People who disguise their identity in e-mail or public forums lack integrity, maturity and courage.

Well, actually he's got me pretty pegged. Fortunately, my immaturity means that I don't really care.
 

You are the Pubius of the hockey blogosphere, Earl. Er, sorry. Publius.
 

I'm confused on a number of levels.

Isn't Andy Grabia a made up name? Has Cosh actually been trashed here (I can only remember the classic "Colby Cosh is a big fat loser" from CalPuck")
 

Has Cosh actually been trashed here (I can only remember the classic "Colby Cosh is a big fat loser" from CalPuck")

Yes he has. We deleted some, and some are there but aren't worth searching for.

Oh, and yes, my real name is LaForge Patrick.
 

I always thought the name "Colby Cosh" was made up.

Oddly, CinO's Pleasure Motors goes by his real, legal name.
 

We also wouldn't have any of the novels by the Bronte sisters.
We'd have trouble uncovering corruption by bureaucrats or politicians.
We wouldn't have millions of dollars donated to charity by "Anonymous."
Crimestoppers wouldn't work.
 

Also, I don't live in Edmonton and even if I did I wouldn't trade my hard-earned money for a copy of the local fishwrap, but I'd be willing to bet a significant chunk of Janet Gretzky's money that in today's edition there are at least - at least - a half-dozen stories that cite "unnamed sources," "a source close to (name of story's principal)," "a trusted source," et al.
As in, "Unnamed sources suggest Scott McKeen is in no position to throw stones. A person who requested anonymity tells the Journal that McKeen lives in a house made entirely of glass."
My name is Art Vandelay and I'm an architect.
 

I'm puzzled as to how McKeen can tip his hat towards one of the big pros of anonymous or pseudonymous writing thusly:

Online, we don't know if you're a PhD or a peon. It's the thoughts that count, they argue, not the title.

...yet not offer any sort of substantive rebuttal. Instead he goes off on a mini-tirade about the importance of sticking it to the man:

But here's the thing about integrity -- you either have it or you don't. You either have the right to surf the Internet at work or you don't.

And here's the thing about freedom -- you either fight for it or surrender it to bully bosses, corporations and governments.

All of which has sweet fuck all to do with the question of credibility and accountability versus content. And it's easy to understand why. McKeen and his peers are instantly accorded a level of credibility on account of their position. Take that away, and their ideas have to hold up on their own merit. Given the quality of the Journal's writing, it's no wonder the balk at the prospect.

And anudder thing: the whole "accountability" business is horseshit. Is McKeen anymore "accountable" to his readers because he uses his name than someone like, say, mudcrutch? If so, how so? If someone disagrees with “mudcrutch”, they can tell him so in his comments section and chances are, he’ll respond. Even if he doesn’t, there’s the opportunity with online users to register that disagreement for all to see. There’s no such reporting mechanism at work in the MSM.
 

Awwww, man.

And I tried so hard to get people to hate on me.

What's a guy gotta do to earn some abuse around here.
 

I like this line best:

"For all we know, political or corporate spin merchants could be influencing public debate by pretending to be average citizens."

I agree, except I'm not sure if he's talking about Connect 2 Edmonton or his own paper. From November 14th, 2006:

"A new downtown hockey arena. That's the blue-sky proposal that's been quietly floating around the city, sponsored by some discreet local business interests.

The plan's backers, who wish to remain anonymous, even hired an architect to create a design that tops the rink with a dramatic glass pyramid, a quotation of the Muttart Conservatory and City Hall."

Hmm.
 

I doubt many of them would be uttered to us if we were an inch away from the speaker's face.

Grabia an inch from my face? That's a scary thought...
 

Oh, and in reference to people using pseudonyms, what is wrong with that? Its not like if I signed everything 'Randy Smith', it would change my position or would increase your interest in tracking me down in the Toronto phonebook...

And good luck with that one (especially since I actually live in Scarborough and I only have a cell phone, the better to remain more anonymous)...
 

I have never in my life wanted to visit Scarborough, let alone track someone down there.
 

Three points: first, I don't use my real name online because I don't want prospective employers to google it and find something they don't like. Information is valuable, and I prefer to keep a tight rein on my personal info.

Second, whistleblowers/Deep Throat are a different situation, because they are (hopefully) dealing with fact rather than opinion. The value of facts doesn't depend on the person they come from, they depend on how closely they match reality. Thus, facts aren't weakened by anonymity, they are weakened by being incorrect.

Third, McKeen identifies a problem, (anonymity is, at best, of no value to public discourse), but has little to no understanding of how that applies to the internet, and then gives no emphasis to the solution.

An online forum is different than a newspaper. The difference between Andy Grabia (full name), Matt (first name only), and metrognome (made up name) is meaningless to a reader. If Andy Grabia were a made up name, would it make a difference? What matters is that all three post their opinions and then back them up, either in comments or in another post. It's your cache of words, as Andy said, that matters online, not the amount of personal information you provide.

The specific instance that McKeen describes is the Connect 2 Edmonton forum, where they've apparently had bigoted posts. (Shock! Surprise!) He seems to believe that this would be solved if everyone used their real name. But this is unlikely. One of the problems with bigotry is that it is insular: bigots aren't exposed to unbigoted ideas, and unbigoted people are exposed to bigoted ideas. This is not healthy. We have a system that removes this insularity, but McKeen would put it back in. Real identities wouldn't add anymore accountability, either, since only really crazy people would take the discussion outside of the bounds of the forum. I'm sure McKeen prides himself on how he doesn't hide from debate and denigration, but how would he feel about people calling him at home, or waiting outside of his work to talk to him?

