to focus and notice the points and what the words really mean.

I will post and make my points as I see fit. Individual readers will be deciding for themselves if they like my posts or not.

Case and point the same sex marriage arguement that it is now going tothe Supreme Court. As you know the majority has "voted" to deny samesex marriage. In the past the same "voting" process was used to denyminorities from other rights.

In that case the majority was *taking away* a right. That is the problem. In your case the minority wants to *take away* a right: the right to post. In both cases I oppose taking away the rights. I am totally consistent pro rights and freedom.

To equate me with the right wing idiots in California is an unfair and desperate attempt.


The trend is for 80% of IC?

I am simply working out the % out of your own numbers. By your own counting there were 14.125 vs. 3 against. Then Souri added her NO vote. Giving SP his full 1 vote that makes it 14.125 + 1 = 15.125; round up = 16. The % is computed as follows % = (100 * 16) / 19 = 84.2 %. You may dispute me but if you dispute math then the numbers speak for themselves.

BTW, I am done with this discussion. Discussion with you is not getting anywhere. My vote is NO and the numbers speak for themselves. I will leave it at that.


Anonymouse

VPK you talk too much but of no substance! Just talk, talk, tal

by Anonymouse on

From IC "destruction" to "tyranny of minority"!

Stop the jumping from one point to another and try to focus and notice the points and what the words really mean.  I'm sorry if I'm talking this way but since you've said "you can take care of yourself" my response are more coarse which appears to be the way you like them!

When I say rights of the minority are not to be ignored, it means "rights" such as certain inalienable rights that are not subject to votes simply because if that were to be the case the majority would "vote" and take away those rights from the minorities.  Now comment control is not an inalienble right but can be given as a right, such as the right to delete our blogs which we already have!

Case and point the same sex marriage arguement that it is now going to the Supreme Court.  As you know the majority has "voted" to deny same sex marriage.  In the past the same "voting" process was used to deny minorities from other rights.

The trend is for 80% of IC?  You see you take yourself too seriously, just because you yak and yak all over IC and keep plugging away by stitiching sun and the moon for the sake of a comment, think you represent a big chunk of what IC users think. 

No my friend the purpose of this blog was to bring up that section of the IC who do not participate as much but are a big chunk of it and not everyone wants to act as an average stereotypical Iranian who wants to ruin a good conversation and start the namecalling and polluting the airwaves.  Just like Payvand and persianmirror and any other online magazine where Iranians were given access to "free speech" and ruined it for others who actually knew what free speech meant.  Destruction means that not what is happening in i.com or our discussion here. 

If you think I don't want to see a deleted comment "again" because I'm against free speech, so be it!  People think a lot of things.  
 

Everything is sacred


Dirty Angel

VPK. HYS

by Dirty Angel on

Way to get round that set of illiterates is to say: 'BBC is so biased and won't publish my comment'.

Then they do! ;)

 

"Ceci n'est pas a very dirty post"


Veiled Prophet of Khorasan

RE: Aynak

by Veiled Prophet of Khorasan on


I don't want a comment that has been deleted to be posted elsewhere  Plain and simple.

I know you don't. You have made your disdain for freedom of speech very clear. But the rest of us *do* want the comment. I *want* to know what other people are thinking. The right to know trumps the right to repress.


Veiled Prophet of Khorasan

Great

by Veiled Prophet of Khorasan on

 

Majority votes for freedom and openness. Minority votes for restriction. Hail the right of minority to oppress! I heard of tyranny of majority. Lets have tyranny of minority!!!

Anyway per statistics those not yet voted are likely to follow the pattern already indicated.

If IC goes your way it will be going against ~80% of its membership. Not a wise action.


Anonymouse

Aynak it does not make sense.

by Anonymouse on

I don't want a comment that has been deleted to be posted elsewhere  Plain and simple.

In fact, if you are interested start your own blog and a new poll and ask if people like to see the comments that Mr. Javid has deleted to be posted elsewhere.  I believe in the past 3 evolutions of the comments section your suggestion was made.  I for one don't want it but I have a feeling people would say they want it like they're voting NO here! 

Everything is sacred


Anonymouse

VPK you keep discussing not me. I'm only responding!

by Anonymouse on

Majority have spoken?  There are about 5000 registered users and about 20 or so have responded.  Even so, the rights of the minority are not to be ignored.  I asked for a poll realizing it could be used against my suggestion.  Majority says a lot of things a lot of times.

As for Sargord, there is no "should" here!   

Everything is sacred


aynak

Red: I don't like your proposal ...

by aynak on

 

Baba Jan, the whole point is, a person does not want his/her blog to be spammed by hijackers.   Correct?   So you would have a blog, that looks as the blog creator intended, with comments he/she sees irrelevant removed.

