def _remove_commented_rows(rows, comment_character):
    """Remove any rows that start with the comment character."""
    uncommented_rows = list()
    for row in rows:
        # if the row is empty, move on
        if len(row) == 0:
            continue
        # if the row does not start with the comment character, record it
        if not row[0].startswith(comment_character):
            uncommented_rows.append(row)
    return uncommented_rows