One SlimVirgin question answered, while two more emerge in its place. Options

...maybe she was kicked out of MI5, tried to get a job with CIA, and ended up working for the Russians just to get closer to the action.

See, if you just added "...then got kicked out of Russia for running a phony mail-order bride business, operated a small haberdashery in Ulaanbator for a few months, returned to the US in a shipping container with two dozen underaged Chinese girls destined for indentured servitude, and then wound up in the IT industry just in time for the internet bubble to burst," you'd have the story of my life right there.

7) One guy I knew was seriously in to roleplaying, and decided to change his name to be what his Dungeons & Dragons character name was.

What was it?

Kelder Marge (I can't remember the spelling). We insisted on continuing to call him "Trevor" though.

Magical Trevor?

No, that was his real name. Kelder Marge was his Elf Ranger. It was back in the day when Rangers were a new you-beaute Dungeons and Dragons class that was far superior to anything else. Apparently if you were in to D&D heavily, you'd understand what that meant. You needed virtually perfect stats on your first roll to get a Ranger, but once you did they were just about unbeatable. He loved his Elf Ranger so much he decided to become him.

Only his "true friends" called him Kelder Marge. Everyone else called him Trevor. Some people simply called him "Marge", or even "Marge Simpson".

Anyway, just saying that's one reason someone gave for why they changed their name.

So if perhaps Linda Mack had a roleplaying character called "Sarah McEwan", and another one called "SlimVirgin", then perhaps that's why?

...maybe she was kicked out of MI5, tried to get a job with CIA, and ended up working for the Russians just to get closer to the action.

See, if you just added "...then got kicked out of Russia for running a phony mail-order bride business, operated a small haberdashery in Ulaanbator for a few months, returned to the US in a shipping container with two dozen underaged Chinese girls destined for indentured servitude, and then wound up in the IT industry just in time for the internet bubble to burst," you'd have the story of my life right there.

Hmm umm I heard someone here say you lived in Western Europe. On the side your profile says "From: Central USA"

No, that was his real name. Kelder Marge was his Elf Ranger. It was back in the day when Rangers were a new you-beaute Dungeons and Dragons class that was far superior to anything else. Apparently if you were in to D&D heavily, you'd understand what that meant. You needed virtually perfect stats on your first roll to get a Ranger, but once you did they were just about unbeatable. He loved his Elf Ranger so much he decided to become him.

Only his "true friends" called him Kelder Marge. Everyone else called him Trevor. Some people simply called him "Marge", or even "Marge Simpson".

Kelder Marge just sounds too plain.

Also Rangers now seem to be basically crappy classes.

So if perhaps Linda Mack had a roleplaying character called "Sarah McEwan", and another one called "SlimVirgin", then perhaps that's why?

For some reason Blissy made me think that Sarah McEwan might be an anagram, so I ran a few:

Charm Anew As
Each Mans War
Arcane Whams
Can Shame Raw
Aha Scam Wren
Ace Harm Swan
Chaser Man Aw
Crewman Ah As
Can Wear Hams

and the winner is (with added parens):

Narc (Ahem) Was

Kelder Marge just sounds too plain.

Kelder Marge <---> Quel damage?

So if perhaps Linda Mack had a roleplaying character called "Sarah McEwan", and another one called "SlimVirgin", then perhaps that's why?

For some reason Blissy made me think that Sarah McEwan might be an anagram, so I ran a few:

and the winner is (with added parens):

Narc (Ahem) Was

Was a Narc? As a hint that she was a spy??? Hmm, maybe. Sounds a bit far-fetched, but you never never know. These spook types do like to have hidden hints thrown around everywhere just for a laugh.

Kelder Marge just sounds too plain.

Kelder Marge <---> Quel damage?

Stuffed if I know why he chose the name. We all made fun of it. And yes, nowadays Rangers are a crappy class. But at least for a while (1-2 years I think) they were the ultimate class. Of course, then D&D developers made changes to balance them, then the balancing went too far, and now they are crap. But as at when he changed his name, they seriously rocked.

So if perhaps Linda Mack had a roleplaying character called "Sarah McEwan", and another one called "SlimVirgin", then perhaps that's why?

For some reason Blissy made me think that Sarah McEwan might be an anagram, so I ran a few:

Charm Anew As
Each Mans War
Arcane Whams
Can Shame Raw
Aha Scam Wren
Ace Harm Swan
Chaser Man Aw
Crewman Ah As
Can Wear Hams

and the winner is (with added parens):

Narc (Ahem) Was

Kelder Marge just sounds too plain.

Kelder Marge <---> Quel damage?

I think it is more likely she or they chose the surname McEwan as that name is common in Canada which has a large Scottish descended population. Alternatively perhaps it is her mother's maiden name and her mother's family came from Alberta (and her father was English?).

I think it is more likely she or they chose the surname McEwan as that name is common in Canada which has a large Scottish descended population. Alternatively perhaps it is her mother's maiden name and her mother's family came from Alberta (and her father was English?).

