# Sock Puppet Theater **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [July 7, 2011, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230 "2011-07-07T21:13:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/1 "2011-07-07T21:13:06Z")
Can we have a moratorium on sock puppets for a weekend? Just let people go nuts, make up new accounts, and post crazy shit (err, well, crazi_er_) for the weekend, and then ban them all. Afterwards, we can try to figure who was who, or not. Or whatever. I just want an excuse to use the phrase Sock Puppet Theater. It has a nice ring to it. I think a weekend near April Fools’ would be nice, but that’s an awfully long wait. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/2 "2011-07-07T21:24:56Z")
I’m up for it! I think my sock would be named Casey and I’d be posting from jail asking about in-vitro fertilization. (need answer fast! or at least by Wednesday…) ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/3 "2011-07-07T21:32:34Z")
I vote Hell No. I see absolutely no benefit to such a thing, and too much potential for mischief. There are boards that allow sock puppetry–this isn’t one of them, and I like it that way. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/4 "2011-07-07T21:46:03Z")
There’s no such thing as _too much_ potential for mischief. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Wilson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@Wilson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wilson)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/5 "2011-07-07T22:27:25Z")
I agree with **Oakminster**. And no, I’m not his sock. ---
**Author:** ![Capitaine\_Zombie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@Capitaine\_Zombie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capitaine_Zombie)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/6 "2011-07-07T22:32:01Z")
> [@Wilson](#): > > I agree with **Oakminster**. And no, I’m not his sock. Where’s his right hand then? ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/7 "2011-07-07T22:35:14Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > I vote Hell No. I see absolutely no benefit to such a thing, and too much potential for mischief. There are boards that allow sock puppetry–this isn’t one of them, and I like it that way. :rolleyes: Are you familiar with the concept of fun? Or did you have a fit during Amnesia Weekend, too? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/8 "2011-07-07T22:39:33Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > :rolleyes: > > Are you familiar with the concept of fun? Or did you have a fit during Amnesia Weekend, too? That was easy, just delete all the posts from that weekend. How can the mods tell which are sock accounts and which are new ,legitimate accounts? ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/9 "2011-07-07T23:01:55Z")
I can hear the mods moaning about the problems identifying and banning the socks all the way out here on the left coast. One of them is swearing loudly. ---
**Author:** ![SoulFrost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f07891/32.png) [@SoulFrost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SoulFrost)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/10 "2011-07-07T23:31:06Z")
We did something similar on another board for Halloween. Staff gave a second username with special permissions to everyone who requested one–all spooky, scary, Halloweeny names–and we limited the masquerade to a single new forum. Regular posters could read but not post to the new forum (I even locked the Mods out), and the sockpuppets could read but not post to the regular forums. The fun was in trying to guess who was who. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/11 "2011-07-07T23:55:23Z")
Not going to happen. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2011, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/12 "2011-07-08T00:28:29Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > That was easy, just delete all the posts from that weekend. > > How can the mods tell which are sock accounts and which are new ,legitimate accounts? Email addresses. Anyone who wants a sock has to use a yahoo email address with their ‘real’ name as the email address. (Which shouldn’t be a big deal because you have to have a different email address for a second account anyway.) Emails can be hidden but staff can still see them so a mod or admin can tell whose sock is whose by clicking on the username. Restrict it to one forum, or even make a new one for the weekend and any socks messing around in the rest of the forums get banned. Any socks that slip through because they’re not disruptive are not a problem in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2011, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/13 "2011-07-08T01:05:27Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > Can we have a moratorium on sock puppets for a weekend? Don’t we already have a moratorium on sock puppets? I think the OP is asking for a moratorium on the moratorium on sock puppets. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2011, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/14 "2011-07-08T01:47:23Z")
> [@Finagle](#): > > Don’t we already have a moratorium on sock puppets? I think the OP is asking for a moratorium on the moratorium on sock puppets. Yes, quite - but that moratorium would have a moratorium put on it afterwards. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2011, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/15 "2011-07-08T01:48:23Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Not going to happen. Sorry. This, sir, means war. or at least some pouting ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2011, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/16 "2011-07-08T01:50:16Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > I vote Hell No. I see absolutely no benefit to such a thing, and too much potential for mischief. There are boards that allow sock puppetry–this isn’t one of them, and I like it that way. Let me guess, and get off your lawn too? ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2011, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/17 "2011-07-08T02:06:10Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > Email addresses. Anyone who wants a sock has to use a yahoo email address with their ‘real’ name as the email address. And you prevent the registration of a Yahoo email with an SDMB poster’s id by a different poster or some random person how, exactly? I’m not against the sock idea itself in theory. But in my non-official opinion there are bound to be more problems than the SDMB owners and staff are willing to put up with. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2011, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/18 "2011-07-08T02:22:48Z")
Umm, because the number of people who are that excited about registering [rowrrbazzle@yahoo.com](mailto:rowrrbazzle@yahoo.com) are more thin on the ground than monkeys in france? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2011, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/19 "2011-07-08T02:38:12Z")
I agree with **Oakminster** , and I _am_ his sock. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2011, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230/20 "2011-07-08T02:42:00Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > I agree with **Oakminster** , and I _am_ his sock. Well, it’s a dirty job, but someone has to do it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sock-puppet-theater/588230.md?page=2)