&gt;so IMHO it should support both<p>some of us think it should support neither (because _emphasis_ is only slightly less legible than <i>emphasis</i> whereas erroneous use of asterisks is very much less legible than uses of asterisks would be if asterisks were not interpreted -- and because erroneous use of asterisks is fairly common).<p>But _if_ the present situation continues in which asterisks (or asterisks and underscores) are interpreted, at least the interface should provide a link next to the &quot;ago&quot;, &quot;parent&quot;, and &quot;flag&quot; links that show the raw, uninterpreted comment the way the user entered it.