sometimes its benificially to go incog. just depends on the person. i do sometimes.

My bloodline has gone incognito very many times. Although my lineage is not generally known to be Kings of such, certainly not good enough to rustle money or abrase egos, I like to think some of my forefathers have been pretty good at it.

All in all, at a rough guesstimate, my line has gone under deep cover I imagine around six or seven times, and only for one of those times (grhs thegentleman) was there a sinister underlying motive.

For the rest of the time, it was almost a social experiment. When we first arrive on these shores with no history and no connections, the cities are different to what they become once the inevitable coffeeshop recognition is established. Even if you very rarely vist the coffeeshops, you'll still get a 'coffeeshop persona' based on the actions of your line. FlyingPig I think is the perfect example for this. Classically disdainful of the coffeeshops, he is still known largely by the name of his forebear, and the name he uses on his rare vists: "FlyingPig" rather than "Butt_Ox."

This is true of anyone, once you have been around long enough, and a certain number of your bloodline have expressed certain opinions whether good or bad, you will the reputation associated with your predcessors irretrievably linked with yourself. Is it fair? Not really, but we're in the Mob - you can't blame people for being paranoid.

And paranoia obviously has everything to do with this issue. Someone's incognito. They're hiding something. Why would they hide something from you? Is there an ulterior motive? Should you be distrustful of this person? These are all valid questions. I certainly know from the journals of my predecessors in positions of power that those known to be incognito were strictly not to be trusted, and that's fair enough really.

The other side of the coin though, I've already mentioned how the cities and indeed our lives change as we become well connected, but this isn't always the better. I speak from personal experience and experience of my bloodline when I say it becomes tiresome to recieve on the basis of an ancestor's merit. Cheating, almost. Sometimes, it is nice to make your own way, under your own steam. To know that you can succeed for who you are, not who your father was, and certainly not what tag people associate you with.

And that, I feel, is a perfecty legitimate cause to go incognito.

Incidentally, Apologise to Jennifer for not directly approaching the issue she raised, but it's been a while since a speech on secrecy in general has been brought up, and I wanted to offer my thoughts. But what do I know? I'm just a Wise Guy!