Commenting for Dummies: We All Need A Lesson

Have you found your Patch comments deleted after making wild claims, suggesting allegations at other commenters or people in town, or anything that more or less would violate our Terms of Use?

No worries. We have some news to share on this. Before the good news, however, there's always the bad news.

Bad news: Patch editors have every right to delete those comments, without it being a violation of a commenter's civil rights or censorship in any way. Remember, only a government can censor.

The good news? Play nice. You can stop your comments from being deleted by simply expressing your thoughts and opinions in a civil manner. Little reminder: no biting, no hitting below the belt and keep a clean fight. Oops, that's a boxing match. For the Patch match it's: no swearing, no personal attacks and no unfounded accusations. It's as simple as that. We can suspend you from commenting after repeated violations, so please don't make us do it.

On the flip side, if a commenter is sticking to the subject and not breaking any of the above rules, don't bother flagging it as "inappropriate" because it will be reposted again and again.

Contributing to the community discussion is always welcome, so please take advantage of it.

And if your comment is a statement you would never say openly in public, there's a fairly good chance it gets deleted.