2.6 Why would anyone post anonymously? Are they weirdos or what?
Description
This article is from the Internet Personals: Advice for Gay Men FAQ, by Fred Young nssf@greatwildwest.net and Dean Esmay esmay@syndicomm.com with numerous contributions by others.
2.6 Why would anyone post anonymously? Are they weirdos or what?
Some may be weirdos, but for the most part, they're just people
who'd prefer not to be publicly identified at this time. There are
several very good reasons for this:
1. You may be uncomfortable letting someone know your real e-mail
address until you know more about that person, since it may be
possible to track you down this way through Finger, Ph, or
whatever.
2. Some people get e-mail addresses from work, and would rather
not have their company name affiliated publicly with their
personal ads.
3. Some may just be private people who are shy or don't want their
friends to know they're using online personals, or that they
are gay.
Some people seem to think that using an anonymous name server
means you want to hide so you can play tricks on people. I must
admit, it does seem that a lot of the more rude or dishonest
people use anonymous e-mail addresses to hide themselves. But for
the most part, there are all kinds of very interesting and
worthwhile people, male and female, who use these services. So my
advice here is that you may want to be a tad more cautious in
approaching an anonymous person, but otherwise, I wouldn't read
too much into it.
One tip though: DO NOT give your phone number or address to, or
agree to meet with, anyone who won't provide you with their own
name, address, and phone number. You may want to wait until you've
exchanged mail for a while before asking for this information, but
you're going to have to have it eventually if the relationship is
to get past the e-mail stage. It's okay to be patient if the other
person seems shy or wary, but eventually you're going to have to
have this information. Don't involve yourself with anyone who
insists on maintaining secrecy beyond a reasonable point.
Continue to:
My Books
