Daniel Faris graduated from the Writers Institute at Susquehanna University in 2011, and has since embarked on a career as a freelance blogger and journalist. You can usually find him discussing political and social issues at Only Slightly Biased, or you can join his alter ego over at New Music Friday for an in-depth look at progressive music.

Please joining us in welcoming Daniel to the Our Thoughts team. :)

What the data show about our blog is something I have noticed for quite awhile. People don’t really visit here anymore.

People who commented regularly in 2006 rarely comment here anymore. Very few other blogs link to any of our posts anymore. We rarely see posts with dozens of comments anymore.

What’s changed?

Our tag line says we provide thought-provoking commentary, but if few people comment, is that indication that we no longer provoke thought?

Thanks for the great writeup, Emily.

Top 10 search engine keywords

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2. our thoughts
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4. tal bachman
5. public showers
6. naked showers
7. ltbugaf
8. miracle channel
9. largest urban park
10. brandon flowers mormon

Top 10 internal search terms

1. DNA
2. bunko
3. Beez Kneez
4. Beez Kneez day school
5. Birth records
6. Garments
7. Larry Bates
8. Temple
9. beez kneez
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Since it seems too difficult to either find the Commenting Policy, to read it, or to follow it, I thought I’d post it again as a reminder. Hopefully, this can serve as a way to once again bring civil discussion back to this blog and bring back the traffic all the infighting keeps driving away.

1. Contrary opinions are welcome. Trolling is not. If you are going to post a comment contrary to what has been stated in a post’s thread, do not do so with an intent to defame the LDS church, Our Thoughts or any of the posters.
2. No threadjacking. It is difficult to have an intelligent discussion that follows a logical flow if completely unrelated comments keep popping up.
3. Avoid cyclical arguments. If you find you are repeating yourself, please stop. Cyclical arguments lead to discussions being between two or three people and discourages other comments.
4. Please avoid personal attacks (i.e. ad hominem). If you don’t agree with an idea presented, address the idea, not the presenter.
5. Please do not use Our Thoughts as your personal blog. Please see www.blogger.com if you would like your own blog.
6. Please refrain from using profane and vulgar language. The blog is “Our Thoughts” not “Outhouse”.
7. Comments not adhering to the above guidelines will be deleted at the discretion of blog administrators. Repeat offenders may be put on moderation.
8. All comments are prone to review and may be deleted at the discretion of blog administrators.
9. Additional policies may be implemented in the future.

I would think, being as all of us are adults, that we could be self policing. I honestly don’t have the time or desire to start moderating every comment. I have my own children to deal with.

Happy Birthday, Jeff.

Enter our new commenting policy.

We encourage all new and longtime readers to familiarise themselves with the new policies. By adhering to them, we can all help make Our Thoughts a better place to come, chat and learn.

A couple of things to note.

As a result of the policy, past threads created as “open threads” for specific individuals will be deleted. Those persons wanting to post unrelated comments (i.e. use Our Thoughts as their own blog) are encourage to start a blog elsewhere. Blogger.com, for example, allows you to set up a new blog in seconds.

In addition, more comments will be moderated in a hope to address some of the underlying issues. In addition past comments will be purged, but only over time; this will take a while.

Feel free to comment on our new policy, but be aware that this is not a democracy and your comments may not have any effect on how things are administered here.

Now’s your chance. It is officially delurking time at Our Thoughts. If you’ve been lurking in the shadows, please take a moment to introduce yourself. And if there’s a topic you’d like to see us attack here, feel free to mention that, as well.

No trolling allowed in this thread.

1. communal showers, 25%
2. ltbugaf, 10%
3. baby blessing lds, 4%
4. chronicles duncan calder nomad, 3%
5. largest urban park north america, 3%
6. true wife confessions, 3%
7. nermalcat, 2%
8. pierzchala lethbridge, 2%
9. brandon flowers lds, 2%
10. vancouver lds temple, 2%