That sounds likely (the first suggestion). You don't pick Smith as its a little too obvious, but you pick the local version of Smith, which in this case seems to be McEwan. And Sarah is also a pretty common first name.

I think it is more likely she or they chose the surname McEwan as that name is common in Canada which has a large Scottish descended population. Alternatively perhaps it is her mother's maiden name and her mother's family came from Alberta (and her father was English?).

That sounds likely (the first suggestion). You don't pick Smith as its a little too obvious, but you pick the local version of Smith, which in this case seems to be McEwan. And Sarah is also a pretty common first name.

Of course a snag in that would be what if you meet some other McEwans who say they are doing their family tree and wondered from what branch of the McEwans you descend from...

I think it is more likely she or they chose the surname McEwan as that name is common in Canada which has a large Scottish descended population. Alternatively perhaps it is her mother's maiden name and her mother's family came from Alberta (and her father was English?).

That sounds likely (the first suggestion). You don't pick Smith as its a little too obvious, but you pick the local version of Smith, which in this case seems to be McEwan. And Sarah is also a pretty common first name.

Of course a snag in that would be what if you meet some other McEwans who say they are doing their family tree and wondered from what branch of the McEwans you descend from...

Not really. Its very easy to get around such arguments, and its pretty rare that they seriously investigate any discrepancies. Just think of your own personal experiences with it.

Very interesting. However, if she's an agent, she's a very sloppy agent. That's what bugs me the most. Is intelligence in the hands of people this incompetent, or does she just have access to this kind of information through other channels?

No comment.

My guess: Slimmy didn´t even get a cup of tea
(However, she possibly got a few millions from Libya from the death of her friend Julian)

As someone who's lurked these related threads, blogs, websites for a good while, that's always been my guess. Applying a little OR (Occam's Razor), LM was an aspiring journalist who was identified by Intelligence agents as a person that could be useful as a conduit for distributing misinformation. Drop a kind word here and there along with a few nuggets of "The Truth" (or at least the "truth" that particular agency wanted to see in the media), and watch the story percolate out there. LM probably enjoyed influencing what was being reported and at the same time, the feeling of importance that was being fed by the agency. At some point LM was no longer useful to them, possibly due to a loss of credibility with her employer. She was cut lose, and as somone that had no official relationship with the agency that was very easy to do. She returned to Canada. As for why she changed her name, I again think the simplest answer is the best. If you accept Byrne's published characterization of her as valid, it's not that hard to speculate that she may have felt some (unwanted) sense of celebrity for her role in Lockerbie. This is pure speculation on my part, but I've known people similar to Byrne's published descriptions of LM, and the people I've known have always been prone to overstatement. Maybe LM changed her name to SM because she felt she was too well known after the Lockerbie/ABC/Salinger events, even if she was not. A new name invokes the romantic notion of a fresh start as a new person, detached from the events of the past. I reiterate that I don't have anything to back this up, but the idea of a young woman caught up in her own romantic notion of changing her name to avoid the unwanted "fame" of her past life just seems a bit more plausible to me then the explanations that seem lifted from the pages of a le Carre novel. Heck, maybe she always wished her parents had named her "S" and the similarity between the old last name and the prefix of the new last name would probably make it easier to remember.

And so, after changing names, the newly dubbed SE laid low for a number of years, until she discovered Wikipedia, and the rest is history. Everybody here is aware of the draw of the site as a forum for pushing pet agendas. For someone who once upon a time had a pet agenda (and a sense of importance around that) that had been forced to lay dormant for years, I have to imagine discovering Wikipedia was like a heroine addict discovering oxyContin. Becoming an admin just sealed the deal. Maybe it is just me, but for some reason I have an easier time believing in a person approaching middle age who is trying to recapture the excitement of the past than a completely machiavellian concept of a former Intelligence Agent trying to utilise a chaos driven website to spread disinformation.

As someone who's lurked these related threads, blogs, websites for a good while, that's always been my guess. Applying a little OR (Occam's Razor), LM was an aspiring journalist who was identified by Intelligence agents as a person that could be useful as a conduit for distributing misinformation. Drop a kind word here and there along with a few nuggets of "The Truth" (or at least the "truth" that particular agency wanted to see in the media), and watch the story percolate out there. LM probably enjoyed influencing what was being reported and at the same time, the feeling of importance that was being fed by the agency. At some point LM was no longer useful to them, possibly due to a loss of credibility with her employer. She was cut lose, and as somone that had no official relationship with the agency that was very easy to do. She returned to Canada. As for why she changed her name, I again think the simplest answer is the best. If you accept Byrne's published characterization of her as valid, it's not that hard to speculate that she may have felt some (unwanted) sense of celebrity for her role in Lockerbie. This is pure speculation on my part, but I've known people similar to Byrne's published descriptions of LM, and the people I've known have always been prone to overstatement. Maybe LM changed her name to SM because she felt she was too well known after the Lockerbie/ABC/Salinger events, even if she was not. A new name invokes the romantic notion of a fresh start as a new person, detached from the events of the past. I reiterate that I don't have anything to back this up, but the idea of a young woman caught up in her own romantic notion of changing her name to avoid the unwanted "fame" of her past life just seems a bit more plausible to me then the explanations that seem lifted from the pages of a le Carre novel. Heck, maybe she always wished her parents had named her "S" and the similarity between the old last name and the prefix of the new last name would probably make it easier to remember.

