Gender Identification Requirement! Why?

[ila]

Originally Posted by hankhavelock

May I politely ask why u don't put a pic of urself then? Isn't that better branding, so to speak? :-) Or is it just me who so totallymisunderstood it all?

I don't have any digital pictures of myself. I don't have a digital cameral either. And as I said before I don't mind identifying myself as a male. I have on several occasions. I'm also not complaining about people that send my PMs or those that think I am not male.

[hankhavelock]

Originally Posted by ila

I don't have any digital pictures of myself. I don't have a digital cameral either. And as I said before I don't mind identifying myself as a male. I have on several occasions. I'm also not complaining about people that send my PMs or those that think I am not male.

:-) It's all fine - I just asked :-)

[GRH]

I will never use a blatantly gender-fied avatar, nor will I ever use a screen name that leads to associations one way or the other. This is no criticism of anyone, it's just how I've conducted myself over the years on the internet. I'm not even a huge fan of avatars to begin with, as should be evidenced my lack of one. That DOES make me less memorable, and I'm ok with that. I'd rather be remembered for my content and substance than a picture by my name. But as has been pointed out, does the presence or lack thereof of a gender ID necessarily clarify things? Avatars, screen names, etc. play such a huge role in how we perceive each other...I again urge that the GID should be optional, as is the choice to use an avatar. We can relate to each other however we so choose, be it by full disclosure of GID, a picture of ourself in the avatar, hell, those that want can even include their address and phone number in a profile. Still, we should have a choice without being forced to lie or categorize ourselves...

[sesame]

We like to hide our faces and crotches!
... from the judging eyes of society (which is so full of shit)

[sesame]

In this world, especially over the fictitious Internet, everyone is for themselves and everything is so very temporary! Love, friendship, enmity, fame, notoriety... everything is false and worth two days. So revealing everything about yourself for one glimpse of a mask (not the real thing even) is infinitely foolish.

What do you say?

[ila]

Originally Posted by sesame

In this world, especially over the fictitious Internet, everyone is for themselves and everything is so very temporary! Love, friendship, enmity, fame, notoriety... everything is false and worth two days. So revealing everything about yourself for one glimpse of a mask (not the real thing even) is infinitely foolish.

What do you say?

I'm not averse to showing myself, but after my current avatar the real me would be a big letdown.

Not everything is false. People do reveal themselves on the internet and especially in fora. Of course not everyone reveals their true selves and not everyone that reveals himself/herself will necessarily reveal everything. There are the two ends of the spectrum where on one end a person will reveal nothing and on the other end is the person who will reveal everything. I believe that most people fall into the middle and reveal part of themselves. The question then, dear reader, is where do you fall into? As for me I am in the middle. I have revealed some of who and what I really am, but I have not revealed everything.

[sesame]

I have revealed my opinion, my personality, thats the real me, not my face or the name. And I think thats enough revelation.

As far as our identities go, the webmaster knows all our ip addresses.
That should reveal our locations, computer names and all.
Oh, people, dont freak out so much. He is supposed to keep that secret.
Aint it, Mr. Webmaster?

[SHEMALE_SEEKER]

Originally Posted by ila

I'm not averse to showing myself, but after my current avatar the real me would be a big letdown.

Not sure about that, from what I've seen so far, you sound like a very nice person, so please don't say that about yourself.

[GRH]

Originally Posted by sesame

In this world, especially over the fictitious Internet, everyone is for themselves and everything is so very temporary! Love, friendship, enmity, fame, notoriety... everything is false and worth two days. So revealing everything about yourself for one glimpse of a mask (not the real thing even) is infinitely foolish.

What do you say?

Alas Sesame, you speak truth...For all I know, YOU could be a woman, and for that matter, I could be a perverted old man. This medium of exchange is very temporal and fleeting. That said, it IS a viable means of communicating and exchanging ideas. In my own estimation, I'd rather be as up front as possible, because by being honest up front, we can better understand one another's perspective. This is one reason I don't post pictures of myself or use an avatar...I'd rather be judged by my interactions than by pictures...But for whatever lack that creates, I am pretty honest about where I live and other mundry details of my life.

As you have proven, pictures are largely irrelevant to who we actually are. In the case of ila, I must admit, your own avatar has thrown me on more than one occasion. That said, I've never bothered to look at your "Gender Tag" but it just goes to show how a picture, or ANY preconception of a person, can go to affect how we interact with them. Ila, I LOVE your avatar, whether you are male or female, but surely you can see where it throws some people. And that you're ok with that makes you that much better in my book. As you suggest, I fear that my own intellect and posting might far surpass my looks in the minds of the fantastical, horny poster. The reality seldom lives up to the fantasy...In ANY pursuit...