Gerard Van der Leun offers some words of wisdom over the John Edwards campaign blogger controversy:

Without referencing the Edwards bloggers, I would note that over time people change and at certain moments people online write things they later regret out of passion or ignorance. Over time, people's situations change as do their needs and views.

It seems to me that we use past opinions to dump on future aspirations in our political squabbles at our peril. Getting people sacked in real life by using online life as a club is always a bad idea.

If you think it isn't, you're next.

(Emphasis added.)

This was by no means the first time.

Does anyone remember the frenzied attempts to get Glenn Reynolds fired for wearing the diversity gun t-shirt in a humorous manner? Readers were urged to contact his employer, and I was so outraged that I immediately ordered one of the shirts and posed for my blog wearing it.

In "retaliation" for the attempts to get him fired, Glenn made some comments about his "second career as a male model." (His modeling career did result in an unexpected consequence, though.)

Despite the fact that Amanda Marcotte was not fired, her blog Pandagon is supplying her supporters with an official IRS "Information Referral" form all filled out with the name of the people who urged Edwards to fire her along with IRS contact information, and (with a clever wink-wink) making a suggestion:

One thing I would certainly NOT expect is that anyone would go here[PDF], using the above as a template (or not), and stick that fucker in the mail. I certainly would be shocked if anyone were to alert all their friends and loved ones to behave similarly.

Yeah, I know free speech has consequences, and I have a perfect right to criticize anyone for anything, and say just about anything in disagreement. This includes the right to hurl insults and vituperative language as long as it doesn't cross the line to libel or slander. And I suppose it even includes the right to contact the employer of someone I disagree with, try to get them fired, try to sic the IRS or other authorities on them, (and vice versa), but I'd never do that to anyone -- no matter how much I might disagree. I think using online life as a club in real life is about low as you can go.

Unfortunately, I think there's going to be a lot more of it.