And so, after changing names, the newly dubbed SE laid low for a number of years, until she discovered Wikipedia, and the rest is history. Everybody here is aware of the draw of the site as a forum for pushing pet agendas. For someone who once upon a time had a pet agenda (and a sense of importance around that) that had been forced to lay dormant for years, I have to imagine discovering Wikipedia was like a heroine addict discovering oxyContin. Becoming an admin just sealed the deal. Maybe it is just me, but for some reason I have an easier time believing in a person approaching middle age who is trying to recapture the excitement of the past than a completely machiavellian concept of a former Intelligence Agent trying to utilise a chaos driven website to spread disinformation.

This is the most reasonable, and to my eyes the most plausible, explanation I've seen yet of the conflicting mass of data we have regarding the editor in question. It's pretty close to the conclusion I had reached. It lacks the dramatic appeal of declaring her to be an intelligence agent, while at the same time harmonizing with all but the abject denials (most of which come from people who would be in no position to make such denials with authority). And there's no "you must be kidding" reaction to reading any part of it.

It could also be entirely wrong. But until I see something that credibly contradicts some part of it, it's the theory that I personally plan to stick with.

This is the most reasonable, and to my eyes the most plausible, explanation I've seen yet of the conflicting mass of data we have regarding the editor in question.

I agree.

I have also considered the possibility that the name change was done for professional reasons, i.e., LM was hoping to re-enter the journalistic profession, but switched to SM to avoid the stigma of having been fired by Salinger.

This is the most reasonable, and to my eyes the most plausible, explanation I've seen yet of the conflicting mass of data we have regarding the editor in question.

I agree.

I have also considered the possibility that the name change was done for professional reasons, i.e., LM was hoping to re-enter the journalistic profession, but switched to SM to avoid the stigma of having been fired by Salinger.

Perhaps this is why she accuses her detractors of "damaging her livelihood"? By associating her nom de plume with her Wikipedia nom de guerre, she is exposed again as the whackjob she is. I can see how someone would be reluctant to hire her, given that background.

This is the most reasonable, and to my eyes the most plausible, explanation I've seen yet of the conflicting mass of data we have regarding the editor in question. It's pretty close to the conclusion I had reached. It lacks the dramatic appeal of declaring her to be an intelligence agent, while at the same time harmonizing with all but the abject denials (most of which come from people who would be in no position to make such denials with authority). And there's no "you must be kidding" reaction to reading any part of it.

It could also be entirely wrong. But until I see something that credibly contradicts some part of it, it's the theory that I personally plan to stick with.

Gets my vote also, especially while she stays in Canada. It's not at all the same case as Durova down there in the US, where we know the government since 2002 has been engaged in a massive hiring spree of all kinds of cops and agents and marshals and analysts and spooks and whatnot, especially female ones.

By comparison with Canada, the US is Agent Capital, Cop Central, Prison City, and Military Base. Sometimes all in the same place. I'm getting very sick of it.

This post has been edited by Milton Roe: Mon 28th July 2008, 10:43pm

This is the most reasonable, and to my eyes the most plausible, explanation I've seen yet of the conflicting mass of data we have regarding the editor in question.

I agree.

I have also considered the possibility that the name change was done for professional reasons, i.e., LM was hoping to re-enter the journalistic profession, but switched to SM to avoid the stigma of having been fired by Salinger.

Has she actually published anything, other than letters to the editor, as SM?

Has she actually published anything, other than letters to the editor, as SM?

What "letters to the editor?"

What "letters to the editor?"

I'm not sure I want to go to the trouble of looking it up, but apparently she wrote a letter to the editor of a Canadian newspaper about a story they published on the Animal Rights movement and their activities up there, or some such thing. It was online for a while, and might be still, though I'd be a little surprised if it is.

By comparison with Canada, the US is Agent Capital, Cop Central, Prison City, and Military Base. Sometimes all in the same place. I'm getting very sick of it.

Exactly. I worry most about what will happen after the next terrorist attack. I envision these authoritarian types hovering over our beloved Constitution, with the real life equivalent of WP:ROLLBACK, ready and willing to revert those pesky amendments as vandalism by those America-hating SPAs, our founding fathers. After all, why would any real American create rules which make fighting terrorism difficult? Obviously, these trolls were closet French!

What is it now, somewhere around a thousand US troops have fled to Canada while still in active duty. That kinda says something. If Canada was anything like Iraq, those thousand men would be treated as enemy combatants.