[WikiEN-l] A modest proposal

[George Herbert]

On 8/13/07, NavouWiki <navouwiki at gmail.com> wrote:
> Consider this scenario:
>
> An editor creates a sockpuppet account to have discussion on a hot topic.
> The editor does not want this discussion associated with the main account.
> Checkusers are run, and the two accounts are reconciled.
>
> Please don't misunderstand me, I'm not implying this occurs, it is a
> plausible scenario.

That's a valid reason to want to create a second account, and a
scenario under which it might accidentally be exposed.

However, the policy is that CU data should not be used or released
unless there's some sort of abuse by the account.

If an editor creates a sock for a particular discussion, and doesn't
behave abusively during that discussion, even a positive ID between
the editor and the sock by an unrelated CU should result in data which
the CU user shouldn't use anywhere.

I think everyone would agree that outing a non-abusive sock account
which was accidentally discovered in a CU, or on purpose discovered
outside CU usage policy, would be a policy violation and result in
review of CU privileges.

If you create the sock to abuse... you deserve to get discovered, and
the policy allows people to do that.

I just live my life in a way that "discovery" of what I do online
wouldn't be a shock to anyone I care about.  I've socked in non-WP
things before (in the early 1990s, popping up on IRC with a female
nick was a great way to get hackers to tell you what they were
doing...).  I don't see any reason to for WP.  There's nothing wrong
with people having opinions on controversial topics.  I don't agree
that pseudonyms either facilitate the discussion or are in the long
term useful for people discussing them.

I dont' impose my opinions on others, and I'm ok with WP having the
additional protections, but a lot of the time I think people feel that
they must hide behind privacy barriers that are really only useful or
helpful in your mind.  Ultimately, you will be better off not trying
to hide.  Ultimately, the project will be better off if hiding becomes
the exception rather than the rule.

I'd rather people came to see that on their own and just modified
their own behavior by choice than try to impose that on anyone, but I
think ultimately that's a long term direction of benefit to both the
Foundation and most of the individuals participating in the projects.


-- 
-george william herbert
george.herbert at gmail.com