I agree 110%...I'm sure people do realize that they're usernames are already aliases, but they want to use them for references.

Alias users need to grow a set of balls and quit with the games.

"Some people are even telling little jokes using an alias. Of course, many comments are deragatory or inane or shameful, and I can understand why some of those posters would want to hide their identy."

And that is why aliases can be so destructive.  The moment I see an alias used to launch attacks on individuals, I automatically suspect the poster is up to no good because it has happened that way many times before, even to the extent where I have seen multiple aliases, never seen before or after, to go after certain people.  When posting here, I regard a handle's credibility as being based mostly on their posting history.  When someone uses an alias to go after someone then they have little to no credibility in my opinion.

What's the diff?  Like you say, our screen name is an alias too.  So what does it matter to you whether we post under a fake name, or a different fake name?  Perhaps we want to say something that is inflammatory, yet reeks of the truth.  This may jeopardize the chance to see a provider in the future that may not agree with what you have to say on that particular topic even though it is valid.  So lighten up dudes.  We are all in a fantasy land here.

As the Minnesota Nice Guys mess hit the papers repeatedly and appeared on track to spread, I went into a funk.  I had cheerfully assured myself, prior to that time, that if my hobbying was discovered I could deal with the ensuing drama and move on.  Faced with the potentially imminent prospect of addressing my SO of several decades, my children and my friends, I found it less easy to be cheerful.  I destroyed my main computer and completely reformatted a secondary computer hoping to erase my tracks.  

In my panic, I actually considered preemptively confessing my sins to my SO, and even briefly thought about going to LE.  Although reason prevailed, I left the hobby for several months and came back to it determined to leave an absolute minimum of tracks.  I had made mistakes and was not going to repeat them.  

I use an anonymous, prepaid cell phone, and change it with some frequency.  I use a secure and encrypted email account with a very strong password.  My hard drive is encrypted and my browser stores no history.  I still post reviews but I no longer post them close to the time of the actual meeting.  I am very careful and do comprehensive research before meeting a new lady and will no longer TOFTT.  And, I use an alias for most of my posts to this board because it is one more step toward making it difficult for a third party (say, a PI hired by a divorce lawyer) to piece together what I have been doing.  

Anyone who chooses is free to discount my alias posts.  Hell, just skip right past them.  I can't recall ever engaging in a personal assault against anyone under the single alias I use.  It is my belief that the important thing is not using the same handle for posting that you do for reviews, but rather developing a body of posts that are reasonable and thoughtful and occasionally helpful.  Vorlon is a perfect example.  He has a long history of posting and his posts are consistently relevant, coherent and useful.  I could not care less if he uses the same handle for his reviews though others are free to disagree.  

It is no surprise that RealP4U and TCButtman disagree with my decision.  I disagree with 95% of what they say and I'm sure they feel the same about my posts.  That is one of things that characterizes a community.  You don't all agree.  On the rare occasions I have been inspired to challenge someone directly, or comment about a provider, I have done so under my TER handle.  Otherwise, it's not about credibility.  If a post contains a thoughtful discussion or offers a different perspective, neither the author's true identity nor his TER handle have any bearing on its merits.  If anyone strongly disagrees with that view, don't read alias posts.  So long as TER allows aliases, I will continue to use one.  

I have posted this under my TER handle to be 'credible'.  (Nyah, nyah, nyah, do too have balls you big poopyhead!)  Don't expect to see it very often.

How does one use an alias??