If ET required you to use your real name, would you stick around?
- Thread starter Josef K
- Start date
No.
I currently have a lunatic stalker (on this very board) who has professed to be drooling with glee at the thought of screaming at my boss and the company I work for, despite the fact that I already know an amazing amount about her. Being a super moderator, I've been exposed to stuff behind the scenes that shows one how many retards and psychotics are out there. Baron's had `tards calling him on the phone multiple times per day, expressing how powerfully connected they are and how he needs to unban them before their "powerful friends" put an end to the board, his life and his family's life.
I am also reminded of Mensa chapter meetings. We had some "famous" (locally) talk show host give a talk. He talked about how one day some loser called into the station, saying he had a stack of magazines he promised to send this host. In violation of station policy, the dimwitted (but polite and probably cute) secretary/receptionist gave out his home address over the phone.
Then this guy listed all the horror stories that this one lone psycho did. It was unreal. Nothing dangerous, but just a royal PITA. My absolute favorite was when the lunatic called up some religious dude and had him drive halfway across the country to talk to the talk show host. He turned him away with an explanation of his lunatic stalker. One year later, the same exact idiot showed up again! He said to the religious loon "Dude, don't you remember coming here a year ago? Remember the stalker?"
"Yep." He replied.
"So why'd you come back *again*?"
"I thought maybe you had changed your mind."
I am not making any of this up. There is an awe inspiring number of brain dead morons out there, coupled with many flat out lunatics. People with their structurally reinforced, government provided power scooters, 200 house cats, disability checks and nothing to do all day. People best left alone in their misery, better to not let them share it with you.
I currently have a lunatic stalker (on this very board) who has professed to be drooling with glee at the thought of screaming at my boss and the company I work for, despite the fact that I already know an amazing amount about her. Being a super moderator, I've been exposed to stuff behind the scenes that shows one how many retards and psychotics are out there. Baron's had `tards calling him on the phone multiple times per day, expressing how powerfully connected they are and how he needs to unban them before their "powerful friends" put an end to the board, his life and his family's life.
I am also reminded of Mensa chapter meetings. We had some "famous" (locally) talk show host give a talk. He talked about how one day some loser called into the station, saying he had a stack of magazines he promised to send this host. In violation of station policy, the dimwitted (but polite and probably cute) secretary/receptionist gave out his home address over the phone.
Then this guy listed all the horror stories that this one lone psycho did. It was unreal. Nothing dangerous, but just a royal PITA. My absolute favorite was when the lunatic called up some religious dude and had him drive halfway across the country to talk to the talk show host. He turned him away with an explanation of his lunatic stalker. One year later, the same exact idiot showed up again! He said to the religious loon "Dude, don't you remember coming here a year ago? Remember the stalker?"
"Yep." He replied.
"So why'd you come back *again*?"
"I thought maybe you had changed your mind."
I am not making any of this up. There is an awe inspiring number of brain dead morons out there, coupled with many flat out lunatics. People with their structurally reinforced, government provided power scooters, 200 house cats, disability checks and nothing to do all day. People best left alone in their misery, better to not let them share it with you.
OK, let me modify my opinion on this. Here is where I see the problem is. TGregg, I had a stalker on here too once. He somehow got my cell number and harassed me and called Baron at all hours of the night threatening him as well to get him to remove some of my posts. Here's the thing though. These stalkers are "created" in this type of environment. That's the rub. Having ET the way that it is breeds trolls and breeds a lot of hate. So I understand the caution of taking this board over to a public board. Had this board started out as a place where you had to register your real name, these monsters you describe would never have been born.
Here is what I would suggest. Go ahead and keep ET as it is as troll heaven. Basically a gloried yahoo stock message board. But create another forum maybe called ET Professional. Let people decide where they want to go. ET Professional would require real name registration as well as some other identifiers. All the posts would be invisible for the ET troll board we have now. In other words, you would not even be able to read the posts on that forum without registering.
I think you would find most of the trolls would stay here and continue turning this place into a cesspool. And over on ET Professional I think you would find a smaller close knit community. Nobody would be able to gain access to your identity if they didn't register themselves. I for one would like to see what could become of that as this place has completely jumped the shark.
There are better boards out there with REAL professionals who put a lot of good stuff out there. This place will never be that as long as trolls can have 50 different aliases that all talk to each other making outlandish comments 24/7. I would love to see what ET Professional could turn into.
