# You've been kidnapped! How do you post? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 28, 2020, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644 "2020-02-28T13:09:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/21 "2020-02-28T17:58:22Z")
> [@Fotheringay-Phipps](#): > > The premise of all these posts seems to be that if someone posts something extremely out-of-character, that the SDMB membership will decide they may be in serious trouble and track them down IRL. I think that’s extremely unlikely, based on the history and nature of this MB. People might speculate that your account has been hacked or that you’re drunk, but that’s about it. A while back a poster made a few random gibberish posts and we joked about “pocket posting” (like pocket dialing) or something. A couple of days later it was reported that he had died of a brain tumor. Oops. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/22 "2020-02-28T18:03:11Z")
> [@Fotheringay-Phipps](#): > > The premise of all these posts seems to be that if someone posts something extremely out-of-character, that the SDMB membership will decide they may be in serious trouble and track them down IRL. I think that’s extremely unlikely, based on the history and nature of this MB. People might speculate that your account has been hacked or that you’re drunk, but that’s about it. > > I don’t think there’s anything a kidnap victim can do to alert the general MB membership to the point of taking meaningful action. It might be different for posters who have RL connections to other posters. This one doesn’t work - too in character. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/23 "2020-02-28T18:05:33Z")
My life is Good, Good, Good. Let me tell you a short story… ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/24 "2020-02-28T18:08:35Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > A while back a poster made a few random gibberish posts and we joked about “pocket posting” (like pocket dialing) or something. A couple of days later it was reported that he had died of a brain tumor. Oops. Yeah. I remember when that happened. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/25 "2020-02-28T18:51:36Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > A while back a poster made a few random gibberish posts and we joked about “pocket posting” (like pocket dialing) or something. A couple of days later it was reported that he had died of a brain tumor. Oops. I worry about this kinda thing. Apparently I have no filters, on board. I’ve had a couple of gibberish/addled days in my recent history. Mostly due to glucose levels and drug side effects. My surgery is in a few days. I’ve asked my family not to give me back my devices til I’m trust-worthy and talking normally. I hope it all goes according to plan. If I start talking nonsense, assume I’m NOT kidnapped. I’m pretty sure that will be the case. Do tell me to shut-up, though. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/26 "2020-02-28T19:29:09Z")
If I post something like “Fuck the Second Amendment, no one needs guns. War Damn Eagle!” you’ll know. Absolutely no one here will care, and some of you will probably make donations to expedite my demise, but you will know. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/27 "2020-02-28T19:32:57Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > My surgery is in a few days. In the past few weeks; one friend had his hip replaced, another had her gallbladder removed, and another had a cancerous skin lesion removed. They all went smoothly. Do me a favor and keep this streak going.🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/28 "2020-02-28T19:45:45Z")
Imagine being held at gunpoint (bear with me) by a literate animal, and the only hope of rescue is (BEAR WITH ME) posting a coded message on the SDMB. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/29 "2020-02-28T19:51:03Z")
Australia should adopt the US republican system immediately and without modification. It’s success is truely a model of best practice in good governance for the world. American really know how to run elections. Jeez they are good. The Queen has the legal authority to instruct the elected members of her government in any matter of policy that concerns her. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/30 "2020-02-28T21:06:17Z")
Doing something out of character? No one would notice. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/31 "2020-02-28T21:08:13Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Doing something out of character? No one would notice. Ha! That’s a good one. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/32 "2020-02-28T21:15:27Z")
Really, people, **xizor** has the right idea. Everybody else here is proposing just posting out of character. Sure, that might imply that something is wrong, but you can’t assume they’ll guess you’ve been kidnapped. Clearly something different is in order. Unusual behavior is a good start, but it’s not enough alone. Eventually you’ll have to make things clearer. Myself, I think we can do better than that. Easily. Care would have to be taken to avoid alerting the kidnappers. And that does lead to a problem. Lots of the ways one could try to encode a message would be too obvious. Lots more, though, would be too subtle. Truthfully, I’m not sure where the line is. Having some idea what other people around here think of me would be helpful. Even knowing if they’d noticed my tendency to ramble in longer paragraphs than this would be helpful. Probably this would be easier if I was better-known around here. Of course I don’t _actually_ know how well-known I am. Little-known? Incredibly well-known? Completely ignored? Endless possibilities, and they all offer a different probability of success. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/33 "2020-02-28T21:15:36Z")