But that same comment can be preserved in the main blog. 

From my point of view, the only reason you would want to delete something, is because it clutters/distracts from what you are trying to convey.   This option in my proposal is given to the blogger.

What is wrong with having both?   This looks to me like the only way a solution can be converged upon.    Why would you not want any trace of someone elses comment?


Veiled Prophet of Khorasan

We have about 3 to 1 against

by Veiled Prophet of Khorasan on

 

Yet anonymouse keeps plugging at it. Oblivious to majority of people's votes. Why are we even discussing this? The overwhelming majority says NO. I suggest we accept it and move on. The other option is "my way or the highway" or "to heck with majority". 

It is too bad that "listening" or other peple's opinion  is not valued highly by some.This is very disturbing an anti-democratic.

PS,

SP's opinion should be counted as 1 vote. We don't go by IRI rules. I mostly disagree with SP but he has a right to his opinion. It should count for 1.


Anonymouse

Aynak I don't like ur proposal Y would I delete a comment then?!

by Anonymouse on

I thought I had read your suggestion and responded accordingly.  Why would I delete comment and then have it posted somewhere else? It doesn't make sense and I don't support it.  Of course that'd be my opinion and one vote.

Everything is sacred


aynak

Re:anonymous

by aynak on

You wrote: I'm not proposing the blogger the ability to "edit" other comments, just delete or keep them.

If you reread my proposal, you will see that it covers all your concerns, and all those who are against your proposal.

I think you should focus more in understanding what I said, which requires half a day of work on Jahn Shahs part to get someone to do a java script to fix the problem.

You can argue against why my proposal is not good, which you have not done.   But unless you refute it that way, just having a blank check to delete people's comment is not acceptable. 

 

Here's the summary:

A person can choose to post to a Author Moderated Blog (which says the Author can only delete any comment he she sees fit).  As soon as he/she does so, the blog will also be duplicated to general blog section.   That way your blog looks like you want, and for someone who has spent the time of responding to your blog, his/her effort will not go to waste and is somewhere for all to see.

 


Anonymouse

You too Bahmani?! You don't trust yourself or me?

by Anonymouse on

Let me just ask you one question, one.  You don't trust yourself to censor (too much or too little or none) or you don't trust me or others?

I think in a democracy individuals are trusted with their rights.

Everything is sacred


bahmani

Censoring Comments is Censorship!

by bahmani on

I do require that you be willing to back your comments up however!

Also if you are taken to task for a comment, you need to be gracious in accepting your loss.

I think most of the angry comments are emotional outbursts that sometimes get worse when they are rebuked successfully, and sometimes generate a friendship and respect for the writer and the commentator.

At least that has been my experience. I vote for keeping them in, within the posting decency policy and etiquette guidelines.


Anonymouse

Keep this up and I'll eliminate your fractured vote altogether!

by Anonymouse on

Everything is sacred


Sargord Pirouz

2.875

by Sargord Pirouz on

Then you've effectively elevated the fraction to a whole number with a .875!

If you were anywhere near competent with basic math, you'd have given JJ a fraction less than but not equal to .875.

Too funny! 


Anonymouse

This is where I'd say "case and point"!

by Anonymouse on

Everything is sacred


Souri

Anonymouse...

by Souri on

I always yell, never discuss!

Ki hosele discuss kardan dareh :)

That's why I don't want the blogger's right to delete my comment, would be voted! Everybody would delete my comment, otherwise!

Joke aside, I don't see you bring any new argument. You are always repeating the same things for each and every commentator, here. That's why I yell...

This is my job here :)


Puck

NO

by Puck on

This is not the first time that an attempt has been made to change this site to something similar to Paltalk. I don't see it coming. It shouldn't. 

My heart is true as steel.


Anonymouse

Rea your vote counts as 1. If JJJ votes his will count as 2.875!

by Anonymouse on

Everything is sacred


Rea

Ej, Mouse, forgot

by Rea on

Being a self invited guest, I only count for 1/2 a vote.  ;o)

PS. just to add to confusion.  ;o)) 

 

 


Anonymouse

Souri your comment would've been deleted under a new policy!

by Anonymouse on

This is my blog and I do whatever I want.  Why are you so excited about it?  I said I'll tally the votes later this week which is what I'll do. I also said we can discuss more if you want which is what I'm doing.  Others are discussing and making arguments.  You are just yelling.  

Everything is sacred


Rea

Yes, my dear Mouse

by Rea on

NO is my vote.

Late here, nite. ;o) 


Souri

Then give it up, it's a NO !

by Souri on

Anonymouse,

As you see the majority voted NO!

But you are still here to bargain!

No matter from what side you count it, it's still  a NO, NO, NO, .

 


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