Well Spikey
I have seen the old "crank calls" argument being trotted out many times to justify the use of aliases. I am waiting to see some actual evidence of the downside effects of using real names but I guess it makes you feel good if you can score a crank call.... wow were my comments that effective? But don't you find it rather odd that real persons eg Keith Windschuttle can be criticised by unreal persons such as TurnRightThenLeft who aren't prepared to reveal whom they are? As for my using blairbar instead of Blair Bartholomew you must concede it is rather closer to Blair Bartholomew than Spikey is to Elizabeth Moore.
So Spikey/Elizabeth Moore let me know if you have any abusive/ threatening phone calls. I guess your new alias could be John Howard and that way you would be safe.
Regards
Blair
PS
Send me a threatening/abusive phone call.

On Left and Right, I do a lecture every year in which I tell QUT students that it is a distinction that doesn't mean very much. I think it's a bit like race. That doesn't mean much at the DNA level, but it does tell you something useful about someone. For example, if I said that someone was in the finals of the 100 metres running at the Olympics, then you'd assume they were black. (This example from Richard Dawkins).

It's the same thing with Left and Right. They do tell you something useful about someone, but it's mostly social - who someone tends to mix with, or be comfortable mixing with. That's why I self-classify as centre-right, despite having views on things like gay marriage and bills of rights that would be identified as left. It's also why Tim Lambert, and others criticise people like Windschuttle - because they are the other group.

Windschuttle is an interesting case in point in some ways because he has moved from being identified with the left to the right in the course of his academic career.

Well blairbar or should it be Blair Bartholemew?

Still no admission from you that you goofed badly on John Tons/BAYGON? Instead we have to tolerate your attributed aliases: "clowns" and "gutless wonders".

And to further deflect attention from your blunder, you now imply that I am a liar (another form of attributed alias). You and I don't know each other - why do you assume I'm making up fibs? Is that how you conduct yourself on these sites?

It's interesting that Graham Young posted twice, once immediately after my post and then immediately after your last post, and did not comment on the matter despite the fact that I referred directly to his response when my partner told him about crank calls. I would have thought he would have commented had I concocted the episode.

But it is not my honour which is at stake her, but yours. Your remarks about crank calls are impertinent and irresponsible. Anyone who has experienced such calls can attest to how intimidating they can be. Not to be encouraged as if it's a sport.

As to your attack of those who critique Keith Windschuttle via aliases, it was Graham Young who introduced this thread and as owner and Editor-in-Chief of this site, he has actively encouraged aliases. You have one yourself. Why, if you think they are improper? And what difference that blairbar is closer to Blair Bartholomew than Spikey is to Elizabeth Moore? Blairbar could mean almost anyone (perhaps an ex-PM from Britain?) as could Spikey.

I don't think Windschuttle will lose any sleep over pseudonymous posters on OLO - unless their critiques have real point. After all, it's the substance of the debate that matters, not who writes it.

Elizabeth

What's funny about Lambert, Graham, is that he purports to be some sort of expert on matters of AGW science but he hasn't published anything in a formal journal in his area of "expertise" for over a decade which for a senior lecturer at a university is jaw dropping.

He nit picks other people for making arithmetic errors but after making some himself he just changes the body of the thread to correct the mistake without highlighting the correction.

I keep telling him that he needs to learn a little about economics if he's to get a better understanding of how to deal with AGW and he gets offended, throws a tantrum and is absolutely speechless that someone could suggest something like that him.

Recently he was was thrown off the ALS blog site and is now moderated because of a argument he got into with the site owner over ... you guessed it.. AGW.

It's as though he's almost become hysterical about his subject and seems deathly afraid that one morning he's going to wake up and find water swirling around in his bedroom.

I normally have a little fun poking at him as he's so big headed about himself that he needs to be brought down to size which in his case is around 4" 8' tops.

Blair, there are times on the site when arguments have descended into personal attacks - at times I've mentioned very minor details about my background in the context of discussion, only to have them twisted and used for personal attacks.

There are all manner of people using the internet - some have nothing to lose. Others have careers and have much more to use. If we all use our true names, it essentially will allow those with nothing to lose to wage campaigns against those who do.

The use of aliases allows people to share their true thoughts without worrying that this will be used by others. I'd not reveal my name here, because I simply wouldn't want some of the less stable, more vitriolic people knowing that. I just don't trust them and posting here wouldn't be worth the worry that some nutter could use that information.

Nor would I out anyone else's identity, regardless of how much I disagreed with them. If they choose to identify themselves, well that's their decision.

Dear TurnRightThenLeft,
"If we all use our true names, it essentially will allow those with nothing to lose to wage campaigns against those who do."
Equally if you use aliases then those with nothing to lose can also wage campaigns against those who do not use aliases. This is my point:if you are going to criticize real people use real names; if you are going to criticize people using aliases then use aliases if you wish.
Regards
Blair