Racy pictires. Are they necessary?

dsoriano said:
This is the first time I've really gotten into AZ on a regular basis. I admit I'll read while I’m at work and more when I get home. But it’s been very discouraging when I’m reading post and my 12 year old son is interested in what I’m doing and on the screen are racy avatars and sometimes additional adult pictures. I don’t mean to complain but I would ask for those who do have racy pictures to please consider this is not a pornographic website, and be mindful of the fact that there are some who don’t appreciate that kind of material, and for those who do, well there are sites they can visit for that, but not AZ. I’m not here to pick a fight nor offend anyone, those are not my attentions. I’m just asking, with respect, to please consider.
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I've complained about this matter long ago not from your perspective but with the same concerns. You'll find there are a fair amount of ball banger/drinkers/and loners on here that seem stimulated by bootie/boobs and like the ATTENTION they get, because many of them are the ones no one wants to be associated with in life. Its a societal problem nowadays, the mgmt of AZ could easily take control but have NOT is this area, its just another reason why the american public view our sport negatively. At least your son is old enough to learn from you what's right/wrong.
Many on here respect and speak highly of our sport, the other side of Many......could care less and it shows.
 
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Do these make my Homaridae look big?

lobsteravatar.jpg
 
ironically

From Wikipedia:

"An avatar is the graphical representation of the user or the user's alter ego or character. It may take either a three-dimensional form, as in games or virtual worlds, or a two-dimensional form as an icon in Internet forums and other online communities."

Yes, it's a bit interesting that an avatar usually represents a user's alter ego or character. That could be character or character, I suppose.

I wouldn't normally consider a photo to be a graphical representation, but I suppose it is, technically speaking. Can't fuss too much about that since I am using a photo like most AZBers.

Back to the regularly scheduled programming....
 
JAM said:
This topic has been brought up several times over the years, and unfortunately, you -- and I -- are in the minority.

There is a feature that allows you to TURN OFF all avatars. This might be a good solution for you, so as not to allow your family to view vulgar and demeaning photos of women.
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You are not the only two that wishes people would use a little class and have some respect for those of us who are not on here to look at porn. I like seeing most of the Avatars as some are really cute. But some could care less if we like it or not and it seems the moderators think these racy pictures are within the rules. I would like to see the rule that states no sexual material posted also apply to pictures.
 
poolplayer2093 said:
Turn off the avatars.

it's easier to put on shoes than it is to carpet the whole world! if it bothers you change it for you. don't ask everyone else to change for you
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Why should we who like to look at avatars have to turn them off because someone wants to spread porn around. I thought most porn users did so in the privacy of their own home. There is no 21 or over age restrictions on this site either. And it is not a strip club. If they want to look at porn that is up to them, but posting it on a public billiards forum lacks class and consideration.
 
cueman said:
Why should we who like to look at avatars have to turn them off because someone wants to spread porn around. I thought most porn users did so in the privacy of their own home. There is no 21 or over age restrictions on this site either. And it is not a strip club. If they want to look at porn that is up to them, but posting it on a public billiards forum lacks class and consideration.
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Why? Because you have the ability to limit what your child views, if that is unacceptable to you. And the rest of us can view the complete content, if we feel it is acceptable to us. In your version, the rest of us are subjected to your version of what is acceptable, where in the current arrangement we can all see what we choose to see or not to see. In other words, it's not all about you.

Truly sir, there are no pornographic images used as avatars here. There are but a handful that wouldn't be acceptable images on primetime broadcast tv, and those few would be allowed on basic cable.

You may not approve, but there is nothing here beyond the scope of what is considered acceptable by today's standards for our society.

As far as 12 years olds viewing the site, if you aren't comfortable with your 12 year old viewing this site, by all means stop him from doing so, or block the avatars. That is your job as a parent, to decide what you believe is acceptable viewing for your children. The world does not have to change its standards based on what you wish to be viewed by your children. That sounds harsh, but it is true. We as a society limit access to truly pornographic content. The rest is up to us. (I am a parent, too.)

If you let your child use a computer and the avatars here are the most sexually explicit content he views, you are WAY ahead of the game. (And let's not begin to discuss the violence inherent in the videogame culture.)

I'm sorry you are that easily offended. AZB is harmless.
 
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justadub said:
Why? Because you have the ability to limit what your child views, if that is unacceptable to you. And the rest of us can view the complete content, if we feel it is acceptable to us. In your version, the rest of us are subjected to your version of what is acceptable, where in the current arrangement we can all see what we choose to see or not to see. In other words, it's not all about you.

Truly sir, there are no pornographic images used as avatars here. There are but a handful that wouldn't be acceptable images on primetime broadcast tv, and those few would be allowed on basic cable.

You may not approve, but there is nothing here beyond the scope of what is considered acceptable by today's standards for our society.

As far as 12 years olds viewing the site, if you aren't comfortable with your 12 year old viewing this site, by all means stop him from doing so, or block the avatars. That is your job as a parent, to decide what you believe is acceptable viewing for your children. The world does not have to change its standards based on what you wish to be viewed by your children. That sounds harsh, but it is true. We as a society limit access to truly pornographic content. The rest is up to us. (I am a parent, too.)

If you let your child use a computer and the avatars here are the most sexually explicit content he views, you are WAY ahead of the game. (And let's not begin to discuss the violence inherent in the videogame culture.)

I'm sorry you are that easily offended. AZB is harmless.
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Well said, well said!!
 
pt109 said:
I wish I could type like JAM...and edit like Johnny Archer.

