Derek Thomas of the Reformation 21 blog spotted an interesting piece on blogging by Alan Jacobs in the latest issue of Books & Culture. He cites a quote from the article that seems to address the challenge of communicating wisely through blogs:

All in all, a blog is no place for the misanthropically inclined. Charlie Brown used to say, "I love mankind; it's people I can't stand," and I have discovered that in the blogosphere, people--in Mr. Brown's subtle sense of the word--are pretty much inescapable. Many's the time I have found myself hunched over my keyboard, my hands frozen above it, trying to decide which of two replies to make: the one assuming that my interlocutor is morally compromised, or the one assuming that he is invincibly ignorant. In such circumstances it's always best just to get up and walk away, not darkening counsel by words without knowledge, or without charity anyway.

The other R21 bloggers have picked up on the theme; hop on over and follow the discussion as it unfolds.

The Jacobs piece sounds fascinating, judging by the above quote alone. (I stopped by the local bookstore today to pick up a copy of the magazine, but alas, they didn't carry it.) Certainly, blogging is not an activity to be undertaken if you're not willing to face both the best and worst of human interaction. Can anyone here who's read the Jacobs piece offer some highlights from it?