re: jung/persona

• What makes cyberspace interesting? by John Suler, 6/26/97
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    • re: jung/persona by John Suler, 7/27/97
      
      

> Note, for example, people who always use their real

>name online, as compared to people who rarely do.

LOL! Whether intended or not, that is applicable to me in this forum (using initials). If intended, then thank you for calling attention to it. If unintended, ditto.

I formerly always used my real name online. But I came to have two concerns about doing so: (1) Privacy issues--I resent spammers and marketers who impose on us by gleaning information about us from our online participation, and (2) Misunderstandings or misinterpretations which may arise from comments taken out of context--comments which may be obtained by selective searches available via DejaNews, for example.

Although I've been online for ages, primarily on local bbs's and private services such as AOL and Compuserve, it's only relatively recently that I've accessed internet newsgroups (n.g.). My first experience with a n.g. can only be equated to a slap in the face, followed by repeated body blows, then a kick to the groin. It began because I had the audacity, as a "newbie," to ask if people couldn't be more civil and stop calling each other names. A group assault followed, the participants consisting of a half dozen or so people who had "bonded" in their online group and proceeded to collectively assault me in an effort to, I presume, drive me from the group. Part of that effort included the use of DejaNews to selectively and prejudicially quote comments I'd made, to promote their efforts to besmirch my character. At one point I was even threatened with physical violence.

I was astonished that "grown ups" would engage in this sort of aggressive childish behaviour. But it also indicated to me the strong degree of possessiveness ("need") that some people feel about their online worlds. That, I suppose, argues in favor of the sense of "real" some people have about the online world.

Using initials in my comments here affords me a means of attempting to ensure some small degree of "privacy" and a greater feeling of freedom to express myself, without having to be concerned my comments might be taken out of context at some later date, in some other forum.

TWB (The "T" stands for "Tom")

• re: jung/persona(anonymity) by John Suler, 7/29/97