Ron Ankeny Posted November 17, 2002 Share Posted November 17, 2002 I spend way too much time kicking around on the Internet. I sit in front of a computer (at work) for hours on end and I slip away to the shooting forums from time to time just to take a break. As I look around Glock Talk, The Firing Line, The 1911 Forum, and so on, I see a lot of little flame wars going on. The Web offers safety through distance and anonmity. It's pretty easy for people to vent without fear of any real accountability and at times I just hate that. I wish all forum users here were required to use their real names, post their real e-mail addresses in their profiles, and list their USPSA number. I think it would add a bit of accountability and maybe even make people think twice and post once. Of course, I use my real name and seldom think before I post so what the heck do I know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davecutts Posted November 17, 2002 Share Posted November 17, 2002 Ron: well said, and I couldn't agree with you more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted November 17, 2002 Share Posted November 17, 2002 HEY! Everyone knows where I am and where I shoot. And if you'd care to read something POSITIVE (for a change) just check into my post from this morning (under What I Like) to get a dose of "love ya" stuff. I think the venting and ranting is just an exercise. I am not offended. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Merricks Posted November 18, 2002 Share Posted November 18, 2002 I agree Ron. I don't understand why anyone would want to be called anything but their real name or some nick name they had before they were on board. I don't Sig Lady. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shred Posted November 18, 2002 Share Posted November 18, 2002 Well, though few people call me 'shred' in person, for whatever reason, I've been using it online since before Al Gore invented the internet. While it's super-easy for anybody to figure out (or ask) what my name is, it keeps my employers happy since they know I'm not representing them and it also keeps the average GT yahoo from phoning me up or whatever. What with everybody and their brother doing searches for jobs, loans and whatever, the less they have to look through the better.. Besides.. how do you know John Smith really is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted November 18, 2002 Share Posted November 18, 2002 JM-- Also under the thread buried in What I Like is a digression about the shooting range where I/we shoot in Eugene. Couple of our posters had questions about it so I digressed and blathered about it a little more. Oh, another thing: Having done the 'radio' thing--where we seldom use our real names on air--a protective layer of anonymous-ness protected us from stalkers, pests, idiots and other deceptive, annoying vermin. It could be that the 'moniker' thing is both an attempt to be safe and an attempt to be humorous. It ends up being both. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3quartertime Posted November 18, 2002 Share Posted November 18, 2002 ...from the checkout lane of your local Anonymities R US,,, The last time I let out what my real name is there were a rash of sightings printed in the National Enquirer, 'he was seen pumping gas in his Pinto at seveneleven' or 'back from the dead and killin' a value meal at Burger King', the list goes on. I don't think I would mind the benos.com family knowing my real moniker it's just there are some active duty coppers that post here, and since that run-in with the mexican federalies, too many shots of tequila and two senoritas that swore they were old enough ( at least I think that's what they were saying!!!). I've been keeping a low profile. Besides how do we know the real names are who they really are are...or something like that. How hard would it be to search the match results and pick name with a USPSA number and claim it? As a low percentage C shooter I'm always worried a gealous M or GM will swipe my persona, play around with it for a while then give it back with a few 80 or 90 percents posted. I shudder to think!!! Oh and Jon, I seem to remember another JM. Maybe your just using a famous name to prompt us into a little research ala benos's tag lines designed to stir up the grey matter. Signed, @#$% (the poster formally known as 3quartertime) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted November 18, 2002 Share Posted November 18, 2002 "I've been keeping a low profile." Criminy, ¾, you've got the highest profile of anyone HERE!!! No sense tryin' to hide NOW...! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Ankeny Posted November 18, 2002 Author Share Posted November 18, 2002 Ya know what, I really do understand where you guys are coming from. Even though you can't tell it from my posts, I have lectured all over the west on the topics of "Safe Surfing" and "Netiquette". While I have never received national recognition for my IPSC shooting or literacy skills, I have received national recognition for my work with Internet Technologies and Education. One of the first rules of the Web is to never give out personal information on the Internet or in an e-mail unless you are sure the recipient is a responsible party. In light of the fact that some of us own some fairly expensive toys, I can understand why you wouldn't want people to know more than they should. It would be silly to paint a target on your back or on your gun safe. In the world of Internet Technologies, there is an exception to the rule of anonymity. That exception is in the case of on-line learning. In an on-line learning community, users are clearly identified. Of course, those communities are password protected and secure. Still, I consider this board to be an on-line learning community and as such I like to know who the serious students are as well as who the serious instructors are. People who clearly identify themselves are (in my view) identifying themselves as Web savy, substantially secure, and they either have something to offer as accomplished shooters and teachers, or they are serious students of the sport. That's just my opinion and we all know what they say about opinions. It is unfortunate that the safety provided by anonymity and distance make this particular method of communication especially subject to misuse. While we do have a general (and in some cases specific) set of rules governing electronic communications, most casual Web surfers seem to disregard them. I am guilty myself of some bad on-line behavior and I accept responsibility for it. I suppose each user will behave as they deem appropriate within their understanding of Brian's request to be civil. Well, it looks like I have once again violated another rule of Netiquette, "Respect Other People's Time and Bandwidth". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Merricks Posted November 19, 2002 Share Posted November 19, 2002 3QT nope thats my real name. The spelling is a little diffrent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianH Posted November 19, 2002 Share Posted November 19, 2002 We have a way to take care of this...it's called "your profile". What I hate is checking out someones profile, for whatever reason, and they left everything blank! If you want to hide, turn your computer off and turn out the lights.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3quartertime Posted November 19, 2002 Share Posted November 19, 2002 Jon, yea I thought so just couldn't resist throwing that in when talking about monikers!!! I confess when I first saw your name I did a search to find the other JM's name and found the different spelling. Just thought it would be fun to razz you about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Merricks Posted November 19, 2002 Share Posted November 19, 2002 Nothing new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted November 19, 2002 Share Posted November 19, 2002 I have to agree with BrianH... the nearly-blank profile page is downright rude. I think our Host BEing should 'up' the number of required entries on the profile pages in order to qualifiy for membership. And if you have to lie about your "interests", then for pete's sake, go ahead and be imaginative. (That alone would tell us what we need to know about you, anyway). ...just MY 2 cents (or a quarter, adjusting for inflation). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tightloop Posted November 19, 2002 Share Posted November 19, 2002 Even those with the best intentions sometimes let their tempers, etc get the best of them and either say something or post something which might have been better, either said or posted after a little cooling off period of a day or so. It is interesting that people say and act all out of character when on the web than they do in person. It says something about what people would really like to say or do if there were no recriminations or no responsibility to be accepted for their speech or their actions. None of us is perfect, so let's all try to give our fellow forum members the benefit of any doubt; except on the Friday Flame Wars, when ANYTHING goes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted November 20, 2002 Share Posted November 20, 2002 I still think the "Hate" forum is fundamentally a great testing ground. A sanctioned place to practice strong dilplomacy... of one kind or another. But, yes, it is a public place. And essentially some other BEing's property. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted November 20, 2002 Share Posted November 20, 2002 (Ooops....!... "Man" of Knowledge....????... Brian, did you do that on purpose...??!?....) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexmoney Posted November 20, 2002 Share Posted November 20, 2002 you are only the second female man of knowledge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shooter Grrl Posted November 20, 2002 Share Posted November 20, 2002 And the first one bitched, cried, moaned and was a general nuisance until SHE was no longer tagged as a HE Brian did apologize though - i'll share it with ya, but you have to go find it!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Ankeny Posted November 20, 2002 Author Share Posted November 20, 2002 Oh no, gender equity once again rears it's ugly head. (Edited by Ron Ankeny at 9:47 pm on Nov. 19, 2002) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianH Posted November 20, 2002 Share Posted November 20, 2002 Em - Ay - En Dublyou - oh - em - ay - en Seems to me there is still a "man" in there...kinda like "man-kind"....instead of "everyone kind".... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted November 20, 2002 Share Posted November 20, 2002 So-called 'gender equity' never crossed my mind until you brought it up...! Hey!!, I'm not complaining (for those of you who couldn't tell) about the new "title"...! I actually thought it was perfectly hilarious, and was looking for a thread drift is all... Jeez. Has nothing to do with anything--let alone more of that politically correct overkill about gender that we briefly explored last month on this respectable forum. It was more an excuse for an off-the-wall posting. But now that you mention it........!........ I'm going to let The BEing figure out what to call me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Thomas Posted November 21, 2002 Share Posted November 21, 2002 I'm just not imaginative enough to come up with a really cool Internet alias. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted November 22, 2002 Share Posted November 22, 2002 Maybe you're just genuine enough not to HAVE to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George D Posted November 22, 2002 Share Posted November 22, 2002 Political correctness regarding gender is not always a cynical exercise. I used to work for an engineering authority that designed, built and maintained sewer systems. We used an inspection structure that was called a "manhole". One day a fellow worker who was of ethnic origin with only a basic command of English needed to inspect a sewer line and knocked on the door of the owner of the property. A lady, also of ethnic origin, answered. He said to her "Please, I would like to look in your manhole" and she set the dogs on him. There-after the structure was renamed "Inspection portal". It's a true story, I swear. (Edited by George D at 12:58 pm on Nov. 22, 2002) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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