Posted by Dr. Bob on October 27, 2009, at 4:59:06
In reply to Now I am confused » Dr. Bob, posted by 10derHeart on October 26, 2009, at 15:17:09
Hi, everyone,
Sorry about surprising so many of you like this!
Anxiety is a natural response to change, and I think the reaction here is in part a sign of cohesiveness and a desire to protect this community from disruption. Like you, however, Facebook and Twitter users are real people who can benefit from support and education. Sharing and tweeting might lead them to the many thoughtful and intelligent posts here, and then they might join Babble and contribute new perspectives and energy. I think good can come of this -- for current posters, for new posters, and for this community as a whole. I'd like to ask you to try to be open to that possibility.
As several of you have mentioned, posts here have always been public and available for sharing, including on Facebook and Twitter when they came along. A dialectic of this community is that it is public, yet can feel private. Maybe another way the new buttons can help is as reminders of the public aspect.
I understand that because of the private aspect, some of you may feel exposed and vulnerable. Posts can, however, be personal without identifying you. It's up to you not to post identifying information.
Still, what you post may conceivably be used against you. As in 10der's hypothetical example. But all use of Facebook and Twitter is subject to their terms of service:
http://www.facebook.com/terms.php
http://twitter.com/tosI added a link to the "do not share/tweet" list so people can take into account the preferences of posters. And posters can continue to make their preferences known. I assume those who don't want me tweeting their posts don't want others doing so, either. If that's not the case, they can clarify that there.
By default, sharing/tweeting includes the subject line and the URL of the post. In the case of Facebook, it also includes the beginning of the post (the same "preview", which excludes quoted text, that you get when you mouse over a link to it here). In both cases, people can edit before they submit.
Yes, babblemail remains private.
Yes, if you become a fan of Psycho-Babble on Facebook or follow @psycho_babel on Twitter, your Facebook or Twitter account links you to Babble. But that doesn't mean you're necessarily a Babbler, and if you are a Babbler, it doesn't identify which Babbler you are. And using the share/tweet buttons doesn't automatically make you a Facebook fan or a Twitter follower.
I don't think it would necessarily be sick, twisted, outrageous, or demeaning to share/tweet a post about suicidality or rape or abuse. People post in the first place because they're looking for support or information, and they're more likely to find it if more people see their post.
Bob
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> And how does this work? If a post contains a history of several posts, can someone's writing end up where they don't want it just by virtue of being buried in another post?
>
> emme> I am unhappy and angry about this. I really get a lot of support from this community. Dr. Bob promised--promised--this would not happen earlier this year w/ the no tweet list. This new system seems crazy. Sharing one's own post is one thing. Frankly, I find this situation open to abuse and leaving anyone vulnerable. ... Certainly I will babblemail henceforth unless there is a change in policy. I assume babblemail privacy has remained unchanged. Does anyone know if this is correct?
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> fb> I also think there should be a warning that tweeting or linking to your real life twitter or facebook accounts links babble to your real self.
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> Dinah> discussions that should be private, helpful information (including this post) [are] splattered all over Google FOREVER
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> yxibow> While I realize anyone can cut and past what we've wrote and put it on their facebook account, I think its intrusive to encourage people to do this - its encouraging by the ease of clicking that button, plus it may be make it tempting just for it being there.
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> There are people discussing their suicidal feelings on this site. It seems sick and twisted to have facebook and twitter icons at the bottom of their posts, along with many others....
>
> psych chat> the web is a public place. I suppose as far as the linking goes, people could always do that. Nothing I know of prevents anyone from placing a linked URL to anything on Babble on any other web page, to include Facebook and Twitter. Any URL can be copied and pasted in a couple seconds...many of us probably do it all the time in passing on info we've like someone else to read.... Not that I do it with someone's individual post here, but that's more of an ethical thing for me personally. Babble and all its posts are public, non-restricted, and have been all along. The little buttons just perhaps make it easier, more convenient, for someone to create the link??
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> 10derHeart> This has changed things for me. I realize that what we write here is available for the galaxy to read and that links can be posted on other web pages, but a direct pipeline to facebook and twitter makes me very uncomfortable.
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> emme> I would have hoped that there would have been some advanced notice/discussion of this prior its implementation. This linking just makes it more likely that someone could discover our real identities, and we should have been made aware of increased likelihood of that adverse event.
>
> I also wish that the ability to link would show up only on posts that I wrote. Something just feels very amiss now that anyone, and not just Dr. Bob could tweet my posts. By posting, I freely gave permssion to Dr. Bob to use my posts, I did not specifically give any one else that permission.
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> I am aware that the internet is free game, and anyone can do anything with what I write, but this is giving the immediate tools to do so.
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> Surely Dr. Bob would not consider allowing other posters to share people's posts on a rape crisis board, or a sexual abuse board. It would be outrageous and demeaning. Sometimes that level of intimacy is reached on the psych board.
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> Seldom> If I say, disliked Poster ABC intensely, was tired of them and wanted to paint them in the worst light, embarrass them or bully them, couldn't I collect up their posts fairly quickly and easily and list them en masse, on say, my Facebook page (don't have one, but this is hypothetical), with accompanying derisive commentary, AND if I were so inclined, might I not be MORE encouraged seeing they'd asked YOU not to Twitter, etc., their posts? Might I not kinda LIKE that, even? Would I give a damn if I were that type of person??
>
> 10derHeart
poster:Dr. Bob
thread:922472
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20090813/msgs/922824.html