I know it's unsettling to be impersonated, John. I've done what I could with it.

There are also a number of Joe Offers on Facebook who claim to be associated with Mudcat AND the BNP. I don't think any of them really have the name of Joe Offer, and Facebook has been very unccoperative about deleting the false Joe Offer memberships, even the ones that bear my photograph. I believe these false memberships are the work of a single person - you'll find them on Flickr, Facebook, other "social networking" sites, and more recently here at Mudcat - the last year or so. Max is aware of what is happening, and he's trying to figure out ways of dealing with the problem - but please be aware that Facebook and Flickr appear to be more vulnerable than we are in this matter, so don't dump on us too heavily.

I know that some people think we need to deal with this sort of thing immediately and strongly, but it isn't all that easy. I've found that strong reaction often tends to provoke trolls into even more troublemaking, so I do my best to handle such problems slowly and quietly. If there's a problem contact me directly and privately so I can deal with the problem without making a stir.

I agree that this is a very disturbing situation, and I wish we could just make it go away. The trouble is, trolling is an inherent part of the the nature of free online communication. To deal with this problem, we need cooperation from all of you. As it has said in the FAQ for years, the best way to deal with trolls is not to respond to them in any way. Let me know about the problem quietly, and I'll do my best to deal with it.

And don't get all in a tizzy about this BNP stuff. The troll knows full well that the BNP is the hottest of our "hot buttons," and uses the BNP stuff to manipulate us. The same troll also poses as an IRA agitator when people get bored of the BNP stuff. Chances are quite good that our troll actually has no affiliation with either the British National Party, or with the Irish Republican Army.

Thanks.

-Joe Offer-

P.S. To ensure the integrity of your identity, it's always best to post as a registered member.