Why anonymity in the Internet is (almost) always wrong

I get a few anonymous comments submitted to this blog. Almost all the anonymous ones are from atheists, interestingly. There's only one basic reason for not giving your name: you don't want either someone in particular or everyone in general to know that you said what you said.

That's by definition, really. If you don't give your name, it's because you didn't want to, unless you did it because you make all your decisions by rolling dice. For now we'll presume it's a rational thing and leave the dice-players alone.

What are the motives someone could have for not wanting to associate their name with their words? Your name is your identity or reputation; I take it then that when someone says something anonymously, it's because they want to protect their reputation from the potentially damaging effects of their words. (The atheist comments that didn't make it through moderation on this blog were certainly cases in point!)

Think about that for a moment. What we are saying is that anonymous writers normally want a reputation that isn't earned from what they say and do, but from somewhere else. Or alternatively, their real-life reputation is so bad, that it might discredit their comments; or at least, might give a different spin on them.

At the moment I'm just motive-mongering, which has limited value. The limit in this case, though, is quite high - I put it to you, readers for evaluation from your own experience, before pressing on. There is Biblical precedent for hilighting this aspect of human behaviour. When Adam sinned in the garden, he tried to hide himself, and cover his nakedness. He didn't want to be seen. He instinctively felt over-exposed, and wanted his identity to be hidden. His deed was obvious - there was a piece of fruit missing from the tree. But, as a sinner, he instinctively sought to separate himself from his action, and when questionned he drew attention to his wife, who shifted focus to the serpent. The innate sense of shame and wishing to be hidden is still present in mankind.

TBC...