Vitolo
Vaporist
YOU ARE ENTERING A SOCK PUPPET FREE ZONE
Simple Definition:
An account made on an internet message board, by a person who already has an account, for the purpose of posting more-or-less anonymously.
Implications:
Anonymity in posting is only the surface.
A sockpuppet is an online identity used for purposes of deception.
The term, a reference to the manipulation of a simple hand puppet made from a sock, originally referred to a false identity assumed by a member of an Internet community who spoke to, or about, themselves while pretending to be another person.
The term now includes other misleading uses of online identities, such as:
those created to praise, defend or support a person or organization, or their viewpoint.
It is also used to circumvent a suspension or ban from a website.
There's a significant difference between the use of a pseudonym and the creation of a sockpuppet.
A pseudonym does not pretend to be a whole new entity.
The sockpuppet poses as an independent third-party unaffiliated with the puppeteer.
Many online communities attempt to block sockpuppets.
I know I did.
I recently closed the patient forum of Vapor Trail... I did so to protect members from having posts read, during this time, when I as creator of the forum was having issues with the Arizona Counter Narcotics Alliance. Protect the innocent if you will.....
BUT when the forum was active.. from the day of it's inception, the very first section was entitled "Ethical Behavior in a Closed Community"
It spoke of trust and truth, and of deception and of lies.
It explained that there is no room for the latter.
I flat out forbade the use of Sock Puppets... NO second accounts from the same IP.
Couples contacted me if they wanted a second account from an IP.
I hate lies and liars.
A bit of background.
Prior to making a Vapor Trail Patient forum, I was made co-owner of another forum here locally.
It turned out the Originator of the forum was flattering me, and wanted me there for my name and reputation in the medical community.
I was being used.
Worse....
I found out since I had all the IP data, that the Originator of the forum had 15 accounts!
One for him (we will call him "Admin")..
One for his wife...
One for his son...
...and 12 sock puppets.
They would argue with one another, in effort to boost the guys posts.
They would get together and 5 or 6 of the "sock puppets" would gang up on anyone that did not agree with Admin's posts. THEN...."Admin" would come back innocently and he then would tearfully thank his community for coming to his defense!
Once he had 7 of his Sock Puppets praise his grow skills back and forth, after which he came in blushingly to say "Aw shucks guys... you're embarrassing me!"
I quit being affiliated with that forum... but was careful to delete ALL posts I made, and remove any of my images, before I jumped ship!
I could not knowingly live under the same forum housing such a liar.
"That Vitolo is a hunk!"
"Oh.. I agree!"
It does not matter which reason was chosen to pretend to be a whole new person.
None of the reasons are good.
Nuff Sed.
This is the FAQ from our Vapor Trail Forum.....
Sock Puppetry
Yes, we are sensitive. The biggest No-No on any MMJ board is to create multiple identities (other than to create an objective unknown Moderator). There are no Sock Puppets allowed here. *The use of multiple user accounts for an improper purpose is called sock puppetry (often abbreviated in discussion as socking). Improper purposes include attempts to deceive or mislead others, add support to the posts of friends, disrupt discussions, distort consensus, avoid sanctions, or otherwise violate community standards and policies.
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and removing my post when I expressed my inability to 'share' anything with the person in question
Or would it, I suppse we wouldn't know any different.
