@Splint - I believe so. It certainly fits the totalitarian nature of the government in that book. Not being able to hide your identity would certainly make the net more civil. Or not - http://www.pwsnt.com/ is a nice sample of people who have no problem linking their true names to horrible, willful ignorance and vitriol.

This reminds me of "Ender's Game," actually. Card envisioned the web as a free-flowing meritocracy of ideas, where the smartest ideas win. I was very amused that Valentine and Peter were able to sway the world just through the power of their words. On the real internet, they'd be eaten alive by 4chan....