
Being Your Selves: Identity R&D on Alt Twitter - todsacerdoti
https://www.ribbonfarm.com/2020/01/23/being-your-selves-identity-rd-on-alt-twitter/
======
RcouF1uZ4gsC
I think most people make alt identities not through some sense of exploring
self, but to make sure they don’t get “cancelled” in real life based on some
post that goes viral and generates outrage.

~~~
stevenicr
I've been thinking similar lines for some months now, and wondering if anyone
has setup a "find me here if deplatformed from there" type of site or
something?

something like about.me with one nickname, that lists twitter, tube, insta,
mastadon, keybase, pgp key, etc etc

I almost think it would need to be available on the main web, but also cloned
on a blockchain like history on the dark web in order to be truly useful..

It's gotten to the point where I am avoiding services (like anchor.fm) because
building a water cooler crowd is useless when you can be deplatformed in a
split second without notice and without recourse..

If we had an unstoppable about.me, maybe append only lists like
securescuttlebutt? or something out there, and people knew to go looking
there, I think this would be beneficial.

~~~
luckylion
> something like about.me with one nickname, that lists twitter, tube, insta,
> mastadon, keybase, pgp key, etc etc

Wouldn't that just make cross-service deplatforming easier? "hey,
$serviceProvider, that person said $offensiveThing on $differentPlatform. I'm
outraged that you provide a platform to such vile individuals"

~~~
stevenicr
well yes, but I think it's going to make it easier for the not-so-tech-savvy
to find more.. the doxxers are going to find all that an more to wage a whine
campaign - so might as well make it easier for the non-haters to find other
places to engage.. hopefully there will be services that are impossible to
shutdown in the list - of course that will vary by region and issues I would
think.

------
maxaf
This article does a great job of articulating the principles of identity which
I’ve been teaching to my daughter ever since she’s been old enough to
understand what a Twitter account is. Even though social media is banned in
our household, I’ve laid out a few ground rules that must remain sacrosanct
for the sake of basic safety.

1\. Your “real” identity - the one to which your “real” phone number and
Social Security number are linked - is for banking, buying a house, trading
stocks, paying utility bills, e-commerce, car registration, life insurance,
and so on.

2\. Never do or say anything online that would reveal your “real” identity in
any way. There’s a surprisingly broad spectrum of activities which might
reveal your identity. Don’t take selfies next to your (or my) car. Don’t take
selfies next to home. Better yet, don’t take selfies at all. Don’t geotag
anything. Don’t “check into” places. Don’t mention your first name. Don’t be
telling anyone about your real birthday. Build an impenetrable firewall
between “the internet” and your “real identity”, and keep it in good repair.

3\. All identities other than the “real” one are throwaway. Use a different
e-mail address, phone number, and name for each website. Never use the same
pseudonym more than once.

4\. Don’t tell your real-life friends anything about your “other” identities.
Don’t use social media under your “real” identity. This way, the two can never
be linked.

5\. Don’t be afraid to periodically “pull a _why” on your pseudonymous
identities. The forest of “yous” will grow thick and lush, and will need a
preventive burn every now and again in order to avoid an uncontrollable
conflagration later. Delete what you can; abandon what you can’t. Move on and
move up.

6\. If you ever feel compelled to make an exception to the rule, come talk to
me before you make the decision. Chances are that I’ll be able to hear you out
and make a convincing case against breaking rules 1-5.

Ever since I’ve come up with these ground rules, I’ve slowly wound down my own
social media presence. I have set up an alter ego under which I’m conducting
my open source and other online activities. When asked why I don’t use my
“real name” GitHub for anything but work, I say that this is my way of keeping
things separate for the sake of sanity and safety. People nod their
understanding, but they don’t really get it, and that’s okay. They can’t
possibly get to know every side of me.

~~~
DailyHN
Wow, as long as you're ok with your daughter being an outcast among her peers.

And I can't help but feel like an effective serial killer wrote that post.

~~~
maxaf
Your “outcast” assertion is unsupported by facts. It turns out that not
everything happens on social media. Within a group of friends even a single
person who isn’t on Twitter/Snapchat/TikTok/etc tends to pull the entire
group’s narrative away from those platforms and into the domain of a more
private tool, such as iMessage or WhatsApp. Within the Gen Z cohort the
understanding is crystallizing that social media is toxic, addictive, and
leads to nothing but bleak and depressing thoughts. This commonly understood
truth enables people like my kid to act as an anchor that keeps numerous
others on solid ground and away from the jaws of “big social tech”.

And thank you for the “serial killer” comment: I’ll take it as a compliment.

