Unmasked identity and why you should care

I have been following the recent news of a blogger being forced to reveal her identity by the courts. I understand that some prople only feel free to express their opinions by being anonymous, and I agree that we should have the right to continue to post anonymously on Blogger.com and elsewhere.

However, being malacious or threatening harm to others is inappropiate and privacy laws do not protect an individual in the public sphere and possibly shouldn't online. But I do not think an individual should be forced to reveal his/her identity if they are giving vent to their feelings without being malacious to another person. Being critical is different from being malacious and I think we should have the right to express our opinions about individuals in the public eye or events that we feel strongly about, without the fear of lawsuits or prosecution by the courts.

I am troubled by this article on CNN and I think you should be too. It is a slippery slope and I feel this decision by the court stifles an indivdual's freedom of speech.