Over here at Dear Author there's a fascinating discussion about Doxxing, i.e., outing the anonymous online trolls. And others.
It's a brilliant discussion and what I love about it is that it's really ambiguous. Do I believe in outing others? No. I don't. I think the asshats behind the GoodRead Bullies have shown us how random and stupid that is.
On the other hand.... a man who is well known on a popular board for starting boards to celebrate the sexuality of underage girls, the hatred of non-whites and the joys of punching a woman in the face... okay, I'm having a problem supporting that guy's anonymity.
So he was outed by Gawker and now he's lost his job and revealed as the major scum he is. Do I think he should have been outed? Well honestly, I do. Because I think predators can't act unless they're guaranteed silence and secrets. Take those things away and you might have one less man abusing a child or woman.
On the other hand, I don't think that a flaming asshole online (and God knows, there's millions of that species) deserves outting just for being a major asshole. And I know that happens also.
The problem is that Doxxing, right now, might be one of the only solutions to exposing people who like to prey. Unless women, as a community, could get together and rip those places apart. We're so damned powerful when we choose yet so rarely do we choose to go into those places as a tidy mob and rip those assholes wide open.
We're so good at fighting each other but so bad at fighting together those men who would find pleasure in subjugating and hurting us. Imagine the power we'd have if we took over those boards with our comments and refusal to allow men to victimize.
That's a lovely fantasy I'm having right now. Shame it's just a fantasy.
I started to read DA but then got bogged down in trying to go to the links. I got the gist though.
ReplyDeleteLike you, I'm all for being anonymous and stuff but the minute you hide behind 'anon' to post porn with kids, all bets are off.
There should never be a good reason to allow these sickos to hide. Same with violence against others, be they female, black, white, gay, straight etc.
Enjoy your right to stay in the shade if you must but use it to post subject matter that is detrimental to kids, racist etc, then I hope someone outs you. We have to start somewhere to try and protect those who can't protect themselves.
I didn't feel up to going into it at DA, but I was definitely thinking about all the people who write urging people to expose the predators within their groups. This is a constant issue in certain communities. Are there ways to do this without doxxing?
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