# The real life of posters: Private or public? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [February 19, 2013, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-life-of-posters-private-or-public/650798 "2013-02-19T15:40:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 74
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2013, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-life-of-posters-private-or-public/650798/74 "2013-02-19T21:07:37Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > I have no desire to wade through 13 pages to find what people are talking about. Especially 13 pages of pitting of **pchaos**. Can someone at least narrow down where the incidents in question are occurring so we can find the damn “infraction” under discussion? 'Cause I read the first couple pages and my brain is hurting. I think these cover the essential points — > [@It is implausible that pchaos is a lawyer and he should stop claiming to be one](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-is-implausible-that-pchaos-is-a-lawyer-and-he-should-stop-claiming-to-be-one/650316/477): > > Holy heck, the idea he was an actual lawyer seemed bizarre. I just phoned up the obvious pchaos you find on the net, sadly there was no reply but I did leave a voicemail with a code-word. If that really is you pchaos, and you are not impersonating someone, please repeat it. If it isn’t you I suppose I or others will call the, back over the next few days. > > If you really are a lawyer I offer you an unreserved, unconditional apology. > [@It is implausible that pchaos is a lawyer and he should stop claiming to be one](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-is-implausible-that-pchaos-is-a-lawyer-and-he-should-stop-claiming-to-be-one/650316/490): > > I don’t see what’s stupid about it. From melon’s links if this guy is impersonating the real pchaos, then the latter needs to be told. If otoh this guy is in fact the same person, he may in fact like the validation of his real identity. It’s no big deal, it’s just a phone call. If the position is that it really is pchaos but he doesn’t wish to confirm that then he can just ignore the voicemail. I see no downside to anyone other than possibly myself in wasting thirty seconds of my time. > > Want to know the last Internet stranger related phone call I made? Someone had ordered a dominos and I got ahold of the order. I called them up to ask if they really thought it was sane to be exposing their orders to strangers like me. If I hadn’t been me (or 95% of folk as I still reckon most people are decent) then all sorts of scummy shit could have happened to that dude. > > In this case the stakes are far higher (or at least such was my position until BBJ basically showed it was a likely stolen ID but that is hindsight reasoning). > > I have also made a phone call to the UK equivalent of 911 on request based on a thread here (and a pm convo leading from that thread) on scanty yet credible info. I don’t really equate that situation with this one other than to say that in my experience it takes someone to be “the guy who does things” and I have adopted a general policy of that being me. A similar situation is on a mini roundabout, which I will analogise my point to the US situation and say there’s four cars who come to a four way stop and all of them wanna turn left. S one has to go first and I try to be that person (except on a roundabout but I translated the analogy in real time 😉 ) > > This was a relatively substantial post to attempt on an iPad sory for any typos. > [@It is implausible that pchaos is a lawyer and he should stop claiming to be one](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-is-implausible-that-pchaos-is-a-lawyer-and-he-should-stop-claiming-to-be-one/650316/491): > > (By the way my “guy who does things” philosophy, which I first named now, originates to reading the story of Kitty Genovese in some really cool book about marketing/psychology I forget the name of. I remember a catchphrase was along the lines of “click…whirrr” and given how many people are reading this thread I’m sure someone will know what I’m talking about - the book comes highly recommended) > [@It is implausible that pchaos is a lawyer and he should stop claiming to be one](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-is-implausible-that-pchaos-is-a-lawyer-and-he-should-stop-claiming-to-be-one/650316/500): > > You could just about claim that I was so smashed I will not remember this tomorrow due to alcohol intoxication, based on my posts here (it is not at all the case but I recognise us substance users are basically like gays in the 1970s) but if I were under the influence of opiates (which I am not, nor alcohol or indeed anything other than caffeine ) this would make no sense. > > I didn’t do a 411 (is that the right term?) and call a home phone number- I obtained a work number alleged to be his by making an incredibly obvious google from melon’s links, and left a message. > > Not that I have a massive objection to anyone phoning me. Conincidentally, and I ain’t making this up, I bought a new mobile phone today. I don’t mind posting the number of it up here for a week as an experiment if you’re game… > [@It is implausible that pchaos is a lawyer and he should stop claiming to be one](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-is-implausible-that-pchaos-is-a-lawyer-and-he-should-stop-claiming-to-be-one/650316/502): > > I will just put it down to value differences in the end. I can entirely understand that no one should call a personal number. I also, indicentally, don’t think anyone should be outing irl identies (alleged or otherwise) of fellow sdmb posters, and I’m amazed you’ve allowed that and no one has complained. But if that’s to be done like it was by mr melon I see no real harm in making contact in the work sphere of people who claim to be doing said work, especially when there’s a direct line… > [@It is implausible that pchaos is a lawyer and he should stop claiming to be one](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-is-implausible-that-pchaos-is-a-lawyer-and-he-should-stop-claiming-to-be-one/650316/512): > > p.s. are phone calls from strangers some seriously taboo thing in the US or something. That would seem very strange to me, even if I didn’t know anything about the US (and I know a lot about the US) given how many threads there are in this precise subforum about telemarketers and peopel who call you up at suppertime to get you to do political polls and suchlike. In other words, what’s the deal about phone calls? It’s just a ringing noise and someone talking to you. > > I **do** understand the concern about working out who pchaos is (or allegedly is). I would never even think to do that kind of thing frankly. But when other posters have done and leave it in other posts, and as you can see the info is left here for everyone who is interested, what am I supposed to do? Ignore it? --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-real-life-of-posters-private-or-public/650798)._