[WikiEN-l] Ryulong blocked ALL accounts

[Keitei]

On Apr 20, 2007, at 21:59, Tony Sidaway wrote:

> On 4/21/07, Cascadia <cascadia at privatenoc.com> wrote:
>> Tony,
>>
>> You have accused people of trolling the discussion on this thread,  
>> and now
>> you stand here and call those who chose to remain annonymous  
>> "cowards".
>>
>
> Yes, I'm happy that you noticed that.

I'm not quite sure if this is relevant to the text I've quoted, but I  
think I've deleted any other relevant messages...

I think people using anonymity to participate in a discussion can use  
it in both productive and detrimental ways. The problem I think is  
that the authority which established users have is conferred by their  
track record. Anonymous accounts do not have this authority and  
should not try to infer it. Insisting that their normal account has a  
lot of influence and demanding that influence transfer to the new  
account is groundless and inflammatory. It could even be seen as  
trolling.

A bit of disclaimer: I've been inactive since February and have not  
read this debate on wiki. However, I don't think it's unreasonable to  
state that people trying to infer authority from other accounts can  
lean to the trolling side. Certainly it can have the effects of  
trolling, if not the intentions (this is then called "disruptive  
editing" and not trolling? Both are grounds for a block anyhow). Not  
that this is what happened, seeing as I don't know what happened. But  
going after Tony for making observations in his opinion seems to be  
missing the point.

I can also see how trying to use one's authority without connecting  
it to oneself could be cowardice. The connection between a self and  
what that self does is where the authority comes from. They're  
therefore unwilling to take the fall for their actions, and hiding  
behind a consequence-less mask, while the consequences are everything  
when it comes to who people are on-wiki. Again, not saying it was  
cowardice which drove their actions, but it could seem/be this way  
and people who believe this could very well be acting in good faith  
(and probably are), not trolling.

Anyhow, not that privacy isn't a concern and people shouldn't try to  
protect themselves. They just shouldn't expect the same respect they  
had (lacking track record) and people who do insist on this respect  
ought to be aware that their actions can be seen as trolling.

Cheers
--keitei