As the defacto, yet clearly Luddite administrator of Millennial Star, I get to see a lot of the comments via my inbox. I don’t always read every comment, because if I did that, I would never get anything else done. When I do read comments, a few of them tend to stand out.
Let me preface my comments by saying that I hold no ill will or malice against those who do not believe in the truth claims of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. There is ample room for thoughtful discussion and disagreement. I do not expect to change the hearts and minds of those who are already disaffected. I get it. Let’s agree to disagree.
What I do find humorous, though, is the expectation of some of these aforementioned individuals and their sense of entitlement to post whatever comment they wish, and for the writers of M* to publish them…no matter what.
One such individual wrote in a follow-up comment, “Really? Was my post really that out of line? Thanks a lot.”
You are welcome.
Or, I love this selfish plea/command, “What happened to my comment in moderation? Please find it and post it!”
Um, no. Not going to happen.
First of all, for those who wish to participate in the discussions at Millennial Star, please note that this is a safe place for believing members. You [the non-believers and disaffected] are more than welcome to participate in the discussion, but you must understand that this is not a forum for you to come and stand on your soapboxes and preach. If you want a platform to discuss your ideas, get your own domain name and hosting company. It’s that simple.
I should note that each blogger is solely responsible for moderating the comments on their individual posts. That said, I, or any other M* writer, is not above intervening on behalf of another writer when the conversation goes wildly astray. I personally have little tolerance for much of what I will call the incessant anti-Mormon diatribe that many of the disaffected seek to spew in the comments section of Millennial Star. When that happens, your comments are deleted and you are put directly into comment moderation. No warning necessary; no warning given. Why? Because it is our blog, not yours. Again, if you want a platform for your beliefs, ideas, and arguments, start your own blog.
If this post should make any of you reconsider your participation at Millennial Star, then it should be obvious that you are participating on wrong LDS blog. Perhaps an internet search with the keywords you desire will help you locate a blog that is more suitable to your tastes. M* does not cater to calumny and its cacophonous cohort.
For those of you who still do not understand what I am trying to say, I suggest you read J. Max Wilson’s excellent blog post, Bite the Wax Tadpole: A Manifesto for Internet Conversation and Debate. (Point number six is especially relevant here at Millennial Star).