A comment on comments seeking again to encourage on-topic, productive and polite comments

About a week ago, a commentor started a comment this way: “Wow. Every single time I look at comments in hopes of more insight into the main subject, all I get is a handful of cheap shots at the political parties.”  Another comment today notes: “Again, this conversation devolved into politics-related mud-slinging.”  Meanwhile, someone has impolitely started using the same moniker as a frequent commentor, while another person reasonably complains about the “tag graffiti” taking up comment space.  

For a host of reasons, I am exteremely disinclined to moderate the comment space.  Consequently, I am inclined to close the comment space altogether if there is not a greater effort by folks to only post comments that are on-topic, productive and polite.  Especially in these divisive times, I know some folks are very eager to vent their partisan spleens.  But there are so many other spaces for off-topic, partisan sniping.  Consequently, I hope all folks commenting here will make a sincere effort to only post comments that are on-topic, productive and polite.  

Especially since I blog about politics as well as policy, I do not expect or want all comments to be free of all political matters or even that all comments are without some partisan views.  But I do want everyone to make a sustained effort to only post comments that are on-topic, productive and polite.  I believe everyone can and should do better (myself included), and I sincerely hope that you all will try.