A Case for Pseudonyms | Electronic Frontier Foundation

This is a nice essay by Jillian York of the Electronic Frontier Foundation regarding the importance of protecting internet anonymity, which is under assault right now. I especially liked this quotation:

"Anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the majority. It thus exemplifies the purpose behind the Bill of Rights, and of the First Amendment in particular: to protect unpopular individuals from retaliation—and their ideas from suppression—at the hand of an intolerant society. The right to remain anonymous may be abused when it shields fraudulent conduct. But political speech by its nature will sometimes have unpalatable consequences, and, in general, our society accords greater weight to the value of free speech than to the dangers of its misuse."

A Case for Pseudonyms | Electronic Frontier Foundation