A dear friend of mine told me that some imposter has put up his picture in PlanetRomeo claiming to be his own… and apparently, this is not the first time. The memory took me back years when my G4M id (anyone remember Guys4Men?) was hacked and several of my work was lost. Surprisingly, taking someone else’s identity is not uncommon, especially, people find it quite an amusement and, thanks to technology, their natural birthright to CTRL+C, CTRL+V someone else’s picture in their BBRT, Planetromeo, Grindr or even BreedingZone…

Plain Insecurity? Work of the Devilish Mind? Unbearable craving for the Flesh? Or a devious scheme to shame someone?

One can psychoanalyze the reason in several ways…

My friend asked me, why would a person wanna do that. Its true.. why would one? Maybe because he is cute and photogenic… but then again, there are so many models whose pics are there too. As often I find some known or unknown Actors / Models from another part of the world flashing themselves as James, Jack, Ahmad, Mike, Raj, Sunny, etc etc … Either they are flashing their alternative lifestyle (open for debate, but for another time) through a mask which incidently takes the cover of their own, or … well, you can guess.

But then again, these are so common, that very few are fooled. Hence pick the ones who are bold enough to face the world… and take cover behind them…

Fear?

Well, yes. At one point of time, a well-wishing friend asked me to take off my picture from one of then popular gay social networking site, qouting the then incident of police taking in gays… That did rattle a bit… When all else of openness are shunned in a country that have favoured the purdah, the hidden domes of realization of one’s ownselves stand threatened by the acts of men… however vice and undefined it may sound, the truth of the situation cannot be ignored.

So, should we hate these guys who, like the parasitic growths over succular tissue or symbiotic implants in leguminous roots, take their kick from the high of another tribesman. Many of them are married, confused, curious, and definitely horny. And though the forbidden fruit is tasty and too-good-to-resist… the fear of being banished from the garden of eden, especially by the hands of he and she who made them, probably brings out another identity, another name… and hence, the need to adopt another face…

Many have the guts to live the dual life in the same face. I have been living the same for a long time now, and only last year have I been able to integrate all ends together. And many others are brave to have just one life to live. And the rest… well!

They say, Beauty lies in the Eyes of the beholder! Hence, fool the beholder itself. And in your own eyes, you meet what you set out for. No question of guilt thereof. Come on, its the internet. Their argument could be, its an openly available picture. Maybe someone who doesnt know my orientation (yet) may come across the picture of mine someone else have put on and get (well some feeling)… doesnt hold anything against him legally. IT Security Act can hold good when you know on whom to apply it against. But the face itself is false, how good does the basic information hold against them then. You can set out to expose the imposter… Best of Luck! Maybe thats what one should do.

A brief discussion followed on locking the pictures and other methods of privacy protection… corrective measures. Wish somewhere somehow the preventive measure would suceed. A wishful thinking.

I do support the corrective measure of sneaking the rat out in his own game of hide and seek, and beating the pulp out of him. Because your identity is what you own and have, and noone in the world has the right to take it away from you.

And if you let them, then which identity do you see in the mirror the next day. Unless of course, you master your eyes to look beyond that…