A couple of thoughts here.
(These are my personal thoughts as an individual and not as a mod.)
As to images,etc. that people take offense to...
Yes. We have a right to freedom of speech/expression. However, we also have a responsibility to use that right wisely for the good of all. That means (in part) that we should try to avoid doing things that we KNOW others will find offensive...not because it actually is, but because of the potential for it. (i.e. - Krokus could have avoided the uproar about his image by simply including an appropriate quote from the movie or a statement of his own to show the change of heart that took place, since it would have negated the offense taken by most.) Like it or not, we are responsible to our fellow human beings.
An extreme example here...
If suicide were to be legalized, you would have the right to kill yourself. BUT, in doing so, you would not have the right to take other people or property with you. So, something like blowing yourself up would not be acceptable. Again, it's a matter of our responsibility to other people. And, like it or not, we DO have a responsibility to those around us.
As to images of minors....
Even if this were not a legal issue and a matter of the forum survival, I would have a problem with this. Is innocent tickling between minors (or minors with adults) wrong? No. I don't believe it is.
Is posting images of minors on a sexually oriented site wrong. Here, we enter a gray area. If it were legal for minors to be here, I would have no problem with them coming and sharing images of themselves. It's their choice and they (hopefully) would know the risks the same as everyone else here.
BUT, I beleive that posting images of minors that were never intended to be posted in this type of venue is wrong. Why? Because they were not intended to be shared with people in this manner. We don't have the right to decide otherwise. I don't question the good intent of Andy or others who've done mega posts of mainstream material. They simply wanted to share some fun material in an innocent fashion. But, it does create the problems that Myr pointed out.
Let me ask something to those here who are responsible for minors in your life. If you had a nice image of that minor that you decided to put on a web site, would you want that image posted at a porn site where people could track them down and tell them how sexy they look and/or proposition them? I know I wouldn't. Though most of what's posted here at the TMF is less than porn, most outsiders would consider us to be a porn site. I can easily understand being asked not to do so.
For those who will say "Then protect your site from people saving images.", I say this. Tell me how to effectively do that. I collect all sorts of images from the web. For those sites that are protected from being able to right click to save images, all you have to do is save the entire page in html form and then pull the images from the page files. It's simple, which makes the idea of protecting images a laughable one. Not everyone has access to space that can be password protected in order to keep others out. Most people wouldn't even think it necessary to do so. Does that give us the right to do as we like with their images?
This is where our responsibility to others comes in. If it's not meant to be here, it shouldn't be here without their permission. If you wouldn't be comfortable asking for that permission, then it shouldn't be posted.
As for Max leaving...
It's your decision to make, Max. I respect that. So, I won't try to talk you out of it. If you decide to leave over this, then I wish you well in whatever you do. But, I do hope that you'll think about it and consider sticking around.
Ann
