Decisions.

It's been a crazy week for my old blog.

It started when "Anonymous" came back from the shadows.

I didn't publish the comments, because they were nothing more than personal attacks. Name-calling. Allegations. And an attack on my guest-writer.

I was content to just keep Anonymous's voice silenced on my blog and continue as usual, but they just didn't want to give it up. When I posted my blog about the comment rules, this is what Anonymous had to say:

"Yes, it IS all about YOU. "Snarky" comments? The Beast, Idiocy, Fatbelly, Spawn....You really don't get it, do you? If you were telling tales from the "real" world, you'd use real names. What are you worried about? Surely not LIBEL, because everything you say is TRUE...er, well, hmm, ah...you can "demand respect" all you want, but you will never command respect."

I actually posted that comment and replied to it, pointing out that my blog IS all about me (duh), that spawn isn't snarky, that pointing out someone's fat belly or stupidity isn't snarky so much as truthful, that posting ANYONE'S full name without their consent is unethical and something I don't do EVER, and that person has no first-hand knowledge of anything I write and if it is, in fact, true "er well hmm ah" not (unless it IS The Beast behind that facade) and has no business throwing around words like libel, when this person was the one making allegations about me that actually COULD be prosecuted if they posted their damned name. I also asked if I should change my blog-title to True Stories with Pseudonyms to avoid being sued for "false-advertising" as well ;) heh heh.

But, after some words of wisdom and squooshy bewbie hugs via Internet, I decided to remove both of the posts. And then it started to fester. It didn't bother me what this person said, or what they thought about me, or that they were ball-less enough to continually come at me without owning their words. What bothered me was that this person, who is obviously acquainted with me in some way, is sucking up all this information about me. They know my favorite kind of peanut butter. They can pore over pictures of my family and read about my wedding. Those are things I don't mind sharing with the general public, but knowing someone malicious is out there sucking up every detail I write, that bothered me.

So I toyed with the idea of making my blog private. I would only let people I knew and approved peek into my life. I advertised it on Facebook and to my friends and family. Within 24 hours I had more readers than I could even accommodate! I had no idea how many readers I actually had, and I hadn't even mentioned this to most of my blog followers yet. I had many suggestions and pleas not to do it, and after a look at the privacy settings, I decided to keep it open. One person's negativity shouldn't over-ride the positivity of more than a hundred.
You know what? I can't control EVERYONE in the world. I can't keep mean, vicious people from looking into my life unless I stop blogging altogether. I can't do that. It's one of my favorite things in the world! I can't keep people from stalking me or voicing their opinions about me.

But I CAN control what comes across my desk.

So from now on, you have to be logged into SOMETHING to comment on my blog. If it gets too out-of-hand, I will limit it to blog followers only. The comments aren't really that necessary anyway. And I have a sneaking suspicion that if this person has to keep reading about my life and my opinions, but has no way to enlighten my supporters to his/her own opinion, he or she will lose interest. And if not, then what's that say about him/her?

Haters are gonna hate. And a reader is a reader, right? ;) I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing and not let anyone interfere. Worst-case scenario? I'll change the comment format to Diqus and nab the IP address every time someone comments. :)

Thanks for being a reader. Thanks for your support, and thanks for making blogging a successful pastime for me. I love knowing you're out there and I LOVE telling my story.

The Beast: A Look at the Rules

Before I continue with the story, I just want to address a few things with regard to this series.

The Beast is not the only one who has been awful throughout this time, though It was the one who started it. Many jumped on board with It, casting stones, hunting witches, and crucifying people for their own warped reasons. They jumped to conclusions, aided in the manipulation, and contributed to the bullying. If burning at the steak were legal, they'd do it. "Give us Barabbas!" they'd chant. Mob-type holier-than-thou drones casting judgment and spreading gossip like wildfire kinda people.

For that reason, I changed my comment policy when I began posting this series. That policy is as follows:

• All comments are sent to me for moderation before they are published. I can choose which ones I publish or delete, and when they are published.
• I do allow anonymous comments, depending on the content. I don't like anonymous comments, because I personally feel you shouldn't say anything you don't stand behind, but I do realize sometimes because of time-constraints or lack of an active Google account, it's easier to post anonymously (I guess. I'm giving you the cop-out on that one). To me, at least put your e-mail address if nothing else, and own what you say. But whatever.
• I will not, however, publish snarky comments by anonymous writers. If you wish to attack me personally, have the balls to put your name on it. I have my name, picture, and e-mail on my blog, as well as my Twitter link. My mark is on everything I write, and I own it. There is no point in saying something if you won't stand behind it personally.
• If your purpose is to knock me down, sorry but you're not gonna throw anything at me I haven't already heard. You'd have to be pretty creative to come up with something I haven't heard before. If your puprose is to "enlighten" others to your point of view, you better own it because otherwise no one else will ever see it.
• This is MY blog where I write about MY life and MY thoughts. Therefore, I have the power to choose what appears on this site. Comments are welcomed and appreciated, and they don't have to be in agreement with my views, but I do demand respect. And if you have the guts to attack me and put your mark on it, then I'll think about publishing it.
• Finally, NO comments that personally attack my guest writers, subscribers, family, friends, or other readers will be published. If you have beef with them, find their blog/Facebook/Twitter, and take it up there. I'm not hosting a cyber-bullying ring.

I do thank you, though, for taking time out of your day to read my posts and comment on them. It actually helps me every time someone clicks on a specific post, and it makes my blog more marektable when I have unique readers. Whatever your purpose is, even if it's malicious, you're helping me, so I thank you for that. Happy reading :)