there is a basic law ...in the cyber realm

'DO NOT FEED THE TROLLS'

there are those who are zealotts
they live to bait and debate

who glory in their own mires
feeling it validates their unwantom desires
if you should come upon one of these

PLEASE

dont feed the troll
well i guess thats all

say what you like here
im over hearing the plain complane
masticating their words ..as if wielding their swords

like little mothers
smothering their spite and bile
they want ..that they reject others to have
so ..that too ..they can despoil

you cant change that
they carved into stone

Cornflower,
It never ceases to amaze me how people apparently force themselves to read what they don't like, then complain about it. If you are exasperated by the content, do what you claim others have done and avoid it. Though some 169 comments doesn't sound like avoidance to me.

Others have referred to other sites, including GY, I have no idea why you have singled me and Mikey Bear out. I've actually been away from the thread for days and only commented again this morning.

My entire previous post was about homophobic attitudes in religious institutions. Pertinent.

Your inference that my blog doesn't permit opinions other than those I agree with is insulting and inaccurate. As I explained to LP's Mark Bahnisch when he dropped by, we run a blog that is based on the principles of radical hospitality, and all opinions are published and welcomed.

Mikey addressed comments to me on this thread, and I am perfectly entitled to address them on this thread.

As I have spent the last several days vigorously defending OLO, and copping much garbage for my trouble, I find your allegations of abuse against me quite remarkable.

Mikey, I think it's horrible that you and Gregory are described as "perverted." I've strongly argued against homophobia for a long time, and I'll continue to do so. I would like to see the laws changed so that religious institutions can no longer do this.

Sqeers,<"Silencing bigotry (in fact pushing it underground) will not make it go away."

No one is suggesting we silence bigotry, because we never could.

What we need to silence is the out and out nastiness that some posters indulge in when they discuss homosexuality (or racism, religion, women) on this site.

There is nothing wrong with putting forward your view that you don't believe in, don't approve of, are upset by etc, about subjects such as homosexuality.

What is wrong is labeling all homosexuals 'perverted', 'abominations', 'depraved', 'freaks' etc.

Can we not have some spirited discussions about subjects without resorting to vicious, personal name-calling?

"Mikey, I think it's horrible that you and Gregory are described as "perverted." I've strongly argued against homophobia for a long time, and I'll continue to do so. I would like to see the laws changed so that religious institutions can no longer do this." -- Briar Rose

We'd all like to see those laws changed. And in the meantime, any site that allows this offensive language to be published should not be tolerated.

You continue to defend this site, the very site that published this language, yet you are not speaking out about the hateful language that was not removed. Why not?

MikeyBear,

"This site seems to be the best place to have the discussion"

It seems that your idea of a "discussion" is limited only to those words that are sanctioned by the gay lobby. (and I'll add that I am a supporter of gay rights and opinion as an expression of freedom).

Salman Rushdie said:
"What is freedom of expression? Without the freedom to offend, it ceases to exist."

briar rose, "Your inference that my blog doesn't permit opinions other than those I agree with is insulting and inaccurate."

I said "not all of those sites are particularly welcoming to anyone who is not in lockstep, which is probably why the contest is happening on OLO".

If you took that as referring to your site as you have stated I am sorry, it was not meant to be taken that way.