I have received a few e-mails from readers that say the Typepad validation process has stopped working on the comments. I tried it at 6:50 PM CT and successfully posted a comment, so it may just be an intermittent problem. Keep trying -- it should be working shortly.

This is as good a time as any to remind the CQ community of the policies on comments and trackbacks. Commenters here are valued guests, and as long as they can abide by the rather simple rules, then we will have no issues. I will delete posts that attempt to hijack a thread by changing the subject. I have a pretty wide definition of "subject" and usually allow almost any tangential debate to continue. When it strays, I will delete the comment and replace it with a reminder to follow the policy. If a commenter has to be reminded repeatedly to stay on topic, then they may find themselves banned.

I have had to ban less than twenty commenters here at CQ, and I hope not to have to ban anyone else ever again. However, if policy violations keep occurring, I will not shy from that action forever. People who abuse my hospitality by issuing personal insults at me will not get warned, and I will not explain myself in any subsequent e-mails. People who issue personal insults at other commenters may suffer the same fate. We value debate here, not ad-hominem invective. Threats of physical violence towards me or anyone else will result in an immediate ban, and might result in a complaint to the FBI. That has happened here in the past, but I intend on making sure it doesn't in the future.

Trackbacks are most welcome here, and it's taken quite a lot of effort to keep them working. Proper etiquette holds that a blog who pings another site should link to the post in question. I do like to follow the debate, and where that etiquette isn't followed, I will delete the trackback.

I get a lot of e-mail, and it is flat-out impossible to respond to it all. I read almost all of it, except for the spam and the people who can't restrain themselves from insulting me in the subject header. If you're sending me several e-mails a day, you've probably been relegated to the spam bin. If you're sending me 4MB video files, you've definitely been added to my block list at the server. If you're disagreeing with me, i'm probably reading every word, especially if done with class and dignity. Please remember to tell me if you do NOT want your e-mail or your identity to appear on my blog; I assume that all e-mail sent to my blog address is publishable and attributable.

Finally, bear in mind that I do this as a hobby, and that corrections cannot always get made quickly, and that I do check them out before posting them. That's one of the reasons I have comments open.

Most of all, let me express my appreciation for the entire CQ community and the excellent debate that you provide here on our blog. It's wonderful, and let's all pitch in to help keep it that way.

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