Nothing brings out the honesty and bravery in people like the net, so goes an article in today's Orange County Register.

These e-mails are a one-way communication, promises the mailing service at www.anonymizer.com. The person receiving the mail will not be able to respond to you,

"just click here and say whatever you really want to that special someone who has...made you want to SCREAM!" offers trugrams.com. "give us as much or as little detail as you wish, but include enough so that he/she will recognize themselves. You can sign your message, or leave them wondering."

And then there's this, from the abusive e-mail site www.#####slapped.com: "If you want to hide your identity from your #####slap victim, check here."

These sites are for people too lazy or skittish to deal with the consequences of their words. It's for people who have no qualms about airing defamatory, abusive or questionable information to millions of people, (or at least a few hundred if were talking about this board) and then walking away. It's for people who want to have a "cause" --from defending liberalism to queer bashing to evangelism--without having to answer for any flaws in reasoning.

But then there is a site called www.gentlehints.com, which actually delivers something useful.

Know someone with chronic bad breath? Bountiful nose hair? Body odor? Poor table manners? Dandruff? Flatulence? (your going to have to look this one up in the dictionary)

"We all know someone who offends in some way, but were not always able to find the words to bring the problem to their attention," the site says. "allow gentlehints to apprise the individual in a gentle and diplomatic manner while preserving your anonymity."

Aside for a few, hardly anyone on this board can ever be accused of being labled a coward as defined in this posting.

PS. The site mentioned above substituded the word b i t c h s l a p p e d with ######. Hope no one takes offense to the use of the female dog nomenclature.