Censorship Is For The Gutless

     I've written this blog since May of 2006 and there has been one----ONE----comment I've deleted in that time. That one comment consisted of someone who cussed in about ten of the twelve words he wrote in what was mostly a nonsensical string of epithets. I don't believe in censorship even if someone dislikes, disagrees or even launches into a personal attack against me. It's a shame that other, more prominent (for whatever reason) writers don't feel the same way.
    In what was probably a fit of pique, I'd had just about enough of the relentless promotion and defense of Paul DePodesta by Rob Neyer, so I commented on his blog. The comment, non-abusive and pointed, wondered why Neyer so insistently defended DePodesta when he was at the helm of the Dodgers and basically took a championship contender and systematically dismantled it. (And as for the commenter who uses the Dodgers making the playoffs in DePodesta's first season as a validation for the former GM, the Dodgers were 60-42 with the roster he inherited and 33-27 after he made a series of ill-fated maneuvers that started the downfall of a team that was well-built to compete for a World Series title. That's fact.) Today, DePodesta went on in his own blog about how the Padres had signed a bunch of Latin American players. Never once has Neyer mentioned how DePodesta has had a strong hand in the massive train wreck known as the 2008 San Diego Padres (33-52 as of this writing), and he's still promoted as a possible GM in the future.
    My comment on Neyer's blog asked if he was kidding and if he'd noticed the disastrous Dodgers tenure or the nightmare currently in production in San Diego. I then linked my blog. The comment was deleted. There was not one disrespectful word or any questionable language used in the comment, therefore there can be only two reasons for the deletion; either one is not allowed to disagree with Neyer's assessments about his favorite former GM, who is an inept executive once he leaves the protective nuzzle of Billy Beane, or he didn't want me linking my blog after the comment. That will be the excuse for the deletion I would presume, but that alone could have been removed without removing the comment, so you tell me what the reason for the censorship is.
    In the end, it's his blog and he can do what he wants, but if this is the way he conducts himself, and I were ESPN, I would seriously reconsider why I'm paying him for his work because censorship is not part of the ideals of this country and it's made worse when that censorship is in reference to the National Pastime. If I were Rob Neyer I'd be ashamed of myself, but anyone who deletes a comment as he did has no shame to begin with.

*Note: All comments, pro and con, are welcome here without prejudice.