Shots Across the Bow

ADHD version: If you don't have the courage to stand for your convictions, then sit down and shut up.

There's a kerfluffle in the blogosphere right now concerning when it is ok to "out" an anonymous blogger. Apparently one righty blogger got mad at a pseudonymous lefty blogger and outed him. Now there's quite a bit of blowback coming at the exposer for exposing the exposee, leading to the question, should bloggers who blog anonymously be subject to outing and when?

First of all, as my buddy SayUncle would say, there's a huge difference between blogging under a pseudonym and blogging anonymously. Those who use a consistent pseudonym create an identity that is recognizable, and to a certain extent accountable. Total anonymity, on the other hand, has no accountability at all, as you can easily verify be reading the comments section of your favorite newspaper website. Cowards hide beneath the blanket of anonymity and say things that they wouldn't have the nerve to say to your face.

However, there's still a problem with blogging under a pseudonym. At least there is for me. There are two reasons that I blog under my own name. First off, I want to be held accountable for everything I write, good or bad. As anybody who has read me for any length of time knows, I can get intense from time to time. Knowing that my mother will read whatever I write, along with future employers, keeps a check on me whenever I start to go a little bit too far. There are some who believe that I haven't held back enough, that I've crossed the line a time or twelve, and I'm sure I have. But when I'm called on it, if I agree that I've gone to far, I apologize. If I disagree, I explain why, and politely confirm my original opinion. The point is that I am constantly aware that what I put up on this blog, or what I write in comments on other blogs gives people a reflection of my character, and I want it to be as true a reflection as I can manage.

There are other bloggers who prefer to do the opposite. They create a character when they blog, and use that character to say or do things they aren't willing to do in the real world. They fear repercussions from work or family, or from society in general and so they hide their blogging behind a pseudonym. In some cases, it's because they are acting out, adopting language and attitudes that they know are unacceptable in polite society. In others, it's because they are acting out adolescent fantasies of "sticking it to the man," or "speaking truth to power" when in real life, they may or may not believe the rhetoric they spew; they just like causing a ruckus. And others hold opinions that they suspect, and usually accurately, would get them into trouble, whether at work or with family/friends and while they want to follow the cardinal rule of never discussing politics, sex, or religion, they simply can't. They have to express their opinion, and blogging under a pseudonym allows them to do so without suffering the usual social repercussions. The final category is the true revolutionary. He holds views that he knows would get him singled out for repercussions and he must communicate anonymously or he could be killed, jailed, or audited by the IRS.

I hate to break it to you, but no US blogger falls into the last category. At least, not yet.

And that's the second reason I blog under my own name. I believe that if you're going to climb up on a soapbox and start sounding off, you should have the courage to do so under your own name, regardless of the potential repercussions. I know other bloggers feel differently about it, and that's cool; they have to look at themselves in the mirror everyday. For me, it just isn't an option. I hold beliefs that some people are reprehensible. They look down on me for them, but that's cool too. My beliefs are what make me who I am and I have no intention of changing who I am for anybody, and I'm not going to hide who I am in order to get along with anybody.

I'm a Biblical Christian. I believe in the God of the Bible, not some kindly grandfather in the sky who will love us no matter what we do to Him. His name is God, not Santa Claus. Islam is not the religion of peace, no matter how many heads they cut off trying to prove it. Islam has as its goal the submission of every human being on the planet, through proselytization if possible, but by force if necessary. Read the Qu'ran if you don't believe me. I believe President Obama is the culmination of a decades long effort to turn American citizens into American subjects. I'm Pro-Life and anti-death penalty. I'm for ending welfare as a life choice and for ending the war on drugs. I believe in a small government that needs to get its nose out of my business and its hand out of my pocket. I believe gays have every right to a state marriage and that homosexual activity is a sin. I strongly support the US Constitution as written, not as interpreted, and that includes the Bill of Rights, particularly the 2nd. I believe that the wall of separation is not a one way wall, but that it protects religion from the state even more than it does the state from religion. I believe men and women are not the same, that their biology makes each excel in different areas, and that sometimes, the best man for the job is a man. I believe that no matter what surgery you've had, a man is a man and a woman is a woman. I believe that evolution as a scientific theory has some major holes that need filling, but Intelligent Design is even worse. Global Warming, or "Climate Change" as we're supposed to call it now, is one of the most overly hyped con jobs ever played on a gullible populace, and that the majority of warming we've experienced is due to solar activity, not greenhouse gas emissions. If Al Gore, the patron saint of global warming, really believed the crap he was peddling, don't you think he might turn off a light or two at home? Or maybe take the bus instead of the Gulfstream? The guy is the biggest hypocrite on the planet right now, and that's the really inconvenient truth. Energy independence is vital to our nation's survival, which means it's way too important to trust to fairy tales like "the hydrogen economy," fuel cells, or any of the other alternative energy sources that are years if not decades away from being practical. We need nuke plants to power the grid, distributed solar, passive and PV, for our homes to reduce the load on the grid, and to develop domestic oil supplies, even the hard to get at ones. I'm first a Christian, then a father and husband, then a Tennessean, and only then an American.

Read the above list. There's something there to offend just about everyone on the planet. Which part should I hide?

This is who I am folks, and if I feel like I have to hide behind a false identity to say what I believe, then what I'm really saying is that I'm ashamed who I am. That means that I'm more concerned over how I will look to people than whether I'm right or not, and that's backwards. I'd rather be honest than fashionable.

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