T-bone22

God, this forum has become a bit sad.

As much as it pains me after nearly 20 years of being a member here, I think it may be time to bounce (except for the horror movie challenge, I love it so).

E Unit

I agree. I’ll be asking a Mod to nix my account in the relative near future. I honestly have never cared one way or the other. While we’ve gotten to “locker room” posts at one point or another, it’s never trended that way, even before Mods decided to do these silly thread locks. It’s usually a person or two, not the forum in general. It’s most certainly not the same anymore.

joeblow69

"If I can't talk about jerking off and look at boobs, I'm leaving!" is a weird flex, but ok.

Mike86

I didn’t have a problem with it but admittedly the thread about masturbation/sexual pleasure was a bit weird and one I looked at for a moment before dipping out. Then again I don’t spend a lot of time in Otter in general.

Norm de Plume

I acknowledge you said you didn't have a problem with it, Mike, so don't misconstrue this as an attack on you at all, but why is it weird? Every single post-pubescent person on earth, barring asexuals, is a sexual creature. Probably 5 billion people. There's nothing unnatural about it, and we need not be ashamed. We're in the 21st century. People discuss all kinds of "out of the ordinary" subjects that just a few years ago would have made most of us uneasy, but something as banal as the occurrence of sexual desire is out of bounds?! That is what's weird.

And, not that it matters, but the thread I started, not knowing it would lead to this imbroglio, was for women as well as men. It just so happens that this forum doesn't have many women members, and never did. (Film and collecting media tend to be men's hobbies.) Women can be just as frank and outspoken and raunchy about sex as men.
Jeez, I don't get the embarrassment surrounding sex and masturbation. Everyone does it. Nuns are fingering themselves at this very moment. Did Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson join the mod team here?

DJariya

A thread about self pleasuring yourself is not a topic that I have any interest in discussing. I come to this message board mostly to talk pop culture and occasionally sports.

I recall Geoff Kleinmann had a message board years back that he started on his own and he initially put up a forum for "Adult Talk" and later got into some trouble with sponsors. So he had to shut it down. I assume something similar could happen here.

kd5

^ Yeah, when I first saw that thread I thought Oh wow, a new thread in Other! Then I started reading it, took a U-turn, and did not revisit. It's not exactly a topic I feel comfortable commenting on, did not particularly care about how often others yanked their chain, I'm guessing others felt the same way. I'm no prude, the pics in the other thread were fine by me. They weren't pornographic, probably would've been a better fit in an already existing thread rather than starting a new thread devoted exclusively to her. I don't think we should cut all sexually oriented subjects and/or pics, but I think we need to use our own best judgement about what is tasteful and what is not. This place will be boring as fuck without a little spice once in awhile.

Obi-Wanma

Just a note regarding the teacher thread. It was closed at my request because I was the OP and I don't like seeing my name attached to it every time there is a new incident. The topic is not verboten, and someone is free to start a new one or bump one of the similar threads from the past, if they're still open.

Norm de Plume

But it was not meant to be about jacking off. If you look at the initial question and the poll, it asked how often you get sexually aroused. That varies widely based on age and other factors. Hey, if that subject matter makes you uncomfortable, or you just have no interest in partaking, no problem, ignore it, but my fundamental position is that it is in no way deserving of censorship.

TomOpus

Isn't there a sex-centric forum on the internet where you can be free to talk about tickling your fetish? You want to see chicks naked? There's Google Search and millions of pics. Or go start your own forum...please.

andicus

^His thread and the other thread that was closed contain none of the things you're mentioning.

Norm de Plume

Yeah, no idea what he's on about. That comment displays a complete misunderstanding of what's going on here.

L. Ron zyzzle

Here's what I see going on here: two threads were closed for violating the TOS, and the mod team (me in particular) being repeatedly characterized as repressed, pearl-clutching prudes for performing our volunteer duties.

lwhy?

The Internet Brands terms of service differ than The Forum Rules on the bottom left. One says sexual and one says pornographic. Maybe they should be adjusted to match each other? There is a difference between sexual and pornographic. That would probably help make things more clear for the future. Also, shouldn’t a link to the rules be available on every page? The terms of service are, but the forum rules are only available when you go into a thread. The forum rules aren’t available on every page. That’s why I didn’t see them initially since the terms of service are on every page on DVDTalk. Even the link that X posted In this thread doesn’t work.

milo bloom

See, I wouldn't have an issue with a sexual health thread, as long as it could be kept on track.

