Forum:Strange case of Essjay

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(somehow, my original post did not get posted -- this is a repost)

i was just reading about the strange case of Essjay in wikipedia and was wondering how a man could have fooled others for such a long time. he managed to pass off as a doctorate holder in religion and canon law, for years, with just a catholicism for dummies paperback to fall back on. he was a college dropout to boot and less than half the age he projected. i mean, wow! i also noticed that he finally exercised his right to vanish. that made me wonder if uncyclopedia also assisted users in "vanishing" by deleting their user pages? does it happen here? if so, how? -- mowgli 14:16, 11 March 2007 (UTC)

Oddly enough, I don't think we've ever had someone fake their credentials to gain credibility on Uncyc. --officer designate Lugiatm MUN NS CM ZM WH 18:54, 11 March 2007 (UTC)

You can say that you went to Funny University, but if you can't write good, then it doesn't matter what you got your Masters in.--Sir Modusoperandi ^Boinc! 20:26, 11 March 2007 (UTC)

"can't write good" should be "can't write well" --Nytrospawn 00:11, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

lolll. i think modus was being ironical. regardless, though a similar thing is unlikely to ever happen here, what if someone wants to vanish 'cos he's using his real name or has been tracked down and the stuff is interferring with his professional life. purely hypothetical. -- mowgli 07:39, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

If someone asked me to delete their userpages I'd do it. One of my 23 advanced degrees is in deletion, and I'd recommend any of my students do the same. • Spang • ☃ • talk • 08:54, 12 Mar 2007

We've had people ask to be deleted before, though usually it isn't because their name has been "outed" (say, by a group of Nazis hell-bent on revenge), but rather because they're having a temper tantrum over some policy decision or other they didn't like, or not feeling "respected" enough. Of course, we don't really respect anyone, so that last one confuses us...--<<>> 12:51, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

LOL! -- mowgli 17:09, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

Bah, over here we've had members of the parlament and candidates for state ministers faking their academic credentials. Essjay was just a wikipedia contributor, what's the big deal.---Asteroid B612 (aka Rataube) - Ñ 17:50, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

wow, wow and wow rataube. man is *so* complex, really! -- mowgli 18:43, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

So people can lie online about their identities? Scary... this gorgeous and open blond I've just met on the net might not turn out to be just what I expected... And wikipedia might not be a highly reliable encyclopedia written only by PHDs after all. I'm just glad at least he wasn't entrusted with the nuclear codes, or was he?---Asteroid B612 (aka Rataube) - Ñ 20:55, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

What does that have to do with the question of whether or not he should be allowed to "vanish," though? I could be wrong, but I doubt that anyone here is all that interested in debating the whole "false credentials" issue itself - that's more of a Wikipedia thang.  c • > • cunwapquc? 05:58, 13 March 2007 (UTC)

You are probably right. I don't think anyone is interested in debating it, at least not in a serious way. But we could always parody it.---Asteroid B612 (aka Rataube) - Ñ 10:10, 13 March 2007 (UTC)

let me narrate my own case. i had my user page deleted yesterday. i created an account (in a different name) in wikipedia after joining and actively contributing here. in time, i began to "substantially" contribute to pages of corporates i have professional interests with in wikipedia. one of them (the pages) was being groomed for "featured" status and my services were being requisitioned. i stopped to think. i had already left a trail connecting my wikipedia account with my uncyclopedia account. i was prepared to reveal myself in wikipedia but not now, not after my link to my contributions in uncyclopedia. the fact that i am freely talking about this here does suggest that my apprehension is non-serious and more of a paranoia. true. but then again, discretion is the better part of valour (which, come to think of it, i am not exercising in this particular post). anyway, whatever brings one peace of mind. everyone has a right to be paranoid once in a while. -- mowgli 09:33, 13 March 2007 (UTC)

Paranoia? Wait, are you talking about me, again? >.>--<<>> 12:03, 13 March 2007 (UTC)

I think I'm one of the few, if not the only, regular contributors using their real name. What the hell did I do that for? - David Gerard 20:20, 13 March 2007 (UTC)

What, are you saying this isn't my real name? I know "but" is a slightly unusual middle name (it certainly made people laugh at school when it got out) but that's no reason to doubt my authenticity. -- (but) Untrue  Whhhy?Whut?How? *Back from the dead* 23:40, 13 March 2007 (UTC)