Preventing Jerks From Taking Over The Internet

Cory Doctorow's latest column deals with a subject that's been on the top of my mind for a couple of months now: Keeping conversation civil on the Internet. When Web designer Kathy Sierra felt forced to cancel a speaking engagement after receiving death threats on her blog, it underscored for me how ugly the Internet has become, and how much I, and other people, had come to take it for granted.

Hate mail, angry screeds, and the occasional death threat are just normal discourse in many parts of the Web. I sometimes think that the Internet includes millions of people, sitting at their computers typing white-hot messages to each other while shaking in rage.

What do you think? Is there too much bad behavior on the Internet? How can we solve the problem?