A thread about your latest sexual conquest would come across as boorish though, and I might have an issue with it.


For example, we've had a vasectomy thread going for years and that's clearly a sexual health thread. I can't think of any other reason to get a vasectomy then for birth control reasons.

fujishig

"So to continue the thread that u/Obi-Wanma started, let's talk about..."

maxfisher

I agree that pornographic is likely a better standard, as I'd think it'd be easier to enforce for the mods and easier for posters to understand. As it stands, the rules include a ban on 'sexually oriented' material, but that's kind of bullshit, right? I'm pretty sure we can post about sexual content in art, whether it be film, literature, music, video games or whatever. We're allowed to discuss reporting on sex crimes and the people who perpetrate them getting their comeuppance. We can discuss same sex marriage and lgbtq issues. I'm pretty sure we could even discuss the same type of content Norm was posting if it came from a celebrity instead of a member, e.g. if Ben Affleck announced he was forgoing human sex in favor of masturbating with fruit, I'm pretty sure that could be posted here. Or, a more direct comparison to Norm's comments, if Joe Biden went off on a tangent during a public speech and described how many fewer erections he gets now than when he was in his 20's, I'm pretty sure that'd be reported in multiple threads in the political forum.

And as far as vulgarity and profanity, I thought those were allowed outside of what the forum censors? My memory may be bad, but I thought shit, fuck, etc. used to be off-limits and then a decision was made to allow them? I had it in my head that pretty much the only strictly off-limits language were slurs targeting people based on their race, ethnicity, sex or sexual orientation.

Anyway, not trying to make anything more difficult for the mods, just pointing out that the wording of the rules seem a bit at odds with how we've conversed for years and years on here.

TomOpus

I agree but I also know we love tangents. Mods would really have to keep an extra eye on stuff.

IBJoel

Pornographic stuff is an absolute no. We get dinged seriously by Google for that and I end up having to delete it.

Sexual threads, I have no issue with in principle. The issue is that (see Reddit) they end up getting filled with jokes and really just boneheaded stuff.

Posts like "She's hot, I'd do her" (in whatever thread they may be located) offer nothing of value and just... who cares?

Norm de Plume

Thank you, maxfisher! Bloody hell, there have been sexually oriented but non-pornographic comments and photos, many of them quite raunchy, on this forum since its inception, and they have not caused noticeable upset or thread closures! As long as there's no pictorial nudity (to wit, female breasts or the genitalia of either sex) or pornography being posted, why not leave well enough alone? Or, if Internet Brands wants to prohibit all talk of sexual matters, have at it, but I find it regressive and hypocritical. So many non-pornographic films that happen to contain unsimulated sex would, based on the rules, be banned from discussion. So many historical Other threads would, by rights, be locked.

kd5

But there's quite a bit of inane, boneheaded shit which has absolutely no value, that goes on in Otter, why should it matter if we'd do her or not when nothing else matters? As long as it's not pornograhic, we should be good to go...

Norm de Plume

I agree. Allow our inner adolescent to emerge once in a while, so long as the forum isn't overrun with prurience.

Rival11

Woke shit...it will eventually pass\end. 2 years or so ago I got called a racist literally for saying I didn't think the wonder woman movie (whatever train wreck one it was) and Aquaman looked very good.

I couldn't figure out why I was being called a racist until it dawned on me it was all about pansy nonsense because the leads weren't white or something - which is even more sillier considering whoever called me that just assumed I wasn't the race of the actors - I don't think I posted at all for a while after that because it was so pathetic.

I do feel like we're pulling out of that phase now though.

joeblow69

LOL, methinks we need some context to this one. gotta link?

Norm de Plume

I can't stand the term "woke". I am very progressive and open to embrace all good people as they are, but I do think North American culture has become entirely too sensitive. Sensitivity is great unless it gets out of hand and becomes tacitly authoritarian. Not everything is meant to offend, and people from all walks of life should, nay must, learn to not immediately take offence. Being offended should not be one's default setting.
I guess that's my way of saying that I, a progressive leftist, agree with the sentiment in Rival11's post.