[verve_rat]

Maybe, if you're to ashamed to risk your real name being linked to something you say, you shouldn't say it?

No every opinion needs to be heard, not every thought needs sharing. If you are embarrassed by what you type, then why do you think other people need to read it?

[pixel_popping]

Absolutely not, you should say it if it makes sense, anonymity is very important for free speech, it has nothing to do with being embarrassed, sometimes there is legal consequences possible as well in what you say, or potentially doxxing and such.

[randyrand]

That's the wrong framing. It's to protect yourself against unhinged people. Nearly every group of people has been persecuted at some point.

[tim-tday]

Not ashamed, aware that small, petty people will retaliate over honest criticism. Remember when a famous billionaire showed up at the Thai cave to rescue a soccer team with a submarine that wouldn’t fit in the hole? He tried to take charge and needed to be informed that he was out of his depth. That story was told in reporting about the event.

He retaliated by baselessly accusing the actual heroes (who were risking their lives) of a terrible crime. Refused to back down, refused to apologize, said “if it’s not true sue me” got sued, hid behind his lawyers (his defense was “I didn’t actually say his name) “). Yeah that guy and guys like him can’t handle criticism and have the wealth and power to retaliate.

An honest discussion space utilizes anonymity to shield normal people from retaliation by sensitive man-child retribution. I’m not embarrassed to say it, it needs to be said. It needs to be heard.

[AnimalMuppet]

Well, sometimes I say things about my work here - enough that a determined person might be able to figure out who my (past) employer was. So I have, a time or two, made a comment here that was about my employer, but I did not want it to be linkable to my actual employer. So I used a new throwaway account, just because I didn't want my employer to be tarred by peoples' reactions to that particular post.

Now, if you make a waiting period or whatever, then that becomes impossible unless you had the foresight to create a throwaway two weeks ago (or whatever time frame).

[ThrowawayR2]

There are so many posts here by those who ought to be mortally ashamed of what they wrote but apparently aren't that one more poster will hardly be noticed.

[rerdavies]

I get it. Every social medium has mobs, even HN. There are still subjects that I would like to respond to on HN, but do not, because doing so will incur merciless downvoting by a vocal minority.

The AI techno-luddite crowd is an example that comes to mind.

For the meantime, I use forbearance. But it is a shame that one cannot steer conversations in interesting directions because of the tyranny (such as it is) of the few . I rather like the idea of a sacrificial account, to be honest.

[pixel_popping]

On Reddit, you just can't participate with different ideology with your main account, you'll literally get banned of subreddits for the SOLE reason of joining other subreddits, this is a direct proof of the necessity of multiple accounts (and anonymity).