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saben
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On fire! |
Registered: May 2003
Messages: 1537
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Running in an election campaign has made me start to think about the potential repercussions of the internet. From livejournals to blogs to facebook, a lot of the younger generation, myself included, are leaving substantial footprints that could well come back to haunt them in the future.
Being a candidate for a small party I'm assuming I won't get much media attention, thank god. But if my party ever rose to prominence, I ever joined a major party or was elected it could be another story altogether.
Already the governing Liberal party unendorsed a 24-ish year old candidate for comments he made on his private blog criticising other well-known politicians. It was traced back to him and his private thoughts, written to friends, garnered at least a small amount of media attention. He wasn't going to win his seat, but it was enough to stop him even running.
What will this mean for the future, though? The current generation are leaving a footprint that internet archiving sites will have on record for years to come. It'll be far more accessible than dirt previously. The optimist in me thinks that perhaps as my generation become the politicians and CEOs it could mean a greater understanding that humans are fallible and a greater forgiveness towards the past misdeeds of our leaders.
But I'm sure that won't be the case. It'll come down to who has the best people working for them, capable of hiding the footprints.
If I had been preselected by my party for the Senate and by fate gotten a seat I would have asked Timmy to remove all my comments from this site. Views I've expressed here are far too controversial. Similarly I would have deleted my old live journals and political commentary from all websites I've been a part of. It would be too risky. Going into politics, or any large venture, business or otherwise it's necessary to have a fairly "clean slate".
Part of the problem is my name. It's too unique, too easy to find online. Another problem is that I've used my full-name on some websites along with my "Saben" handle. So if people search for Saben they are potentially able to find comments by me. If I had kept my handle and my real name totally distinct it might have been better. But even then it may have been possible to track me down through my real life friends.
Right now it's not important. I'm a nobody. But being a part of the election has made me acutely aware that if I ever become "somebody" I'm going to be playing a dangerous game. Even if I delete everything I've ever written there are sites like archive.org ready to spit it back at me. Who would have thought that my insecure ramblings as a teenager could come back to bite me later in life? I definitely never thought of that as I wrote them. And part of me is now scared of ever being more than a nobody. I was relieved when I wasn't chosen to stand in the Senate in case I was successful and had my name googled.
Edit: god I should proof read.
[Updated on: Mon, 15 October 2007 17:42]
Look at this tree. I cannot make it blossom when it suits me nor make it bear fruit before its time [...] No matter what you do, that seed will grow to be a peach tree. You may wish for an apple or an orange, but you will get a peach.
Master Oogway
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timmy
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Has no life at all |
Location: UK, in Devon
Registered: February 2003
Messages: 13796
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The only reason I have ever removed anything en masse from here was because of real or perceived actual danger to that person. I believe that removal complicates things far more. One has to be true to one's life.
It is, of course, too late anyway. The "Wayback machine" has archives, google has long, long lasting archives, etc.
The moment anyone posts something it is too late, be that here, facebook, Wikipedia, anywhere.
So, if one does not want the world to know that one copulates with goats one does not post about goatnography  At least not in one's own name 
Author of Queer Me! Halfway Between Flying and Crying - the true story of life for a gay boy in the Swinging Sixties in a British all male Public School
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saben
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On fire! |
Registered: May 2003
Messages: 1537
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This site isn't too much of a problem, actually. It takes quite a bit of guess work to move from my real name to here via a google search at least. My old livejournal from '02-'04 is a bit easier to track, but easily disposed of. It'd be archived, but archived sites aren't nearly as easy to find.
I haven't been involved in goatnography. But my "online romances" and my perspectives on intergenerational relationships aren't things I'd like the electorate to know about. Nor my ongoing struggles with depression and motivation.
Hopefully by the time I make anything of my life it'll be lost in the mists of time and just be seen as youthful exuberance towards certain ideas on my part. My tastes and opinions have definitely matured in the 7 years since I first ventured online. I'm the same person, yet distinctly not. By the time I am 30 I'm sure I'll be even less like I was.
I think I'll start separating my online and real identities even more drastically however. There's too many links at the moment. In my quest for uniformity in my screen names I've made too many links between my online self and my real self. Both are parts of me, but online I engage in a lot more private thought experiments than I would in a truly public venue.
