This post marks the beginning of what I hope will be an improvement in the quality of the comments section of this blog. I am requesting that people who wish to leave a comment do so with a name other than ‘anonymous’. I am not necessarily asking for real names although I would prefer them. I truly believe that one should have the courage to sign his or her real name to their opinions. But I also understand and respect the right of people to remain anonymous. In some cases there are legitimate reasons. But using the name ‘anonymous’ has simply become too confusing since many people use it and are sometimes at opposite ends of a debate. So I ask all commenters to pick a ‘name’ and stick with it.
I don’t want to discourage open and free debate as long as it is generally respectful and follows the basic rules of this blog. But I do want to end the confusion of multiple commenters using the name ‘anonymous’.
I am not making this an absolute requirement because there are always new people commenting and they may not aware of the requirement. Also, an anonymous comment may at times be of greater value than the rule itself. So I am making this optional… a request, not a requirement. It will be a major improvement to this blog if commenter confusion can be eliminated.
