The recent controversy surrounding the Islam Hadhari comment on Jeff Ooi's blog is a stunning example of how inept our authorities can be in regards to understanding the Internet. The comment was no doubt offensive. But let's keep things in perspective.

Keep in mind that only 30 percent of Malaysians use the Internet and most do not even do so regularly. This tiny comment on Ooi's blog would probably have only been read by a few dozen people. It was not an article or a webpage, but merely a minor posting in a discussion forum.

Since Berita Harian and some of our ministers have now made a mountain out of a molehill out of it, thousands of people all over the world have now come to hear about this comment and Ooi's blog.

Even foreign newspapers like the South China Morning Post have written about this. Top websites like Slashdot.org with a readership of several million have also picked up the story.

This whole development stems from our authorities not understanding the difference between a website, a discussion forum and a blog. The mistake of picking a fight rather than letting the comment slide only drew more attention to the offensive comment.

In this case, probably hundreds of thousands of times more.

Rattling the ISA chains is another stupid move. The comment in question most likely got less readers initially than an average graffiti in a public bathroom stall. Will the ISA be monitoring our public bathroom habits as well?

Malaysians have to realise that one price of a free democratic society is that every now and then, you will be offended by something someone else says. To function in such a society you need to be able to handle the occasional criticism. Getting hysterical over it or suggesting that the Internet needs to be censored is not a mature response.

The few thousand Malaysians who regularly use the Internet tend to be highly intelligent and educated. These people are probably mature enough to handle the occasional slur.

Finally, Ooi, the blog owner, should be commended for giving Malaysians a platform to speak freely. His side of the story was not told and I encourage readers to visit his blog to learn more.

Ooi should not be blamed or held accountable for something someone writes on his site. It is logistically impossible for Ooi to read and moderate every comment made.

If someone paints racially offensive graffiti over your car while you're sleeping should you be held responsible and considered a racist? The answer is obviously no.

If you understand the nature of Internet blogs you will understand why Ooi should not be blamed.