Computer question about this hex dump: 48 65 6c 70 21 20 49 27 6d 20 6c 6f 63 6b 65 64 20 69 6e 20 61 20 66 6f 72 74 75 6e 65 20 63 6f 6f 6b 69 65 20 66 61 63 74 6f 72 79 ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/34 "2020-02-28T21:30:54Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > Computer question about this hex dump: > > 48 65 6c 70 21 20 49 27 6d 20 6c 6f 63 6b 65 64 20 69 6e 20 61 20 66 6f 72 74 75 6e 65 20 63 6f 6f 6b 69 65 20 66 61 63 74 6f 72 79 41 73 20 6c 6f 6e 67 20 61 73 20 79 6f 75 20 77 65 72 65 6e 27 74 20 6b 69 64 6e 61 70 70 65 64 20 62 79 20 6e 65 72 64 73 2e 0a 0a 52 65 67 61 72 64 73 2c 0a 53 68 6f 64 61 6e ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/35 "2020-02-28T22:54:01Z")
**Looking for exercises I can do in a space as small as a closet** **Announcing my new User Name. Call me Patty Hearst** **Literary Q; The Ransom of Red Chief** **What’s the maximum amount of cash my bank will let me withdraw at one time? (Need answer fast)** **evertrytypingwhileblindfolded** ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2020, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/36 "2020-02-28T23:08:31Z")
I’d start talking shit about LGBT people. Anyone who really knows me knows that if I do that, something is seriously wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Grestarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grestarian/32/3227_2.png) [@Grestarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grestarian)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2020, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/37 "2020-02-29T02:16:54Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Scenario: > > You’ve been kidnapped! Your kidnappers are not terribly savvy, but they know that you’re a regular poster on the Dope. They want you to continue posting at the Dope, but obviously you can’t say that you’ve been kidnapped. How do you alert the Dope that something is wrong and you’re in trouble? Even if my kidnappers are NOT terribly savvy, the simple fact that they know I’m a regular poster on the Dope probably means they’ve read enough of my posts to understand that keeping me from continuing to post on the Dope would be considered a tremendous favor to the Dopers. Then again, it’s not like this community would make a fuss (big or small) over my extended absence, either. The last time I took a long break from the Dope (due to a lot of real-world and real-work obligations), there was – unlike the threads about Stranger and the Captain and a couple others – no discussion of “Hey, whatever happened to Grestarian?” So I think I’d pretty much be toast. > [@Joey\_P](#): > > Imagine being held at gunpoint (bear with me) by a literate animal, and the only hope of rescue is (BEAR WITH ME) posting a coded message on the SDMB. So…I’m guessing Joey P has a guest visiting. Perhaps it’s BlondBear? And, Velocity, I’ll paraphrase the Monty Python guys when I note that a proper argument in Department of Arguments Department (or the Straight Dope) consists of a thorougly constructed set of debatable points that can be proven or refuted. It’s more than just gainsaying one another with snippets of “No it ain’t!”/“Yes it is!” or “Yeah, So?” and “Sos?” –G! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2020, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/38 "2020-02-29T02:47:11Z")
Hey, y’all, there’s gonna be a big Trump 2020 rally tonight at 1234 Seaview Industrial Way–you know, in one of those old warehouses down by the docks. The third one from the left if you’re facing east. The one with the dark green doors, and several broken windows and a lot of rust streaks on the walls. Watch out for spiders! Or large burly men wearing ski masks, standing on either side of the entrance door on the south wall! MAGA! ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2020, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/39 "2020-02-29T02:52:49Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > In the past few weeks; one friend had his hip replaced, another had her gallbladder removed, and another had a cancerous skin lesion removed. > > They all went smoothly. Do me a favor and keep this streak going.🙂 Thx, I’ll try to do well. If only for your streak. (:)) ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2020, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644/40 "2020-02-29T03:13:18Z")
This year I really hope the Ottawa Senators win the Stanley Cup. The Beatles were just an overrated boy band with no influence on popular music. The Apollo missions were a complete waste of time and money. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-been-kidnapped-how-do-you-post/848644.md?page=3)