From Ms C. Vella

An exemplar of fair comment would not rely on second or third hand opinion alone so it appears that, despite her protestations to the contrary, Marie Benôit is an avid blog and comment board reader.

It is understandably difficult for her to accept, but to effectively participate in an online debate Mrs Benôit would have to comment instantly in the same online location, rather than in a newspaper supplement well after the event.

She need not announce her presence by using her own name. A pseudonym would allow her to maintain the fiction that she never reads blogs and their accompanying discussions other than the extracts friends send to her by e-mail. Actively participating in online debates, as opposed to lurking there, may help Mrs Benôit learn to distinguish between a blog and the discussion it provokes.

It may even help her learn that there is a yawning divide between commenting about people who wish to rule our lives and those who object to their attempts to do so.

Corinne Vella

LIJA