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In the Reddit thread, another MeFi administrator sums it pretty nicely: MetaFilter has rules about that sort of thing because it wants to encourage a certain ki

In the Reddit thread, another MeFi administrator sums it pretty nicely: MetaFilter has rules about that sort of thing because it wants to encourage a certain kind of community. Other sites may have different rules. "On Metafilter, specifically, deliberately impersonating a disinterested third party to get in arguments about yourself or something you've got a personal stake in is a problem, yes. It's anathema to any kind of sense of community and continuity of identity. Other places can have their own rules or lack thereof. The heterogeneity of the Internet is part of what makes it interesting, and certainly no one is or should be compelled to be a member of Metafilter or Reddit or any other site the rules or community guidelines of which they don't like." Direct link: http://www.reddit.com/r/comics/comments/gqzgx/dilbert_creator_outed_for_using_sock_puppets_on/c1pn37l http://www.reddit.com/r/comics/comments/gqzgx/dilbert_creato...

TomOfTTB 16y ago
There's a difference between rules/law and morality. I don't dispute what he did was against the Metafilter rules but that doesn't in itself make it wrong from a moral standpoint. At least no more wrong than people who post off topic stuff on HN or any number of other minor infractions.
- Sizlak 16y ago
  You could argue that it's morally wrong because most other Mefi-ists assume that the rules are being followed, so breaking the rules is deceptive. But Metafilter discussions bore the hell out of me, so I don't really know what the hell they think.
- joshmillard 16y ago
  As far as mefi's guildlines go and my job responsibilities go, morality doesn't really come into it. I don't consider it my mandate to ensure or enforce moral correctness or any such thing. That what he did was against the site's rules and a violation of the Metafilter community's shared expectations of behavior on the site is why it was a problem on Metafilter, and why we contacted him to tell him to cut it out.

TomOfTTB 16y ago

There's a difference between rules/law and morality. I don't dispute what he did was against the Metafilter rules but that doesn't in itself make it wrong from a moral standpoint. At least no more wrong than people who post off topic stuff on HN or any number of other minor infractions.

Sizlak 16y ago
You could argue that it's morally wrong because most other Mefi-ists assume that the rules are being followed, so breaking the rules is deceptive. But Metafilter discussions bore the hell out of me, so I don't really know what the hell they think.
joshmillard 16y ago
As far as mefi's guildlines go and my job responsibilities go, morality doesn't really come into it. I don't consider it my mandate to ensure or enforce moral correctness or any such thing. That what he did was against the site's rules and a violation of the Metafilter community's shared expectations of behavior on the site is why it was a problem on Metafilter, and why we contacted him to tell him to cut it out.