Terms of Use

Any house rules?

Yeah, a few.

Our mission is to hold open and civil conversations on politics and related issues. This is precisely the territory where we are quickest to withdraw into our tribes and just yell at each other.

If we cannot learn how to dialogue with those we disagree with, if we are so devoted to winning that looking for an opportunity to mutually educate and build bridges, our future as a civilization looks bleak. Our conduct on this site follows that more hopeful path.

There is no intent here to have us all speak with one voice; the disagreements will continue, because this is important stuff. But we are better than what we have become, especially in cyberspace, in how we communicate with each other.

Bots and trolls are not welcome and will be banished.

If you just want to shout out your bumper sticker, there other sites where you will be welcome – this is not one of them. Here, simply saying “I just know this is right,” or “I have seen reports” will not cut it. We owe each other better than that.

We will find consensus where we can, will strive for civilized arguments when we need to do that.

No one is asked to sacrifice principles, but everyone is expected to explain and examine them, to engage in the way you would want to be engaged. The fights will continue, as they should, but we are better than what we have become, especially in cyberspace.

Calling on each other to actually use reason, to ask the skeptical question of any and all, to do a bit of homework before declaring our positions seems the least we can do in service to civility and democracy.

If some of what flows here makes some of us rethink on occasion and ask new questions of each other and ourselves, then this will have been a good investment of electrons.

All of the above does not seem too much to ask of each other.

Good luck to us all, and welcome aboard. Let’s talk.