4 ms·

This is so bizarre. The point of a signature is that it's an unreproducible way of marking that you have personally approved something. There is no difference

This is so bizarre. The point of a signature is that it's an unreproducible way of marking that you have personally approved something. There is no difference between an auto-pen, and just giving your secretary a stamp saying "the bearer of this stamp speaks with the authority of senator X". The only difference between the stamp system I described, and an auto-pen, is that the latter can be used to trick gullible people into thinking a real human pressed a pen to the paper.

rdtsc 13y ago
> The point of a signature is that it's an unreproducible way of marking that you have personally approved something. That is why that exists -- because it creates that _impression_. A stamp would look cheap and distant, a pen on paper looks mostly indistinguishable to most from a real signature. If I write a letter to Obama and get a response with a signature, well I can at least dream that Obama could have signed it personally. If I get a stamp from a secretary, I know he definitely didn't. It is about ceremony like the article said. Pen on paper signature has very long been an "important thing". Signatures bind contracts, put people in jail, sign loan applications, sell companies, etc, etc. That has been entrenched in the culture and it explains why these things are used.
- midas007 13y ago
  A handwritten signature is basically worthless. I make it a point to sign something mocking the form whenever presented with a signature box to make this very point.
  - rdtsc 13y ago
    Not sure what you mean. It is obviously not worthless since it is required everywhere. So large number of people and organizations hold that it isn't. > I make it a point to sign something mocking the form whenever presented with a signature box to make this very point. Again I am confused about that. So you are buying a car, a house or making a deal with an attorney, do you just write "fuck you" in the signature box, put a smiley face in there?

rdtsc 13y ago

> The point of a signature is that it's an unreproducible way of marking that you have personally approved something. That is why that exists -- because it creates that _impression_. A stamp would look cheap and distant, a pen on paper looks mostly indistinguishable to most from a real signature. If I write a letter to Obama and get a response with a signature, well I can at least dream that Obama could have signed it personally. If I get a stamp from a secretary, I know he definitely didn't. It is about ceremony like the article said. Pen on paper signature has very long been an "important thing". Signatures bind contracts, put people in jail, sign loan applications, sell companies, etc, etc. That has been entrenched in the culture and it explains why these things are used.

midas007 13y ago
A handwritten signature is basically worthless. I make it a point to sign something mocking the form whenever presented with a signature box to make this very point.
- rdtsc 13y ago
  Not sure what you mean. It is obviously not worthless since it is required everywhere. So large number of people and organizations hold that it isn't. > I make it a point to sign something mocking the form whenever presented with a signature box to make this very point. Again I am confused about that. So you are buying a car, a house or making a deal with an attorney, do you just write "fuck you" in the signature box, put a smiley face in there?