Why libel cases are stupid* (UPDATED)

“Before her suit, there were probably two hits on my Web site: One from me looking at it, and one from her looking at it…”

I’ve never been a fan of anonymous blogging, and my own husband did it for years.

(And no, dears, I couldn’t “control” him and haven’t “trained” him and don’t care to; we don’t have one of those modern “yes, dear” marriages. He’s the man. He does what he wants to do.)

Yes, the Founders wrote anonymously, but they didn’t print and promote their work using the property of a separate entity (a la Google), that may or may not have agreed with their words (or cared to expose itself to charges of treason.)

You aren’t entitled to a “right to privacy” in public. That’s why we have two different words for two different states: “Private” and “public”.

And if blogging was private, it would be done in a locked diary on your desk, not on the internet.

UPDATE: Kate weighs in.

* Yeah, I would say that, wouldn’t I? But getting sued has forced me to ponder these things.