Group items tagged

We are Anonymous.Recently, it has come to our attention that several online retailers have decided to ride the coattails of our sudden popularity by offering aparrel and other swag bearing our image. This is extremely offensive to Anonymous, as the very idea of wearing an article that identifies one as anonymous flies directly into the face of who exactly we are. We are anonymous. We cook your meals. We haul your trash. We connect your calls. We drive your ambulances and we guard you while you sleep. We put you under the knife to remove your bloated, infected spleen. We deliver your mail. We relay the evening news from the comfort of your television set, and we work dilligently to print it to give you something to read with your coffee and croissants the next morning. We are everyone and we are no one. We do not need to advertise our identity.Because our image is not a copyright, we can not stop anyone from selling items bearing it. However, we can suggest that you do not purchase these items. Wearing anything that tells the world you are anonymous compromises the veil of protection being anonymous provides, as well as cancelling out your anonymity. Wearing a t-shirt is like wearing a crosshair. You become an easy target for the Cult of $cientology and it puts you at serious risk of harm by its operatives. Use good judgement. Do not compromise yourself and your fellow Anonymous. Do not reveal your personal information to an online retailer that could possibly be a front for data mining operations by the cult.Remain Anonymous. Remain vigilant.We are Anonymous.We are LegionWe do not forgive.We do not forget.And we are certainly not some Xenu-forsaken fashion statement!

"It's like Craigslist -- hugely simple and highly useful," says David Weinberger, a fellow at Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet and Society. 4chan's utility is its ability to gather millions of people in conversation in a single place and create a "meme-rich" environment, says Mr. Weinberger.

Mr. Poole originally just wanted a place to share his fascination with Japanese comics and television shows. He was a fan of the popular Japanese image Web site 2chan and wanted to create a version for American audiences. With his mother's approval, he used her credit card to purchase server space and started 4chan.org.

"They get rowdy -- it's like a bar without alcohol," says Willard Ling, a moderator and long-time user of the site. "It's like that psychological concept of deinvidualization -- when groups of people become less aware of their own responsibility." Mr. Poole and his team of moderators have handed out 70,000 bans over the last three years, but preventing long-term abuse can be difficult. 4chan's "Wild West" reputation has created a dilemma for Mr. Poole. While it's brought him Internet fame, albeit through his alter ego, and created enviable traffic, he has trouble selling ads to more cautious companies who don't want their ads appearing next to potentially graphic content. He's attempted to quarantine sexual material on a set of adult boards, but that doesn't stop pornography or other adult content from appearing elsewhere.