John, I didn't exactly accuse you personally "of being a macho bullshitter, of being irrational, or of being afraid of the unknown" now did I? Reread my post again--there is no personal attack against you. But if the shoe fits, well...

I feel there is a very strong undercurrent of machismo and intimidation towards guests here, which is "justified" by those who engage in it by playing the "anonymous = evil" card. You weren't exactly using polite, friendly, helpful language yourself when you said "Give your name or shut up" which is what I reacted to as just more of the same guest bashing we've already seen in this thread, and in every thread where this subject rears its ugly head.

I agree with your points about Mudcat really being a reflection of the wider world. I don't treat strangers the way they are treated in this forum. I trust my gut instincts about them first, which is, of course, hard to do on-line. But I would never, ever just assume they are asswholes (!) just because I don't know who they are. I can't think of a more negative attitude to go through life with. Especially when there is no shortage of member asswholes in Mudcat aweady. ;-)