Anonymous posters on my blog site

This blog site is a place for me to share my personal opinions and give insight into what I'm thinking. It's open for anyone to visit, and even if you disagree, I hope it challenges your way of thinking. For me, it's a fun outlet, as I'm not much into Facebook but still like to have a forum to lay out my thoughts.

With that as a background, I want to make a comment about those who have been commenting on my posts. Many of these comments have been anonymous. Let me just say that I appreciate people leaving comments, but when I visit other sites, I normally leave comments with my real name. I believe that if I'm not willing to support my view with my name, then I'm more likely to be more mean-spirited because I have nothing to lose. I can offend with no consequences. But this is chicken.

This week, one blogger (who apparently has read my blog) deleted my comment to his site, despite the fact that it was kindly written. He wrote about my friend Bill McKeever and how much he apparently hates him. I left a comment, inviting the writer to lunch if he was ever in the Salt Lake City area, as I sincerely desire to sit down with him and find out what Bill has done to so offend him. As the Bible says, "Come, let us reason together," and I have found putting a face with a person can quell the hostility someone may feel. However, he took my comment down within the hour. Why? My name was on  it, I said nothing offensive, and I merely invitedhim to lunch. If he made such an invitation for me to come when I was in his Arizona city, I would take him up on the offer the first time I was in the area. I just don't understand his rationale.

I ramble, but here is my challenge to you lurkers out there: If you want to leave a comment, could you please tell us who you are? If you insist on posting anonymously, and you cannot provide reason in your post why the need to do so (as there are certainly appropriate times) or provide a private confidential email to me (eric@mrm.org), then I probably won't be publishing it. I only ask to know who's publishing, even if it means you let me know privately,  While this might not be the rule everywhere, it's something I'm requesting.