Why Marysville shooting stories have no comments

Published 4:56 pm Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Different people react to tragedy in different ways. Shock. Grief. Rage. Panic.

There is no “correct” response. But each of us is responsible for how we express and display our feelings.

The shootings at Marysville Pilchuck High School have unleashed a torrent of malicious comments from certain HeraldNet users.

Editors have deleted remarks that were vulgar, threatening, defamatory or hateful. We have removed comments that were half-true, wildly false and irresponsibly speculative. We have been saddened and, at times, exasperated by the ugliness.

Almost all of these comments have come from writers who hide safely behind fake names.

Many of you have offered sincere, sympathetic and thoughtful reflections. But the conversation has been poisoned by others.

For this reason, the comments feature has been disabled for stories related to the Marysville Pilchuck tragedy.

Neal Pattison, executive editor, npattison@heraldnet.com