Controlling the Conversation

I wasn’t even going to comment on this whole ‘Blogger’s code of conduct’ nonsense, until I saw this, this morning. First of all it should be pointed out, as I have a few dozen times previously, that “The Moderate Voice” is nothing of the kind.

Secondly, when I see things like this, I wonder about freedom of speech. When I see somebody trying to invoke a code of conduct, particularly one that they are likely not to abide themselves, I figure it amounts to somebody trying to control the content of the conversation, at least, one side of it. When I see the majority of the calls for such a code, coming from liberal Democrats, who have a tendency to put all their trust in government to solve all their problems I recognize that sooner or later, such a code will become the law.  Look into the history of the “television code” and you’ll see what I mean.
Look; It’s no accident, that this subject should come up on the bleeding edge of a presidential election cycle which has all the earmarks for looking very nasty indeed; particularly amongst Democrats who are desperate to regain power to the levels of 20 years ago. Apparently, the nasty politics that they inflicted on us for years, aren’t valid, in their view, when people use it on them .

The kind of standards being proposed, are amusing, since it would knock perhaps 75 to 90% of the left the sites offline with one stroke of the pen were it ever to be really enforced. And let’s be honest, were those standards to be imposed on talkradio, The entirety of the “Air America” network would be history . Being nasty, being their bread and butter.

That these nasties back such a plan, suggests to me that they don’t think they’re going to be subject to the standards imposed. Which ought to be a clue about what the real agenda is.

This site, at least to my understanding of the standards proposed, has never really stepped outside of them. Mostly, because that is our brand of consideration for our readership. But as I say, I view the move to enforce standards of the like on this site and others, to be an effort to control the conversation. And damned if I will allow someone else… government or otherwise… to control the conversation on my site. It’s simply not going to happen.

Addendum:  (David L)   IF the liberal, and MSM, concept of absolute moral authority exists on any subject and for any person, it exists on the subject of blogging threats in the person of Michelle Malkin.

The techblogging elite, liberal femme bloggers, and their friends in the MSM are still yammering amongst themselves about the Kathy Sierra incident. Bloggers’ code of conduct. Civility badges. Blah blah blah.

Big props to Mary Katharine Ham for calling out the one-eyed, left-wing women bloggers (who still won’t admit their blind spot) and for demonstrating tough, but civil disagreement by example. Brava.

Whiners, whine, and Michelle keeps on blogging.   I’ll start listening to what the liberal blogosphere want sometime after they shove a figurative rug down Amanda Marcotte’s throat.  Symbolically of course.