I’m still working on putting this new site together (and I’m still looking for help on getting the archives set up), but a couple of people have already registered.
That’s great, but I didn’t have the registration form configured yet.
Now it is. So it seems like a good time to mention: I’m going to require real names to comment on my blog.
All of my participation on the Web is under my real name. I never leave anonymous comments.
There are places and times where anonymity is appropriate. I’ve decided that my blog is not such a place. As the owner, I figure that’s my right.
Real names? WTF? You mean I’m going to have to leave my real name before I make a mean-spirited, off-point comment that shows, more than anything, my ignorance? That’s censorship! Worse, it’s not fair!
Just be glad I’m not asking for a DNA sample, buddy!
I respect the requirement to use real names. But how do you know? Everyone asks why real names aren’t required, but I never hear how we can require them. And it’s a different story for comments on the scale of an individual’s blog vs. on the scale of a USA Today. There was nothing in your registration process that would prevent Joe Gazornaplatz from registering as "Kurt Greenbaum."
The honor system is what we’re already depending upon — and we know some people have no honor.
Anyway. Just musing aloud. I end where I began: I respect the requirement and all that it implies.
On a blog like this, I can only guess. And I reserve the right to make my own best guess and act accordingly.
Most fake namers are pretty obvious. Most trolls are fake namers.
On a local news site, especially one tied to a newspaper, there are more or narrower resources to check.