I guess it's just that as Allyson, if I say, "I heard that Alexis Denisof and Alyson Hannigan are guesting on The Inside this season," it's probably going to get linked in a lot of places as the Truth. Same for Kristen. The assumption, the silent e, is that we heard it from Tim.

As paperdol, it's just a rumor that causes uber-fun speculation.

Maybe that's unfair in some way.

There's also sticky association problems. I might be putting together a Serenity party for example. Maybe I think Serenity blows. Can't really offer that opinion as Allyson.

Which I guess is totally my problem.

who gets to be wrong is whoever loses the vote, if this even goes to a vote.

And NO, that doesn't mean one is RIGHT and the other WRONG - it means that if a quorum is reached, then the majority of the posters who could bother themselves to vote decided what is best for the community at this point.

Allyson and Kristen, I see your points as two poeple closely associated with writers and thus open to more than most of uys, especially when posting on those topics.

I don't have an answer for that.

Allyson, would you be able to put something in paperdol's profile that would make it clear to the curious or easily annoyed who you were, without leading to unwanted Whedonesque linkage?

a sockpuppet whose "real" identity is easily sussed out

This has never ONCE been the case from my perspective, fwiw. I have never guessed the identity of a single sockpuppet. (For a long time, I assumed they were all the same person.)

Personally, and I seem to be alone in this (or at least alone in my extremity), I think that sockpuppets are, by definition, rude. Therefore, as far as I'm concerned, they already fall under our current etiquette guidelines of Things One Shouldn't Be Doing.

I'd probably keep my tag the same. But I see how it's an issue from ita's stance. She probably sees the issue from mine.

I've never gone under, though I've come close (for work purposes) to changing my name.

I just don't say a lot of stuff, or enter into a lot of discussions.

WITH GREAT POWER COMES GREAT RESPONSIBILITY.

I wish I had power. Damn.

it means that if a quorum is reached, then the majority of the posters who could bother themselves to vote decided what is best for the community at this point.

Why can't those people decide what's best for themselves? What if having a majority of people who could be arsed to vote makes this place as unpleasant for me (or someone better liked than me) to hang around as sockpuppets do for you?

What if I pretty strongly feel I don't need the majority of posters who could be botherd to vote to decide what's "best" for the community, and that I'm perfectly capable of deciding that on my own?

Question for the people who have created and used sockpuppets: did you know that sockpuppets annoyed some people, or is this news to you? I'm just wondering.

I personally dislike sockpuppets with a white-hot dislike, and I always have. They smack of inside-jokiness to me, which I don't find funny. They also feel, to me, like someone cartwheeling through the board trying to get attention, rather than to actually have a conversation.

Those are *my* personal preferences, though -- I realize that other people enjoy the cartwheeling and don't mind the disruption of the conversation, and they don't perceive (or don't care, if they do perceive) any inside-jokiness.

Personally, and I seem to be alone in this (or at least alone in my extremity), I think that sockpuppets are, by definition, rude.

Jess, I agree with you -- I think they're rude, too.

I think this is a good discussion to have, even if there is no vote.

This has never ONCE been the case from my perspective, fwiw. I have never guessed the identity of a single sockpuppet. (For a long time, I assumed they were all the same person.)

Personally, and I seem to be alone in this (or at least alone in my extremity), I think that sockpuppets are, by definition, rude. Therefore, as far as I'm concerned, they already fall under our current etiquette guidelines of Things One Shouldn't Be Doing.

I'm always wrong about who the sockpuppets are as well. However, that doesn't bug me. So I still don't have problem with them.

What if I pretty strongly feel I don't need the majority of posters who could be botherd to vote to decide what's "best" for the community, and that I'm perfectly capable of deciding that on my own?

I'm not sure I follow you, Sean. Are you proposing a Seantatorship, or saying the will of the voters != the best thing for the board? If the latter, how would you propose we suss out what's best for the board?