I would like to congratulate the Commission on Student Affairs. By taking up the surpassingly unimportant issue of anonymous internet comments in the CT and threatening action that is so wrong it appears to be illegal, it seems to have mastered the art of killing a fly with a sledgehammer.
I have a better solution — the CT should simply post this disclaimer on its Web site: “Overly sensitive persons who actually allow themselves to be offended by anonymous Internet comments should refrain from reading comments.” There you go, problem solved.
Better yet, maybe some common sense could break out and the members of the commission could learn to take my mother’s advice when they hear something they don’t like: “consider the source.”
Is it really worth getting worked up over comments that are so obviously offensive that the poster wasn’t even willing to post them under a fake name? All you are accomplishing by doing so is gratifying the poster by letting them know it worked.
Unfortunately, no good system exists for controlling Internet trolls without limiting access for everyone else. It would probably be best for everyone if the CSA would just learn to ignore idiots instead of crying about them and move on to issues where it might actually accomplish something.
Patrick Currier
graduate student
mechanical engineering
A version of this article appeared in the Feb 18 issue of the Collegiate Times.
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I disagree.
Examine some of the comments on the recent articles. There are statements that go beyond offensive, they are remarkably bigoted.
It might be easy for some to let words run over their back but when you are part of the group being so personally attacked it is difficult. It also just sends the wrong message about the community here at Tech and can lead people to believe they are not safe or welcome.
Judging by the comments on the CT I would say it is pretty hard to feel welcome as a black person. A rape victim may be led to believe she has no one to turn to for sympathy or aid.
I think anonymity should be sustained but I also believe some way to hold people accountable for their actions should also be implemented. Maybe if you have nothing nice to say you shouldn't say it all. Maybe we should discontinue comments altogether since people do not know how to use them appropriately.
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What exactly are you referencing I come here all the time and I've never felt unwelcome.
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You cannot, repeat CANNOT, come on the internet and expect sympathy or to be treated fairly. The internet feeds on anonymity and that is why people have such a "shield" in which they hide behind. Then they spew offensive comments because they no nothing can happen to them. It's the unfortunate world of the internet. The way you are commenting on the issue makes it sound like the CT is the only place stuff like this happens. It isn't.
Although most people who comment here are Tech students, remember that some are not. Many are NRV residents, parents, and friends. It does not make their bad comments justified, but remember that not all the people at fault are students.
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Opine. Freedom of speech doesn't just protect speech that you approve of.
If people only said nice things, it'd be a pretty pointless to have a comments page.
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I completely agree, simply due to the fact that anonymity does not free you from the burden of credibility. Somebody who is obviously "trolling" will not be bringing any evidence to the table and should simply not be taken seriously.
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Love is the answer.
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We all can get along.
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Ive mentioned this TO the CT staff before, log IP address... it wont completely solve the problem, but its a starting point. Wont solve the problem if people are using computer labs and such but its SOMEthing... that said, anonymous commentators are cowards to me, scared to stamp their name on the ish they say, BUT... its expected. So why bother complaining about it. Its the internet, and thats what people do on the internet, thats kind of the point. If you dont like what is said in the comment section, then stick to reading the paper copy of the CT.
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At least he will put his name to things and doesn't hide behind "anonymous" even if he is being attacked. You can track his comments and he owns what he says. Anyone that comments without a name really should think about why they don't want to own what they say.
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I post anonymously because I fear the backlash of those mentally inferior to me. Some people don't like being disproven and would react violently in a vain attempt to feel superior. Why else would it matter to know someone's name.
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I would like to point out the irony of how this article is titled: "CSA overreacted..." when the truth came out that the CT and its parent company overreacted. Seems that, in the end, this is just another example of hype-media attempts to get attention while simultaneously distorting facts. The letter that was released asks for dialogue. Yeah they probably shouldn't have threatened to pull money they had no power to pull but in the end if they're supposed to be addressing student issues, at least they're doing their job. If the paper knew it had all its cards on the table (meaning the CSA was wrong to try to pull funding) when why didn't they just have a conversation with the CSA instead of trying to make a big deal of it? Because they do what the media always does (or at least most of the media these days), they wanted attention. Shame on you CT and EMCVT. Shame on you!
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