ERW Question Time!!! :) Subject: Anonmyity Online

There is a lot of controversy between whether people should be able to be anonymous on social media or should there be a way to start banning anonymity itself. If you was to ask me on my view, I would tell you that I side with anonymity.

Here are some reasons why I support anonymity:

• Anonymity allows the unheard people of the crowd be heard.
• Anonymity allows people who are humble stand up for what they support without worrying about if people who may know him/her not want to be around that person anymore.
• Anonymity allows the people who are shy say what they have to say without the worry of actually knowing people or being compromised.

You can argue that the anonymous bullies and harassers, or in other words "trolls," are overrunning the internet. In reply to this argument, I do agree with this but not entirely, in recent studies only 28% of the American people admits to being an internet troll. A 2014 study shows that internet trolls are mostly men.

I tend to think of anonymity like immigration. No, no... I mean like how everyone is either pro-immigration or anti-immigration. Do we really want to deport people who came for a better life from the life of poverty. They came from probably nothing except a brick wall square and a well for water.

Think about the anonymity, people want to speak their minds that they felt like they couldn't do before. They want to feel apart of the cyber world and feel secure while doing it. So being anonymous helps them. Do we want to "deport" anonymity?

Also think about it? If we was to get rid of anonymity, we have no laws to protect our victims from trolls so what can we do about it if we lose anonymity. The Suicide and death rate would go up because everyone would know who is saying what and it might hurt more than before now that you knew it was someone you cared about.

So answer this question: Is losing anonymity worth the suicides to come?

Mirror Mirror

     I spent great amount of time in the cyber world since I was in elementary school. When I moved to the United States, I devoted my life into video games mainly because I wasn't able to communicate with anyone in real life. Since video game didn't require communication, I used it as an escape from the miserable reality.

     As time passes by, I got better and better at English. I slowly came to the realization about the nastiness of the cyber world. The tool that I used to escape my anxiety slowly became my enemy. Every mistake I made came with the consequence of getting harass. My positivity and happiness slowly decay overtime. Their words were shaped knifes that sliced through my optimism. 

     I lost faith in what I thought was a part of my life. Those negativity put me down but some how, I became one of them. I became what made me cry. I started spreading the curse of the nastiness to others. Those that were my friends, became my targets. One by one, they disappeared with the wind.
     I realized that my words did not help increase my chance of winning. All it bought was lost and suffering. I told myself that this habit must go. It wasn't easy get over it, but once I did, my life was like magic. All my friends were willing to give me another chance. The happiness that I was searching for ended being next to me all along. 

A Reflection

      When we first started this unit, I have never given much thought to cyber bullying or anonymity. My first impression of anonymity was that it was an unnecessary tool that only helped those who seek to bash innocent civilians cover their tracks. After reading the first few articles, I saw it as something that helped companies that control social media earn more revenues. My view of the topic kept changing, twisting after I read each article. Finally, I am able to conclude my thought on this matter.
      While anonymity may be a detriment to the society (Yes, I did mentioned this in my last blog), it is also beneficial to the society. Most uprisings, revolutions, and movements, all started with an anonymous voice. That is because anonymity gives them strength and confidence boost. It allows people to see more clearly of the words that are being spread across. In other words, it allows the listeners to judge the statement based on its rationality rather than the status of the person who makes the statement.
     However, I still have some doubts because anonymity should not be taken lightly. A part of me thinks that anonymity can also cause a serious problem as it helps people, or should I say encourage trolls to bully and harass other people even more because they know that they'll be safe from punishment. And trolling can lead to serious problems that I have already mentioned on the above (suicide, mental problems).
      As I am typing this blog, my opinion on the subject has started to sway again. I can't seem to find a solid position that I can stand on. For some reason, I feel like I don't have enough information and data on this topic (even though, we have read at least ten articles relating to trolling, and anonymity). Maybe after looking more throughly into this matter, I will be able to, or at least hope to find my true voice in this matter.
      How about all of you, guys? Any thoughts on the essay?

