A Plea

Edith:

First and foremost, thank you for replying. I completely understand where you are coming from. As far as the freedom of speech goes, even in the US, there's limit. You cannot give a horse an open field to run in and not expect him to go off the property. Yes you can give the members freedom of speech. but there needs to be SOME kind of limit.

As far as "being a fan" of horror/gruesome images, I am not. I cringe at the very sight of it. I'm sure I'm not the only one. If anything, these threads that enclose such images should hold a disclaimer or warning to those of us who may be curious as to what the thread is about but do not wish to be exposed to such violence. Especially if the viewer is of a younger age.

As far as not censoring unless it's out of line, where do you draw that line? Apparently the line includes naughty talk and worship of an actor's bum. So what exactly falls on the OTHER side of the line if this is where the line is currently drawn?

I think in the end, it should boil down to respect. If we are indeed fans of Mr. Emerson, then let us show it in some other way rather than talking about how much we like his dimples or smile, and his other attributes. This forum is full of extremely talented people, all of whom have already placed their talent into expressing their fandom.

In the end, we should follow the Golden Rule. We should treat Mr. Emerson the way we would want to be treated. And that there draws the line. Being an Admin of a few boards myself, I have stated this and have had no problems. My main rule is...respect. Other than that, there is no leash. but by stating that the person whom the board is dedicated to is a human just like us and should therefore be treated as such......it has people think a little bit more before posting a thread.

Thank you for bringing this delicate topic to your staff table, I can only hope that there may be some change. Not necessarily for my benefit, but for others who may be remaining silent. And most importantly, our younger members of the board whom look up to us. They are, after all, the future. What they learn on the internet is bad enough but, one more positive site...is one less negative one.

Your English came across perfectly. You said it perfectly.

Edith, I thank for your support.

I think, in a case if we have offended Michael (not wishing that!) Patrick at once would communicate with admins of a forum and he would state the indignation.

Megan, I respect your opinion and I'm with you on not being comfortable going to the Fancrazy board. That is why the Fancrazy board exists- so that threads that may make some people uncomfortable can be avoided. The difference between us is that I feel it would be disrespectful for me to post the things that are posted there. I see Michael a certain way, and I know I have a different outlook than many other members (not a better outlook, a different one). If other people are comfortable posting non-pornographic material and limiting that material to one board so it's avoidable, I don't feel that there's any reason to raise our level of censorship. We do take censorship very seriously here. It's something we've always tried to stay away from. That's just the way our board works, and we've been successful doing things this way. Personally, I think banning that kind of Fancrazy content would be a very extreme measure, and one that is undue at this point. The members here have been very good at moderating themselves within the rules we've given them, and I think that speaks a lot for their respect for Michael (after all, they'd have no reason to listen to us if this was just some lame actor's fan board).

As for the Jack graphics...they are also avoidable, and that's one reason I feel it's okay. It doesn't get shoved down anyone's throat. The fact that Jack is a character is also a reason.
Beyond that, I think the thread's absurdity helps to make it acceptable. It's a silly thread with graphics that are not overly realistic (certainly not as realistic as many deaths on Lost). It's imagination. Some of us will not want to participate in it, and that's fine. But I don't think that's a reason to censor the content altogether.

That's the only point I feel I need to make on this topic - that the Jack stuff is about Jack - a fictional character in a TV show. It's not about the actor, it's all about the characters. That's why I feel it's acceptable in the fan crazy thread.

I genuinely understand that people are offended by different things but there is a good distinction here between the more serious discussions about Michael and his work, and the more frivolous fan stuff.