I support the proposal from Maverick74 - the dual board concept makes good sense.
Let me take it one step further. I would propose that the professional board have a monthly fee of $5. If media boards such as Fark can easily have a paid "Total Fark" forum ($5 monthly) with extra content for people very interested in odd news stories then I expect active traders would support a low-cost paid forum with professional & respectful content.
This also sets up a situation where if a poster contributes solid content to the regular Elite Trader forum then the moderators can consider sponsoring them for 1-3 months free on the Professional Elite Trader board (ID & credit card still required however).
That's my two cents...
Let me take it one step further. I would propose that the professional board have a monthly fee of $5. If media boards such as Fark can easily have a paid "Total Fark" forum ($5 monthly) with extra content for people very interested in odd news stories then I expect active traders would support a low-cost paid forum with professional & respectful content.
This also sets up a situation where if a poster contributes solid content to the regular Elite Trader forum then the moderators can consider sponsoring them for 1-3 months free on the Professional Elite Trader board (ID & credit card still required however).
That's my two cents...
No psychos go after Tudor jones and the guy posts videos of his home every Christmas. 100's of celebrities don't have stalkers or threats. If you are worried, get a restraining order and pack heat. How about Facebook. Or linked in. All real names --- do folks target you on there, like in " the jerk"-- NO. If you want to play anonymous games with each other, do it someplace else. My vote is full transparency on this site. From 2002 to 2009-- elite was full of value. Now it's value proposition has vanished except for very few number of participants. I believe the majority of trouble here is first attracted here by the forex threads. But, be that as it may--- requiring real verified names will save this site from certain ruin. First step, however, is to eliminate retail forex threads and ban those who first were attracted here from that dubious world. Forex is like honey to the malcontents and troubled losers, and degenerate gamblers of the financial world. Surf
My belief is that anonymity is a double-edged sword. It does enable some people to engage in abuse and act like lunatics, but it also allows other people to speak with a degree of candor that they would not feel comfortable with otherwise. Remember, the internet is accessible to just about everyone. It is the most public forum in the world. When you make a statement about yourself on ET, you're not just making that statement to the other members of ET, you're making that statement to the entire world. When you post something on the internet under your real name, you should not post it unless you are comfortable with everyone - including your family, your boss, your coworkers, the police - being able to read it and judge you by it. Anonymity allows people to discuss certain things such as their unpopular political opinions, their sex lives, their heroin addictions, that they would not wish to talk about otherwise. It enables free expression in the face of popular prejudice as much as it enables false bravado on the part of trolls.
But even with safe anonymity, there is no reason that the trolls have to stay with us. If they wished to, the ET mods could practically eliminate all trolls by engaging in consistent and firm moderation and enforcement of the board's rules. As far as I can see, the problem we have with trolls and harrassers is not the result of anonymous membership, but the result of the ET administrators not being proactive enough in removing these people from this site.
But even with safe anonymity, there is no reason that the trolls have to stay with us. If they wished to, the ET mods could practically eliminate all trolls by engaging in consistent and firm moderation and enforcement of the board's rules. As far as I can see, the problem we have with trolls and harrassers is not the result of anonymous membership, but the result of the ET administrators not being proactive enough in removing these people from this site.
Real names are okay if there us a vetting process and the board isn't searchable through google.
I found the board through google and it would be scary to have real names pop up for all to see.
Real names might prevent some people from accessing the board - namely institutional guys who don't want their comments found by their employers. These guys tend to be the most insightful on the board.
I found the board through google and it would be scary to have real names pop up for all to see.
Real names might prevent some people from accessing the board - namely institutional guys who don't want their comments found by their employers. These guys tend to be the most insightful on the board.
I would stick around, but not with my real name. 
Seriously, why anyone thinks that one can not sign in with an existing person's name what is still not his real name? I can use a relative's or a friend's
name and CC. My 90 years old grandma is itching to post on ET...
By the way in the previous thread I told Baron there could be an 80% drop if ET goes by full names and so far the vote is 12 to 4 against the idea which is 75% opposing it...
Seriously, why anyone thinks that one can not sign in with an existing person's name what is still not his real name? I can use a relative's or a friend's
name and CC. My 90 years old grandma is itching to post on ET...
By the way in the previous thread I told Baron there could be an 80% drop if ET goes by full names and so far the vote is 12 to 4 against the idea which is 75% opposing it...