Anonymity Sparking Awareness

For my essay, I’m still not completely confident in my argument. I could give reasons as to why I think anonymity is harmful as well as why I think it’s beneficial. While skimming the articles, online and in the packet,  the annotations, the Room for Debate charts, and reading the hyperlinks, I came across the Room For Debate article, “Dialogue is Important, Even When it’s Impolite” by Ryan M. Milner. That article made me realize how important anonymity is online when dealing with social issues. Milner proved his point that silencing the bad online will also silence the good. Silencing the people who impolitely express their opinions will also silence the good people who are rightfully able to express their opinion. Milner used an example having to do with a hashtag that expresses the animosity that women have to deal with and its correlation with gender inequality. Some people came about the hashtag in cruel ways, completely mocking it and degrading it as well as degrading women in what they were saying.  Over social issues such as this one, most people, especially women, won’t allow themselves to feel belittled so they use their voice to fight for what’s theirs and educate those who are ignorant and those who feel superior over social media sites. They feel the need to raise their voice and spread more awareness for the greater good. Now that was just one example based on that hashtag. Yes, there were trolls saying stupid things just to spark up some heat with feminists, but that also results in those feminists, whether they be men or women, to speak up. If anonymity was not an option, would social issues spark awareness as much as it does today? Ryan M. Milner stated, “When antagonistic speech facilitates voice, satire or play, it may have civic value. Vibrant voice is essential online. Platform moderators, diverse individuals working to curate a culture of civility, can powerfully shape the online conversation.” Honestly, even while making this blog post, I had a different reason behind why anonymity is beneficial, but it ended up stirring in this direction. I don’t know if this will be an argument used in my essay, but it’s a thought.

What to write, what to write...

So I noticed a lot of people are still indecisive on what position to choose for their essay. I too am struggling to figure out what to write about and knowing that Im not the only one made me feel a little bit at ease. Last night I stayed up pretty late trying to write this paper and all I got was a page and a half done and I'm 5000% sure that what I wrote barely makes any sense. I mean its an easy topic but after hearing both sides of anonymity, i dont know which position to choose because I agree with both. I think anonymity allows people to express their thoughts and ideas but at the same time can easily become a way for trolls to come in and harass others. This weekend I'll be spending some time doing more research on Anonymity hoping to find which side I can stick to and hopefully make my second draft better than my first..

I liked this unit

After this unit, I've become completely indecisive of topics about trolling, anonymity, and free speech. Well, not completely, but its definitely given me lots of new perspectives. Trolling can be funny and harmless, or it can be gratuitous and offensive. Anonymity can be a tool for trolls to perpetrate or it can be considered an irreplaceable commodity in internet life. Free speech was generously granted to us by our founding fathers, but have we abused to the point where our speech needs to be censored? Somehow we have to write an essay about these complicated topics. Hopefully I can get my thoughts together enough to write.

Reflecting on Anonymity

This week we read and reflected on several articles relating to anonymity. Anonymity is such a powerful tool, especially on the World Wide Web. The internet at this point in time is home to nearly everyone. Given the time of season, it's home to the nice and the naughty. Unfortunately, it seems though as the Naughty list is overwhelmingly larger than the Nice list. On the internet, where anonymity is given, no one knows who you are. Gabriella Coleman, in her article "Anonymity Online Serves Us All", brings up the point that in some forums, people are free to discuss topics she says, "allowing for candid discussions of what might otherwise be stigmatizing subjects".

    Yet, there are many users who abuse anonymity, and use it to attack others. Author Kristy Tillman makes it clear who many of these targets are with her article titled, "Women and Minorities as Targets of Attack Online". It seems as though users use their given anonymity to speak out about how they truly feel without any serious consequence. Few individuals who have committed serious hate crimes to other individuals on the internet, such as harassment, cyberstalking, and threats, can be tracked down and charged as criminals. Sadly, this is not enough, there are just too many people doing the same thing daily. Let alone there are no real rules or regulations to prevent any of this intense online bullying.

   The big question is, Is there anything we can do to stop it? There are tons of solutions, but to get any one solution agreed upon would be chaos. It would also be difficult to implement these rules, regulations, or simple changes in the way we give anonymity. The only real temporary solution is to teach younger generations of children to be kind, and possibly teach them new morals and ethics to the way we behave on the internet. It's feasible to imagine a time where being mean isn't socially accepted on the internet, just as smoking or drinking in public. No one is going to stop you, but you understand it's very distasteful in the eyes of many. Perhaps then will some curb their awful thoughts.