}

About stuff

This page is ABOUT several things: This blog, Comment policy, Privacy policy and a bit more about me.

About this blog…

This is my personal blog. As such, it has my opinions, apart from those I quote or those of people who leave comments. I take neither credit nor responsibility for those—just my own.

My politics are centre-left, well, more left than centre (see also below, under "About Me"). I am NOT a journalist, professional or amateur, and I make no claim to be. You need to know all that because I have strong opinions and I’m not afraid to share them. Also, while I do my best to be factually accurate, I sometimes get things wrong. My opinions are my opinions, and I don’t pretend anyone else agrees with me (although most smart people do, of course). Still, you’re certainly free to disagree with me—that’s what the comments are for (you may want to read About comments, below, first).

I use my own photos and graphics that I create, along with what are, or I believe to be, public domain photos/images, or those licensed through Creative Commons or GPL. I wouldn't intentionally “steal” anyone else’s images; if you see something of yours here and want it removed, just let me know.

About comments…

I don’t delete comments, apart from spam comments. One time I did delete a comment that crossed the line into overt racism, but that was, as far as I can remember, the only time I’ve deleted a non-spam comment. Comments aren’t moderated, and you can comment anonymously. But there are still rules.

The main rule is that this is my house and I make the rules and can change them at any time. Be civil. Passions run deep (I should know), but you won’t win anyone (least of all me) over to your side through ad hominem attacks. Comments that make racist, sexist or homophobic remarks are most likely to face deletion, depending on context. Determining what’s racist, sexist or homophobic is entirely up to me, but here's a guide: If it would be inappropriate to shout it through a megaphone in a crowded shopping area, then it's probably inappropriate here, too. I try to respond to comments, but I don't always. When I do respond, I often ignore comments that I consider to be borderline offensive, even when I respond to other comments in the thread—my house, my rules.

About privacy…

I value privacy as much as the next person—maybe a bit more. This blog collects statistics, as all websites do, so I know what things are popular, how people found my blog or a post, how long they stayed here, those sorts of things. That means collecting IP address information, however, I don’t personally collect or store any individually identifiable information. Ever.

This all refers only to me and how I operate: I cannot vouch for, and make no claims about, the privacy policies of any sites I link to, or Blogger, the host of this blog. Blogger is part of the Google empire, and as such they probably track your moves through cookies; this has nothing to do with me. You may want to read Google’s privacy statement.

If you play a YouTube clip I’ve posted, then Google will place a long-term cookie on your computer. Please see YouTube's privacy statement to learn more.

About me…

My name is Arthur Schenck, and I’m a gay American now living in New Zealand. I moved here in 1995 to be with my partner, Nigel, who is a New Zealander. I was born and raised in Illinois and lived in Chicago before moving to New Zealand. In January 2009, Nigel and I were joined in Civil Union under New Zealand law. In October, 2013, Nigel and I were married. I am a citizen of both the United States and New Zealand. I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science (minor in History) from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

Disclosures: For US politics, I’m a liberal Democrat and have never voted for a Republican candidate for US President. It's highly improbable that will change. In New Zealand, I'm a paid member of the New Zealand Labour Party, for which I've also volunteered.

IMPORTANT NOTE: ALL OPINIONS I EXPRESS IN THIS BLOG ARE ENTIRELY MY OWN SINCERELY HELD VIEWS AND ARE NOT NECESSARILY EVEN REMOTELY SIMILAR TO THE POSITIONS OF POLITICAL PARTIES I SUPPORT.



Contacting me:

There are several ways to contact me: First, feel free to leave a comment on any post. To send me an email, Click Here. The email address for this site is: amerinz{at) yahoo. com.