Does anonymity encourage people to misbehave?

For some without a doubt, for others it offers them a say without fear of reprisals .

No. Bad morals encourage people to misbehave.

Of course it does because there’s no repercussions. That’s where the phrase ‘keyboard warriors’ came from.
If they got popped in the mouth or worse every time they called someone a racist or something, I can guarantee, not many would repeat the poor behavior.

key·board war·ri·or
nounINFORMAL
a person who makes abusive or aggressive posts on the Internet, typically one who conceals their true identity.
“another keyboard warrior calling people names”

The latter. Blame the people, not the medium. Anonymity reveals how shitty many people truly are. It’s the same thing with alcohol. Alcohol doesn’t magically transform a normal nice person into a belligerent jerk. But it may bring that out if that capacity is already within you. It’s disappointing, but a reality that when the inhibitions are gone, many people act like the assholes they are.

Normal person + anonymity + audience = total fuckwad.

https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/greater-internet-fuckwad-theory

Oh there’s no doubt in my mind an ugly personality hides under the surface permanently.
It is revealed sometimes by drink, often by anonymity but always when their “mask” slips.
Their’s is a tragic existence, one they thoroughly deserve!

@Demosthenes – I agree.
People used to call into Dr. Joy Browne’s radio program and try to blame alcohol for whatever bad choice they made. Lol
I miss her

@Lightlyseared Will Wheaton-“Don’t be a dick.” Lol

@ucme – It’s a interesting thing.

A decade ago I thought using my close enough name everywhere on the internet would make me less of a cunt. I will be accountable!! Still a cunt.

LOL.. Only horrible people LOL at stuff they type. Seriously. If you have to announce things you just typed are funny you are a stupid attention whore. Stop it, you look pathetic.

Shitcocks

@johnpowell – I laugh at a lot and have no plans to change that whether it be my thoughts or someone else’s.
Life is too short to be cranked.
Horrible people harm others and like it. That is a true POS

I don’t wear a mask, never have. It tends to scare dogs and small children, but I am what I am.

I am one of a few exceptions though. Most people are misrepresentating themselves every day.
I don’t think anonymity causes it, so much as it gives those people an easy outlet.

@lucillelucillelucille Does anonymity encourage people to misbehave?

I hardly know you. What did you have in mind?

@Pinguidchance Lol!

Terrible people do terrible things. anonymity simply helps facilitate that behavior.

We are all relatively anonymous here in the lagoon and yet the vast majority are good people.

There is a reason why 4chan is full of horrible things and some websites are now banning Tor.

People always have a choice. It’s just that some people, if they aren’t assholes, are too weak-willed to contain their inner demon.

Short answer is yes.

@MrGrimm888 -Was your answer typed in a sassy manner??

^No. Just meant to be to the point…

I really have little anonymity. I tell the truth about who I am, and what I stand for. I just don’t hand out my personal information. I assume that a savvy enough person, could figure that out anyway. So. Why hide it. I have given accurate descriptions of my appearance, and former jobs, as well as where I live. I just don’t give exact information. In other words, if you want to hunt me down and kill me, at least you have some skill. But. I’ve warned them, that it’s unlikely they’ll be successful. I will sadly deal, with any opponents. But. I don’t invite them to their demise, at my door step.
I welcome all comers. But. Be ware. You’re likely to be entering a dragon’s layer….

My bite, is FAR bigger than my bark. I make it a practice, not to go too far. But. If someone feels the need to track me down, I would hope they are willing to pay. I am, by nature, a peaceful man. But. It would be wise, to engage me in debate. I don’t invite hostility. But. I am used to it.
I have nothing but genuine intentions. I feel that is the spirit of debate. But. If someone shows up, looking for physical therapy. I can oblige them…

I know, by experience, that most people won’t back up their words, with action. And if they do, it won’t work out for them…

Let’s just keep, it to words. It’s better for them…

Many people online, hide behind their keyboards. Not me.

I live in Charleston, SC. Some PM’s, and bravado, could lead you right to me… I’ll be here…

@MrGrimm888 -Physical therapy. I like a good euphemism. :)

^See. I don’t directly threaten anyone. And, I’m not threatening them.

This goes into the anonymity part, of the thread…

@MrGrimm888 -I’ve noticed that many bigger guys get challenged a lot.
Then again, maybe many smaller guys do too, idk.

^Oh. I’ve been challenged a LOT.
So. I had to get get bigger, and badder…
And then. I moved into a different arena, when I was a LEO. I suited up, to 315 lbs. I studied MMA. I became something that I thought I had to be. I eventually regretted it, a LOT.
I hurt a LOT of people. People who were probably good people, under normal circumstances. They were just on drugs, or drunk. Some were not. They were very bad people. Most of the time, I was fighting for another person’s life. But. I regret almost all of it. I still have dreams of hurting them…
I couldn’t walk into a situation where a female, was lying in a pool of blood, and be “nice” to the man who caused it. I couldn’t go into a massive fight, without hurting the one’s who caused all the suffering. Not without dealing out some physical therapy. I saved a lot of people, by hurting others….

