David Maddox: The SNP's cybernat problem

There have been some questions posted on the Scotsman's website about why comments are no longer allowed after my stories.
It has been alleged that I am afraid of criticism or that I can't handle a bit of abuse. Neither of these allegations are true, if they had been comments would have been blocked long ago.
It has also been claimed that I personally ordered comments to be stopped. Again not true, although it is nice to think that people seem to believe I have such authority in the newspaper. If only.
The reason the comments are no longer allowed after my stories is because cybernats - by which I mean the extremist element that supports the SNP and manifests itself under anonymous names - were putting up comments actually seemed to be threatening me physical harm and asking people to track down my home, car etc.
At that point it was decided by the newspaper's management that comments should no longer appear after my stories.
While I think it is a shame to close down the debate, I agreed with the decision, not least because my windows have been smashed eight times in the last two years, which makes personal security for me and my family a high priority, even if the vandalism was probably done by local kids.
I confronted via e-mail a couple of the pro-Nationalist posters who put up these threatening remarks and one, who at least had the decency to apologise, admitted to being a party member.
In the stories we have seen today in Scotland on Sunday and other papers, we have seen that again there is a link between the party and these vicious bloggers.
It rather makes the odd excuse that the SNP have officially always used that these are not party members and claims the posters may even be unionist plants just look silly.
It also does gives some credence to the case of those who believe that many of these bloggers are employed by the SNP or are members and that this sort of thing may actually be co-ordinated, although personally I think we need to see much more evidence before we can draw that conclusion.
I know that this is not only an SNP problem. Labour had Damian McBride, Wendy's drunk spindoctor foul mouthing Alex Salmond and various unionist posters have been pretty vicious too.
However, in Scotland the vast majority of the vicious and defamatory posters on the internet are supporters of the Scottish National Party, whether they are actual members, staff or not.
The SNP has simply refused to deal with this extremist element who do not represent so called civic nationalism, but the extremism evident in other types of nationalism.
The party's silence on the matter has always puzzled me. Some have taken it as actually condoning the behaviour, personally I think it is the equivalent of sticking its fingers in its ears and singing: "La la la nothing's happening."
One thing that is for sure, though, is that if the SNP want us to believe it really stands for civic nationalism, as I think its leadership mostly does, then it has got to tackle this problem and wheedle out the extremists once and for all.

A note on the good guys:
I feel I should add that there some excellent Nationalist contributors in the blogosphere, even if they are a minoritry.
Two of them, who happen to be among my favourite bloggers, but are not the only good ones, are Jeff Breslin of SNP Tactical Voting and now the Steamie, and Calum Cashley, the party's Westminster candidate for Edinburgh North and Leith and a researcher in Holyrood.
Both make thoughtful observations, do not hide behind anonymous names and are well worth a read. Neither feel the need to be abusive or defamatory but address issues through proper political debate.