has been examining the role of blogs on Bermuda's public discourse ? especially as it relates to politics. As always political issues ignite hearty debate, but as you will see, in the second day of this two-day series by senior reporter Glenn Jones, the political debates inside the blogosphere are sometimes nasty and often times very personal.

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While the emergence of the Bermuda blogosphere as a significant medium of political opinion is undeniable, it?s affect on public discourse is as debatable as a thread on evolution.

No one seems to raise more questions about local blogger responsibility than Laverne Furbert. A grandmother of five with a sharp tongue and a gift to turn words into weapons.

?I guess some people consider the blogging platform useful in public discourse,? she said in an e-mail, ?however, when the person who operates the blog is able to delete what he wants, I don?t know how useful it is.?

The unwieldy blogging establishment in Bermuda at some point runs through the eyes and fingers of four men ? Bill Davidson, Christian Dunleavy, Sean Soares and Phillip Wells.

They each run their own site and have spoken extensively with .

Ms Furbert says she has visited all four of the men?s websites, and has become notorious for her posts on a site called A Limey in Bermuda ? the one run by British native Phillip Wells.

During one tense debate called ?Terror Alert?, Ms Furbert became a lightning rod for what appeared to be a minority viewpoint.

?I was heavily criticised by the regular posters,? Ms Furbert recalled.

?I think the reason for this is that the majority of people who post on Limey in Bermuda are anti-PLP and, hence, whenever someone speaks or writes in defence of the Government they are considered a pariah by the rest of the posters.?

Ms Furbert says she finds the anti-Progressive Labour Party tilt prevalent on just about every blog site she visits.

She also knows each of the most influential bloggers is white and male.

When you add those two observations, a user is left with some tough questions about the role race plays in the blogosphere.

Mr. Davidson of Bravo Zulu dealt with the sensitive issue this way: ?It (the blogosphere) is not something that belongs specifically to the white, educated, politically frustrated ? basically all of us sitting here.

?What you will find though is that anyone who disagrees with what is traditionally our demographic, they?ll be the ones who are leaving the angry comments on the site,? he said.

Calvin Smith, 73, is black and works in the same office as Ms Furbert.

He sampled the Limey in Bermuda website and his initial reaction was visceral.

?It seemed to me to be so far away from my black reality,? he said. ?He (Philip Wells) might have been on the mark for his white reality, but he certainly wasn?t for me.?

And on the topic of whether or not what Mr. Smith read was racist, he said: ?I thought when I first read it that these people are out and out racist.

?I don?t think they?re out and out racist anymore. I think that they have a point of view just like I have a point of view and they weren?t afraid to express it on this guy?s blog.?

Mr. Smith posted that day, but doesn?t go back very often.

?I know I couldn?t take too much of this kind of writing. I just couldn?t,? he said.

Mr. Wells, the gatekeeper for the Limey site, understands there is discontent among some of his users.

That?s why he has always advocated people start a blog of their own. ?It?s very easy to set up a blog,? he explained.

?I know some people, who may not be as technically minded as we are, might be intimidated by it, but there?s really not much to it.?

Ms Furbert considered becoming a blogger, but says she feels her stance is sufficiently heard either in the ?Worker?s Voice? where she has a column or on talk radio where she often contributes.

Things seemed especially testy between her and Mr. Wells when she wrote: ?I would suggest... that you pack your bags and head back to Merry Olde England so that you will no longer be a Limey in Bermuda.?

She signed her full name to the post, as she always does. Few are so brave.

The discussion at the time centred on the, now resigned, chef at Elbow Beach who made a comment about arsenic on the plate of the Premier.

When asked about that contentious exchange, Mr. Wells said categorically: ?She?s entitled to her opinion.?

Not only did he post his opponent?s comments, but also a section where she mentioned his wife?s workplace and his son?s name.

It suggested an added effort on his part to fully air the feelings of a minority viewpoint.

A small number of the other posters that day seemed to think Ms Furbert?s anger was warranted ? Mr. Wells had earlier made disparaging comments about Premier Ewart Brown and Minister Derrick Burgess.

?I have no regrets about anything that I wrote on the site,? Ms Furbert said. ?Not only should their offices be respected, they are both very dear friends of mine.?

In the Bermuda blogosphere there?s apparently no website with a pro-Government, pro-PLP message.

So it should be interesting to watch the role the blogosphere plays in the next general election ? the first since this platform became a major local player.

One of the main traffickers of political opinion during that time will be Christian Dunleavy and his pro-United Bermuda Party site politics.bm.

There?s also expected to be a lot of fodder for Sean Soares who?s blog is inventive with political satire.

On the sure-to-be soon-coming election Ms Furbert lashes one last time: ?I expect Limey in Bermuda, Christian Dunleavy, Smoking Gun, Uncle Elvis, Loki and all the other people who hide behind pen names to continue to viciously attack the PLP in an effort to discredit.?

?However,? she continued, ?I believe that they will do nothing to stop the PLP from winning the next election.?