The Third Doctrinal War -- Stardock, Reiche/Ford, and Star Control

There was a time not all that long ago in America where you could be blacklisted from entire industries for just the suspicion of having unpopular political views or associating with people suspected of holding certain political views.

The replies to that tweet are, of course, full of terrible people.

Can’t disagree with that. I’ve carefully steered clear of the whole gamergate thing. I mean I do love gaming drama like Star Citizen, the Grimoire saga, and this lawsuit, but gg is just not my kind of drama.

If you knew me, you’d know I’m about as positive a cat as they come and I always assume the best until I encounter the worst. Take that for what you will.

So noted. Thanks.

Well, that was interesting. Since Brad calls this his “home community”, and the community standards here might be different than those I’m used to, I’d like to get a sense for whether I’m overreacting, or justifiably pissed.

Brad apparently got my real contact information via court discovery of one of the very small number of emails I’ve exchanged with Paul and Fred. And he just posted my real first name in a Discord chat, along with a threat that if P&F try to get an injunction on the SC:O launch, he might tell his lawyers to stop being gentle, and drag me and anyone else in contact with P&F into court with subpoenas.

He edited my name out shortly thereafter (possibly at moderator instruction), and sent me a non-apology (“I apologize for upsetting you”), but I still feel this crossed pretty deep into breach of internet etiquette territory.

What do people here think?

Edit:

I guess that clarifies his position.

First name doesn’t seem like a huge deal (unless it is particularly unusual). Regardless, not cool.

The moment I realized this upset you I edited it out. I did not realize you considered your first name a secret. Where I come from, we switched between handle and first name to signal the difference between online/real world because “real world” stuff is much more serious.

And I do genuinely apologize. I didn’t realize this was an issue and will be take care not to repeat the mistake.

It’s his usual method. Threatening to sue, playing the victim card, while trying to shift the blame for the heinous things he does onto you.
It’s almost funny how much it mirrors the lawsuit stuff.

Him doxing someone? No big deal. The problem is YOU getting upset by it!

Using materials from discovery to bully someone who is not a party to the suit. Wow, that’s an amazing new low.

First name alone is usually not considered PII so I think that unless that + your handle is enough to positively identify you I think it’s ok, but a bit of a dick thing to do.

Given that members of UQM project may directly be impacted by the legal proceedings and subsequent fallout (as you mentioned), I’m not sure how reasonable it would be to stay anonymous to the end as this continues to grow more and more heated though.

Jeez, that is bad, Elestan. Using your real name is a choice of yours.

Wow, that is reckless, inciting an internet lynch mob and dragging you to court?

– Edited

Yeah, avoiding that crap was for the best for sure.

You’d be surprised at what a motivated asshole on the internet can do with just a first name and the tidbits people leave in their posts like what area they live in or what career they are in or info on their hobbies.

(and that’s why I haven’t posted under my real name since the usenet days)

Funny, that is the reason I am increasingly abandoning pseudonyms.

  1. Shitty thing to do to reveal anyone’s name without permission.
  2. Beyond shitty to make legal threats at fans.
  3. I think his apology seems sincere, even though his explanation is pretty poor (see #1). And it doesn’t make up for #2.
  4. I would really love it if this thread didn’t become a place where arguments and their stakes become personal. Unfortunately, with Brad present, that’s almost impossible. /glares at Brad

Very sorry that’s happened to you, Elestan, just for caring about the case and the UQM community.

Since you asked, I’ll say that I think it’s shameful behavior.

A good rule of thumb is that if you used legal discovery to find out someone’s name then bringing it up outside of said legal proceedings it is a shitty thing to do.

Grayson’s a journalist and early target of Gamergate. One of the “Five Guys” that Baldwin wouldn’t shut up about.

So, my first inclination was to accept this apology, which seemed much more sincere than your first attempt, and let the matter rest. But when I returned to the Discord after my self-imposed time out, I see that after you made the apology here, you started posting things in the channel there like:

…which kind of force me to question your sincerity in saying that you will “take care not to repeat the mistake”.