I joined Google+ today with high hopes of networking without Facebook's we-own-you approach to our privacy. But now, Google is demanding we use our real names as usernames.

No.

Turns out that Israel has been mining social networking sites like Facebook to find pro-Palestinian activists' real names - and used that information to make (?how?) other countries refuse to let the activists leave for Israel.

Also, during the Syrian and Egyptian uprisings, some people who used social networking tools without using Tor or VPN got themselves tortured and murdered by their governments' security goons.

It's nice that most of you, white, well-off and well-established, foresee a life where no one will ever care what you say enough to attack you. But most of the world isn't like that. And frankly, neither is the UK, USA, Canada or Australia. You are safe and happy because you don't offend anyone who will come for you: governments, Scientology, anti-abortionist loonies, etc.

Try openly commenting about the Moonies or Scientology sometime, something that really makes them hurt. See why privacy and it's brother, secrecy, need to exist. The Supreme Court once upheld a right - anonymous pamphleting. The decision mentions that without the ability to speak anonymously to power without repercussion, the right to free speech is meaningless. And do note that the corporations or the loons or the cults or the government won't be handing out their addresses and phone numbers to you when they attack. Power gets to be anonymous and secret when they move on you. You should demand at least the abilty to speak anonymously. We used phones for over 125+ years without sharing our personal files with who we spoke; we never had to give it up to use the internet. We were just forced to do it.