Designated Gloaters & Adios, Anonymous

When I re-launched this blog on November 1st using the Blogger platform I did so knowing that, among the tools available, was the "comments" section. That tool was not available with my previous platform. I looked forward to the views of readers, pro and con, and still do.

However, one of the things that really annoys me is the use of the ubiquitous identity, "Anonymous". Because so many writers use that mask, following the threads of comments can be cumbersome at best and down right impossible in some cases.

So, new rules apply for A Bubbling Cauldron. As of this date I will no longer post any comment sent from a person identified as "Anonymous", regardless of the literary merit or relevance to the issue at hand. This is not a real problem, is it? All you have to do is pick out some other fictitious identity and use it. It gives you an opportunity to display your creative streak and gives other readers the chance to follow your logic - or lack thereof.

Of course, I will not accept any profanity, so don't think you can slip that past me. I don't expect you to tell me who you are, or even give me a clue, I just want the posts on this site make a little sense. (Some would say they already make "little sense".)

With all that in mind, please keep writing. I'm always eager to hear an opposing viewpoint and will post those right along with the few who like what I write in an attempt to provide readers with a well-reasoned debate. As a result of the election this week, there will be no shortage of subjects to examine here.

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On that subject, a couple of so-called "Improvers" (see photo above) have taken on the assignment of being the designated gloaters following the election on Tuesday. A cuddly old furr ball who signs his messages WestsideCM has hurled himself into practically every venue available to him - except this one, strangely - to harangue about the "mandate" our young jailer/mayor has now. He tells us that the people of Costa Mesa have spoken. Well, last count shows that 8156 voters have spoken on behalf of the mayor - more than anyone else who received votes. Between him and his running mate they received half of the votes cast for Costa Mesa City Council candidates. In a city with more than 54,000 registered voters, 8,000 votes is hardly a mandate.

The other "gloater" is a guy who runs his own blog here in town and who very much resembles my theoretical character, Your Neighbor. He was posting with a vengeance just before the election and has kept the pace up ever since. One curious feature on his blog, which uses the same platform as this one, is that "comments" never seem to appear. All we get are obviously fabricated "letters", which he uses to set the scene for his rant of the day. What a poor, pathetic guy! I suspect we will now see him at council and commission meetings again. He had been underground for a couple months before the election, clearly part of the mayor's strategy to avoid even more controversy.

One of his postings following the election takes on the Costa Mesa Police Department, claiming that some are "against citizens and for illegal aliens". He went on to say, "We have too many cops who don't even live in this city who are treating citizens like dirt and who are trying to run this city into the ground for their own benefit." Now, is that really a good idea? I don't think so. This guy, who claims to be a Mensa member, sometimes just isn't very smart.