I always go back and forth on adding comments to my site. Do I really want the negativity, especially places like HN, can provide? I think it's fairly common now for people to not add comment systems, of any kind, to their blogs.
I went back and forth but tried it, and looked at the comments I got. I decided I really liked the comments I was getting. Some asked questions. Some offered additional information. Some pointed out mistakes. It's been great!
The comments make the website feel alive though. I remember many Aaron Swartz blogposts would have a comments section many times longer than the original post
Yeah but do you want the HN typical-smarter-than-thou comments on your site? It sounds exhausting to need to worry about moderating that, for your mental health.
Well my blog is on github gists so I can have comments available. My opinions are founded on ground principles and facts, and if someone tells me that a fact is wrong then I'm more than happy to evolve my opinion.