Look at this tree. I cannot make it blossom when it suits me nor make it bear fruit before its time [...] No matter what you do, that seed will grow to be a peach tree. You may wish for an apple or an orange, but you will get a peach.
Master Oogway
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timmy
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Has no life at all |
Location: UK, in Devon
Registered: February 2003
Messages: 13796
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Exactly. I'm not being combative, by the way, just letting people know that privacy is not as simple as they might believe. The moment it's online, something has picked it up.
Aggregate it with other data sources and voila - goatnography.
Author of Queer Me! Halfway Between Flying and Crying - the true story of life for a gay boy in the Swinging Sixties in a British all male Public School
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saben
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On fire! |
Registered: May 2003
Messages: 1537
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Yeah. I'm not in a position to care about my posts here being removed.
I was just thinking about internet privacy beyond the whole "I could be tracked down by a stalker" perspective.
The internet is great, because all human knowledge can be stored. But its scary for that very same reason.
Everything we say ends up timeless, moreso even than the "SB luvs RH" engraved into a desk at school.
Look at this tree. I cannot make it blossom when it suits me nor make it bear fruit before its time [...] No matter what you do, that seed will grow to be a peach tree. You may wish for an apple or an orange, but you will get a peach.
Master Oogway
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unsui
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Likes it here |
Registered: September 2007
Messages: 338
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No Message Body
[Updated on: Fri, 24 October 2008 19:52] |
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cossie
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On fire! |
Location: Exiled in North East Engl...
Registered: July 2003
Messages: 1699
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As the Irish-born lawyer and politician Edmund Burke is supposed to have remarked in 1770 - though in fact he said something else and was misquoted! - 'All that is necessary for evil to triumph is that good men do nothing.' Too many enter politics for all the wrong reasons; good men should never be discouraged from doing so.
Oh, and as regards this privacy business, it's a good idea to use a different alias on each site; at the very least that makes tracking a great deal more difficult. I do that, and no-one on the net knows that my real name is Jabulon Aloysius Cholmondeley-Featherstonehaugh (pronounced Chumley-Fanshawe, don'cha know).
For a' that an' a' that,
It's comin' yet for a' that,
That man tae man, the worrld o'er
Shall brithers be, for a' that.
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saben
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On fire! |
Registered: May 2003
Messages: 1537
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Well, as a minor party it's not that dangerous. My party stands on a platform of equal legal recognition for all couples, so my sexuality itself isn't an issue. I just shudder when I think back to my "emo" teenage days, however.
I'm sure its not a problem, but I was thinking of doing the very same thing, Cossie. Maintaining separate handles based on the site I'm on. Or at least separate handles based on the community I'm a part of. Gmail has a great function where you can have emails forwarded and replies sent from the same address they were sent to. It makes it really easy to administer a variety of online handles.
I just need to disassociate "me" from Saben. And use new handles where appropriate. By the time I become "somebody" I'm sure most of my older comments would be far less relevant. Even Dubya was forgiven for his youthful "weed smoking" days.
Look at this tree. I cannot make it blossom when it suits me nor make it bear fruit before its time [...] No matter what you do, that seed will grow to be a peach tree. You may wish for an apple or an orange, but you will get a peach.
Master Oogway
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timmy
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Has no life at all |
Location: UK, in Devon
Registered: February 2003
Messages: 13796
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And Michael Portillo (minor UK politician) was forgiven for buggering (allegedly) his way around university, or at least around a part of it (apparently)
Author of Queer Me! Halfway Between Flying and Crying - the true story of life for a gay boy in the Swinging Sixties in a British all male Public School
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Cossie wrote:
>Oh, and as regards this privacy business, it's a good idea to use a different alias on each site; at the very least that makes tracking a great deal more difficult. I do that, and no-one on the net knows that my real name is Jabulon Aloysius Cholmondeley-Featherstonehaugh (pronounced Chumley-Fanshawe, don'cha know).<
They do now.
Hugs
N
I dream of boys with big bulges in their trousers,
Never of girls with big bulges in their blouses.
…and look forward to meeting you in Cóito.
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unsui
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Likes it here |
Registered: September 2007
Messages: 338
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No Message Body
[Updated on: Fri, 24 October 2008 19:52] |
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