I have been trying to decide whether or not to respond to the anonymous comment left on my blog last night. Mostly, the comment made me laugh. Attack me for being boring, fine. I don't expect to enthrall everyone. But attack me for being female--that's not going to hold any water. That just exposes your own misogyny, Mr. Anonymous. You say that no one hears me--well, when you're anonymous, you're guaranteed that no one is going to hear you. But I really don't want to engage in this kind of mud-slinging with you. We're all just people, right? If you're bored by me, don't visit my blog. Easy as pie. And if you have questions for me, I'm happy to engage in civilized dialogue. I have strong opinions, but I'm always glad to know where other people are coming from. Our country is so polarized right now--if we can't speak about our differences, if we can only attack one another, how are we ever going to find a lasting peace, or even common ground?

It's great timing that just as I was thinking about this, Andi posted a fabulous piece about responding to such attacks after her mothering panel recently appeared on BookTV.

In this way you make a real conversation, and not just a personal attack. Because this is what it's all about -- Mother Talk, my book Mother Shock, the speaking we do with women's groups and book groups -- it's about having a real conversation, and moving past the notion that there is one side versus the other, or a right and wrong way to mother, and realizing that though we all have different experiences and values we are bringing to the discussion, there is common ground enough to work towards something far more real than idealistic dreaming or nasty accusations.