I’ve slimed down to 245 llbs, now, and have no intention of ever hurting anyone again…

But. I’m still a target. And I still have a person who has problems, finding non-violent employment. I have a reputation around town, for being a great bouncer. So. Everyone, I apply for, wants me to he a bouncer. But. I have retired from that…

So now, it’s a curse…..

All the people who wanted me to be a great bartender, turn their back on me, if I want to bartend…

My attempts to protect myself, are all a curse…..

It’s been an uphill battle, and I haven’t found a place where they expect me to be a bartender/bouncer…

Any girl, will get the job, over me . Because I don’t want to be the bouncer, and bartender….

It’s a curse….

@MrGrimm888 -It sounds like it.

On topic. It’s not just anonymity, that can cause people to misbehave. Being a traveler, gives some people the feeling of being able to misbehave.
I live in a “tourist” city. People visiting, were almost always a problem. They come here. They’re here for a wedding, or vacation. They pollute our beaches by day, and get super drunk at night.
When I was bouncing, I was the HOS, at a large beach front venue. People got drunk, and acted like jerks. Because they knew that they’d never be back here. There are many people who love the place, and respect it. But. There are also many people who treat it like “Westworld.”
They act up. They start fights, and damage property.
They don’t care, because they probably won’t be back.
I had to get nasty, with LEOs, from other cities. They weren’t shy about telling me this. As my crew would be taking them out, they’d say “you know I’m a cop, in Boston/Jersey /Philly.” As if that meant something to me.
You show your ass, I’ll show you the door…Period…

It’s not just an Internet thing.

These people, are especially frustrating. I don’t care where you are from. It doesn’t give you the right, to act up.You think you can get away with anything, because you’ll be leaving soon?
No…

I had to deal with many people who claimed that they were cops, in northern cities.

They acted, as if it gave them the right to cause problems. Your badge, means nothing here. You are out of your jurisdiction. I have the ability to override, whatever you are, where you come from. And, they didn’t like that.
Don’t get drunk, at my venues, and act like your badge protects you… My men, and I will do what is necessary to get you out, or arrest you.

I never understood this. When I am traveling, I treat everyone with respect. I’m in their land. And I am happy, to be there.
I never cause problems. And, I obey foreign LEOs.

But some people, are likely to feel like they can act, as they do, where they are from….

I wouldn’t go to Boston, and act like an asshole, because I was a LEO here… I am a gracious guest, anywhere I travel.

But. Others, are in a sense anonymous. And, they act accordingly. Doing whatever they please. Often, that means being disrespectful, or abusing powers that they have elsewhere…

If I had a nickel, for all of the assholes I dealt with, from the north, I’d be a rich man…

Don’t start fights, or hang out in the lady’s room, because you’re a cop from Boston…

@MrGrimm888 -My SIL complains about the town she lives in being over run by tourists come summer.
I can understand the frustration but I’d like to hear her appreciation for the very people that are the reason for her paycheck.

^Please. Don’t get me wrong. I welcome, and invite ALL to come visit Charleston, SC. It’s a great city. And it’s surrounded by many marvels, of nature.
Indeed our economy, is based on tourists. Most locals, make their living in the spring/summer.

But. If our visitors throw trash on our beaches, and act like assholes every time they visit, there would be no desire to come here.
One year there was almost ankle deep trash, on Folly Beach. Mass regulations were passed, so that it wouldn’t happen again.
Meaning more police/security. That means less fun.
It’s not just the aesthetic appearance. We have sea turtles, and other wildlife, that use our beaches.

It’s just a matter of respect. We welcome all people, with open arms. We treat them, as friends.
Then. Some of them stab us in the back. They throw trash everywhere, and act like jerks, in public places.

I don’t understand.

When I travel (and I’m well traveled,) I respect those places, and their people. I can’t understand why you would not throw your beer bottles, in an abundance of trash cans. Or. Why you would start fights, and show your ass, in venues that are there to make your visit more pleasurable…

This is a real city, with real people who live here. There is also a thriving ecosystem here.

Why do people come here, and love it, but fuck it all up?

I can’t wrap my head around it…

@MrGrimm888 We get that a lot here, too, in our pristine spring-fed rivers and our lakes that are clearly marked as no trash, no bottles. If I’m floating or something, I keep a trash bag. Disgusting tourists just come for alcohol-fueled drunk fests in large groups of teens-college age and trash everything. They even desecrate the old Indian paintings and things.

@MrGrimm888 -There will always be piggish people with no respect for anybody or anything no matter where they’re at.
When I’ve sold my work at outdoor art fairs, it is often in tourist towns. You see all kinds of people en masse but generally, my experiences with people were very good ones.
They are usually not hammered though. That can easily be found any given weekend out on the water and is something to look out for.
I have never seen the stats but I imagine the township makes some $ from the idiots.

^I keep a trash bag with me, every time I go out in my canoe..
I pick up what I can, and usually fill it up. It’s too bad I can’t get money, for trash collection. The city pays the garbagemen…

Wish they would pay me, for cleaning up the environment…

@MrGrimm888 -
“The true test of a man’s character is what he does when no one is watching.”― John Wooden
Good on you :)

^Not everything I do, when nobody is looking, is worthy of judgement. ;)

@MrGrimm888 -XD