Blogging Ethics, A. K. A. Trolls Shall Have Spitballs Thrown At Them

Lauren at Feministe has posted a blog disclaimer that bears repeating. I am also not the least bit affected by asshats who throw lame insults at me like feminazi, socialist, Marxist, ugly, dyke, man-hater, etc., etc., ad nauseum. That kind of crap only eventually gets covered with spiderwebs and inch-thick layers of dust here.

1.) I have been writing on the internet for close to ten years, and maintained a blog for nearly five. Over this time, I have been called every name in the book, received idle death threats, been contacted at my home address and phone number, and had my son and my parenting skills insulted, berated, chided, and belittled. Chances are, if you have something nasty to say, I have not only heard it before, but have heard it several times. Thus, if you intend to hurt my feelings, please be creative.

Let me help you get started. Here is A Helpful Guide to Words and Phrases That Do Not Hurt: feminazi, socialist, Marxist, ugly, dyke, man-hater, man-eater, misandrist, frigid, sexist, bitch, slut, whore, etc. in all their various incarnations and related terminology. I will be more insulted if you badmouth one of my favorite bands than if you revert to name-calling. Really.

2.) This is not a feminist primer. I assume that my audience is well-versed in feminism, feminisms, and has a critical mind intelligent enough to argue in an intelligent manner without resorting to sarcasm and the above-mentioned insults. If you believe I am in error, please state so, but only if you are interested in a civil debate.

2a.) I am not interested in meeting feminist standards of card-carrying feminism. If you read feminist literature, it is likely you have run across the term “feminism(s)” or read that “there are as many feminisms as there are feminists.” If I do not meet your feminist standard, I heartily apologize, but do remember that I and my comrades are complex individuals in a complex world that have taken on a complex label belonging to a very complex theoretical tradition. Feminism is not composed of a bullet-point list of talking points and behaviors. If you don’t understand that, chances are you are not operating from a viewpoint educated on the subject.

3.) If you address me with sarcasm, I likely will address you with the same. One cannot expect a thoughtful and intelligent answer to an unthoughtful comment.

4.) If you have a question about my theory, I have probably addressed it before. Please refer to the search box on the sidebar. If you cannot find an answer, please email me.

5.) Unpaid solicitations and advertisements are unwelcome. If you have a legitimate request for contributions from me or my readers please send it to the email address provided. Otherwise, I have handily set up a Paypal account where you can reimburse me with the amount of bandwidth your text uses.

6.) Solicitations to cover stories or link your blog may also be emailed to me at the address provided. Whether or not I actually respond, link, or cover the story is not indicative of how much I like or dislike you and your work. Most likely I am busy or have other content I would like to cover. It ain’t personal.

7.) Please do not attempt to derail a comment thread. Stay on topic and, again, be respectful.

8.) Do not assume that you know everything there is to know about me simply because you read my weblog on a regular basis. Any judgements you make will be based on the information I have provided you about myself, which is probably vague, incomplete or embellished. If this subject offendeth thee, please refer to narrative and autobiographical literary theory. It ain’t that unusual.

9.) If you have a real life relationship with me, remember that communication is very important. View weblogs as online journals, no less sacred than a diary hidden between the mattresses. First of all let the author know that you read their site, especially if they did not tell you the URL personally.

Read the rest at Feministe.