The reality is, opinions count only when you back them up. A user on a forum shows their integrity, maturity, and courage by backing up their opinions, not by their choice of name.
 

ngthagg's right, a world with Google is a world where I want to keep my mentions lower. Has anybody googled their own name? Are you at the top of the hit list? Do you want to be? I never want to be the first hit on Google, thus 'anonymous'.
 

"A new downtown hockey arena. That's the blue-sky proposal that's been quietly floating around the city, sponsored by some discreet local business interests.

So now the EIG is a "discreet local business interest." ?

Where's Mr Grabia when you need him?
 

I'm stunned so many of you people actually disagree with McKeen's comments. I read his article today and he was clearly commenting about people who attack other people and then hide behind a phoney name.

Any half-ass literate person who read McKeen's column knows he wasn't referring to anything as grave as illegal government actions or corruption. He was referring to people who make hateful, subjective comments about others without having the guts to stand up and be counted.

There's a difference between whistle blowing and writing mean-spirited comments. By the way, whoever said there are probably half a dozen anonymous sources in today's newspaper is an example of why people should use their real names.

This is a totally bullshit statement, not meant to enlighten the debate, but merely to trash the Journal. Read the newspaper. You won't find half a dozen anonymous sources in a month.

This kind of debate makes you guys no better than the crappy sports reporters working for most of news outlets in Edmonton. They are afraid to speak out about the lousy manamgenet team running the Oilers, on and off the ice, and you guys will only do it if you can hide behind a fake name.

Different sides of the same coin, if you ask me.

This is a great blog because you guys are willing to voice a real, refrehing opinion about the Oilers. Using phoney names is wrong, but it's not a big deal because this is simply a sports blog.

Please stick to hockey. Commenting on political thought is obviously much too deep for you guys.

Jim Veenbaas
 

you guys will only do it if you can hide behind a fake name

Like Andy Grabia?
 

clearmedia's (AKA Jim Veenbaas) blogger profile:

Profile Not Available

The Blogger Profile you requested cannot be displayed. Many Blogger users have not yet elected to publicly share their Profile.
 

"McKeen and his peers are instantly accorded a level of credibility on account of their position."

By whom? Clearly not you or many other posters here.

By the general public? Since when does the "blogosphere" give a rip about the opinion of the "general public", except insofar as to mock it?

Speaking for myself, I post nowhere anonymously, although I do have handles in some places - which are easily tracked back to me. I wouldn't work for anybody who would refuse me employment based on things I've written.
 

“I may disagree with what you say, but will defend to the death your right to say it.” --Francois-Marie Arouet, under the pseudonym Voltaire

“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” --Eric Arthur Blair, under the pseudonym George Orwell

Writing under a pen name is, by no stretch of the imagination, some kind of recently invented nefarious practice. Fictitious names have been adopted by writers from the earliest historic times in nearly all countries, whether of a political or literary character. Eminent Albertan Emily Murphy, the first female magistrate in the Commonwealth and leader of the Famous 5 in the historic Persons Case, often wrote under pseudonyms including Emily Chetwood, Earl York, and Janey Canuck. Newspaper columnists (and twin sisters) Esther Lederer and Pauline Phillips long doled out advice to readers using the pseudonyms Ann Landers and Abigail Van Buren.

In McIntyre v. Ohio Elections Commission 514 U.S. 334 (1995), the United States Supreme Court upheld anonymous and pseudonymous writing as nothing less than a fundamental right of expression. The United States has a strong tradition of anonymous speech in both literary and political contexts. For example, the Court in McIntyre notes that "American names such as Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens) and O. Henry (William Sydney Porter) come readily to mind. Benjamin Franklin employed numerous different pseudonyms." Politically, the Court added, "[t]hat tradition is most famously embodied in the Federalist Papers, authored by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay, but signed 'Publius.'"

In a previous case, Talley v. California 362 U.S. 60 (1960), the US Supreme Court noted, "Anonymous pamphlets, leaflets, brochures and even books have played an important role in the progress of mankind." Commenting on that case in McIntyre, the Court said, "The specific holding in Talley related to advocacy of an economic boycott, but the Court's reasoning embraced a respected tradition of anonymity in the advocacy of political causes."

The Supreme Court in McIntyre added, "Under our Constitution, anonymous pamphleteering is not a pernicious, fraudulent practice, but an honorable tradition of advocacy and of dissent. Anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the majority. See generally J. S. Mill, On Liberty, in On Liberty and Considerations on Representative Government 1, 3-4 (R. McCallum ed. 1947)."
 

Oddly, CinO's Pleasure Motors goes by his real, legal name.

Truthfully, the only reason I use a pseudonym is because a hockey blog run by Mike, Chris and Dave sounds too much like a Kids in the Hall sketch to me.
 

"Anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the majority."

Next.
 

Herbert, again, there's a *world* of difference between anonymously criticizing the government, and leaving anonymous comments in hockey blogs calling the authors rude names.

Yes, both are speech and ought to be free, but if you don't value the one over the other, you're nuts.
 

I have never in my life wanted to visit Scarborough, let alone track someone down there.


You just don't have needs like the rest of us then.
 

Any half-ass literate person who read McKeen's column knows he wasn't referring to anything as grave as illegal government actions or corruption. He was referring to people who make hateful, subjective comments about others without having the guts to stand up and be counted.

If only that were true, he'd have a case. But he casts his net far wider than that. To wit:

My opinions on this matter came from the Internet, where people routinely go incognito with made-up user names, or fake e-mail identities, instead of standing up as individuals for what they believe to be true.

People who disguise their identity in e-mail or public forums lack integrity, maturity and courage.

the headline: ""Opinions count only when not cloaked in anonymity." is also a bit of a giveaway that McKeen isn't talking about content. McKeen's position is clearly that the mere fact of anonymity is bad. Content, "mean-spirited" or otherwise, is secondary, if even considered at all.
 

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