As I’ve stated before, I maintain an open forum policy on this blog. This is both due to my belief in free speech and the fact that I don’t want to have to babysit commenters. However, in light of some recent events, I am instituting one rule:
NO SOCK PUPPETS.
If I catch any sock puppets, I will ruthlessly edit their handles to match the person who is using them. Persistent sock puppetry will be met with Roissy-style mutilations of your comments, random deletion of your comments, and in extreme cases, banishment.
Don’t like this rule? Too fucking bad. As far as bloggers go, I’m pretty lenient, but I won’t tolerate clowns deliberately and transparently trying to deceive me and others. My house, my law. Follow it or get the hell out.
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Man, and just to think I was about to use the pets.com dog as my icon. :-)
Good policy.
I agree with Default User.
I disagree. Sock puppets rule.
@Logged in User, Not Default User
Stop bickering you two. Who cares about sockpuppets
Sorry for the above. I am feeling mischievous tonight.
:)
This strikes me as a bit of a remedy in search of a problem.
That may just be what Default’s humor was aimed at. Y’all think?
Nah doug, I was just being my cheeky, mischievous, and silly self. I had no point to make, just going for the cheap laughs.
No! Sockpuppets! Everywhere!
http://images.google.com.au/images?hl=en&source=hp&q=sockpuppet+image&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=6wGtSpGGBM-OkQWK3fmVBg&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1
@Gil
I remember on FreeRepublic.com (many years ago) one of the admins posted a thread entitled something like “Test Post – Don’t Reply”.
Needless to say posters did reply and the thread grew to thousands of replies. Those replies covered everything from comedy to history, to pets to politics, and even included Monthy Python references.
Long after it had faded someone would resurrect it with a new reply (putting it at the top of the latest posts list) and the cycle would start all over again. I am not sure if the thread still exists, it may have been deleted by the admins.
I wonder if the same will happen here.
I am not calling for a specific action. Just saying it has the potential for that.
[I am really not trying to stir up something here. I just remembered that FreeRepublic thread and thought it funny. Ferdinand can just delete these replies if he wants to stop that one dead in its tracks.]
“This strikes me as a bit of a remedy in search of a problem.”
I wouldn’t have instituted this rule if it wasn’t for a certain Roissy commenter (think equestrianism) using a sock puppet to debate on my threads. If it was just some random jackass, I’d ignore it. But to have someone whom I am ostensibly associated with pulling this kind of stunt reflects poorly on me and the others who are associated with me. It’s all about keeping your own people in line.
You make me laugh, DU, so you get a pass.
I would agree with Doug1.
It is not a ‘sock puppet’ to merely play 2 characters. It is only a ‘sock puppet’ if character A is communicating with, or about, character B extensively while both are the same person. That has not happened here. Two different characters arguing against a pair of trolls (one per troll), rather, is what happened here.
If one ‘actor’ such as Eddie Murphy, Sacha Baron Cohen, or Mike Myers, can play more than one ‘character’ at once, why not can a blog commenter? If not, why not require real names instead of handles? Or registration?
deliberately and transparently trying to deceive me
Everyone knows that a blog owner can see IP addresses – no one tries to deceive the owner. The other commenters are the object, who frankly more than deserve it from time to time.
Roissy never has a problem with two characters being played by one actor. Simply using two handles is not ‘sock puppetry’.
Fine, I won’t change my handle, but your bigger challenge, Ferdinand, will be to prevent certain anti-Game commenters from bringing down the quality of this board, as noted by many others. Rational disagreement is one thing. Pig-headedly spouting ignorance white totally ignoring the factual efforts of 10 other people to correct a dishonestly unfavorable narrative about Game and its practitioners is another. This type of trolling does, as we have seen, bring out the worst in others as well.
Part of the reason you are getting Roissy commenter traffic is because the quality-to-troll ratio at Roissy’s has deteriorated markedly in the last 30 days. The same could happen here rather quickly, unfortunately. No one has time to moderate, but a high-quality board is a fragile thing.
“If one ‘actor’ such as Eddie Murphy, Sacha Baron Cohen, or Mike Myers, can play more than one ‘character’ at once, why not can a blog commenter? If not, why not require real names instead of handles? Or registration?”
We’re not actors, and this isn’t a movie. More to the point, we want people to take us seriously. When you argue seriously under two pseudonyms, you make yourself – and your allies – look bad. That sort of behavior is expected among 14-year old obese video game nerds, not adults arguing in earnest.
“Roissy never has a problem with two characters being played by one actor.”
I’m not Roissy.
“Fine, I won’t change my handle,”
I don’t mind if you change your handle (as Sofia and Prime have done), just be honest when you do so.
“but your bigger challenge, Ferdinand, will be to prevent certain anti-Game commenters from bringing down the quality of this board, as noted by many others.”
Duly noted, TFH. That individual will have a surprise waiting for him the next time he comments. I appreciate your, and other commenters, ultimately failed attempts to slam some sense into his skull.
“I wouldn’t have instituted this rule if it wasn’t for a certain “Roissy commenter (think equestrianism) using a sock puppet to debate on my threads.”
Did you notice this before I did?
September 11th, 2:13 AM:
“Gamebit, your game is up. You clearly are a second persona devised by TFH since you sound like his abrasive acolyte. The fact that you had to change your symbol is proof positive of this (contrast “Gamebit’s†first ever post with his second) since it was exactly the same as TFH’s…”
Yeah I think DU is funny too. One of the best comenters around.
I wonder why he hasn’t replied.
That individual will have a surprise waiting for him the next time he comments.
Now THAT I want to see….
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