As you well know if you are an intrepid commenter here, we have gone through phases in our comment policy: First we had no comments, then pre-approved comments with a few gold-starred commenters posting immediately, then wide-open comments with after-the-fact (and sometimes arbitrary-seeming) moderation by an outside firm. Now, one of our commenters has volunteered to mobilize a force of self-policing commenters, to try to limit trolling and enforce a basic standard of civility while allowing for free-wheeling discussion. This is the policy that they are using to guide their moderation going forward. Thanks for your patience, and for your commenting.