I like looking at avatars and sig lines....hell, I read t-shirts and graffiti.
But it would be nice if the content was self-regulated rather than rules
having to be made......I admire Lao Tzu, who said.....
...the more laws, the more criminals
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That's only because too many laws tend to criminalize behavior that shouldn't be forbidden. There is nothing on this website that isn't easily seen in more graphic detail elsewhere on the net. If I had a 12 year old son then I'd be much more interested in what he is looking at rather than being worried about him peeking over my shoulder. If you find your child browsing 4chan then perhaps you will confine him to AZB instead.
 
Roadie said:
That's only because too many laws tend to criminalize behavior that shouldn't be forbidden. There is nothing on this website that isn't easily seen in more graphic detail elsewhere on the net. If I had a 12 year old son then I'd be much more interested in what he is looking at rather than being worried about him peeking over my shoulder. If you find your child browsing 4chan then perhaps you will confine him to AZB instead.
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Note to self: check out this thing called "4chan"...it sounds like something society would frown upon. :)
 
cueman said:
Why should we who like to look at avatars have to turn them off because someone wants to spread porn around. I thought most porn users did so in the privacy of their own home. There is no 21 or over age restrictions on this site either. And it is not a strip club. If they want to look at porn that is up to them, but posting it on a public billiards forum lacks class and consideration.
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You're clearly in the minority on this one. so basically why should the many be forced to change for the few?

It's not porn!!!!! check out stileproject and you'll see the very huge difference (that's what she said) between the pictures posted here and actual porn.

Since it bothers YOU maybe YOU should be the one to make the change. not everyone else!
 
justadub said:
Why? Because you have the ability to limit what your child views, if that is unacceptable to you. And the rest of us can view the complete content, if we feel it is acceptable to us. In your version, the rest of us are subjected to your version of what is acceptable, where in the current arrangement we can all see what we choose to see or not to see. In other words, it's not all about you.

Truly sir, there are no pornographic images used as avatars here. There are but a handful that wouldn't be acceptable images on primetime broadcast tv, and those few would be allowed on basic cable.

You may not approve, but there is nothing here beyond the scope of what is considered acceptable by today's standards for our society.

As far as 12 years olds viewing the site, if you aren't comfortable with your 12 year old viewing this site, by all means stop him from doing so, or block the avatars. That is your job as a parent, to decide what you believe is acceptable viewing for your children. The world does not have to change its standards based on what you wish to be viewed by your children. That sounds harsh, but it is true. We as a society limit access to truly pornographic content. The rest is up to us. (I am a parent, too.)

If you let your child use a computer and the avatars here are the most sexually explicit content he views, you are WAY ahead of the game. (And let's not begin to discuss the violence inherent in the videogame culture.)

I'm sorry you are that easily offended. AZB is harmless.
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This might just be the most logical post i've ever read!!!!!! i really don't know what to say other than GREAT POST!
 
Island Drive said:
I've complained about this matter long ago not from your perspective but with the same concerns. You'll find there are a fair amount of ball banger/drinkers/and loners on here that seem stimulated by bootie/boobs and like the ATTENTION they get, because many of them are the ones no one wants to be associated with in life. Its a societal problem nowadays, the mgmt of AZ could easily take control but have NOT is this area, its just another reason why the american public view our sport negatively. At least your son is old enough to learn from you what's right/wrong.
Many on here respect and speak highly of our sport, the other side of Many......could care less and it shows.
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and parents could easily just act like parent and control what their children look at.

i hate listening to tampon commercials!!!! but instead of complaining about it and trying to get the commercials taken off the air i just mute them........

In a very small way this is the same logic that's got america wussing out every time we look around. ,,,"What's that you want to drive in america but don't feel like learning english?". we'll just offer a test in what ever language you speak even though the road signs are only in english!!!! it's BS. I'm so sick of everyone being asked to change because someone doesn't like something this small.

sure being a parent would be a lot easier if everyone else got rid of thing you didn't want your kids to know about but we won't.
 
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best reasons for the avatars to go

I know that the avatars will remain but the best reasons they should go are that they create what can be considered a hostile environment, here and in a workplace. Any posting of a picture of a girl or lady playing pool is almost certain to be responded to with a crude comment, the nature of the site. I have to think a part of that is the overall tone of the site with the avatars that are so popular.

A more serious issue for many is that the avatars and the occasional image other places aren't workplace safe. I worked at a company that employs tens of thousands of people, maybe hundreds of thousands I don't know after retiring in '93. We were free to surf the net on our time but a single complaint that we were creating a hostile environment for female workers led to instant dismissal, I'm talking within an hour or two. A female coworker complained to me because I wore a cap to work one day that said "Hooters 500" on it with no image. I had attended Richard Petty's last race and received a promotional package that included the cap. It happened to be the only solid cloth cap I had at the time so I wore it on a rainy day. Had the lady chosen to complain to management instead of me I would have been gone before noon.

Obviously the above story represents runaway political correctness but that is often the real world today. When I spent time on other forums the avatars had to either be forum related or family pictures with the occasional picture of a pet or hobby. This seems reasonable to me and was the policy at my forum when I allowed avatars.

This site, both members and management, exhibited considerable bias in the past when several women put up avatars showing males that were no more offensive from a purely intellectual standpoint than the pictures that men post. I have to admit my gut reaction was "damn that is disgusting!" but I couldn't say it was fair to object to the ladies doing the same thing the men did. I think most here would howl if there were as many pictures of scantily clad men in similar poses as there are women. I'd definitely turn off avatars as I have in the past. However I found that I missed some like Joey's POW/MIA avatar and how could we know that there was a red rep run on without Smorg's famous cat in the red helmet avatar?

This battle was lost long ago but I'll add my voice to those that think that a pool forum isn't the place for these avatars. Not that I find them offensive, just out of place for the normal forum content. Considering that they are offensive to some readers, are out of place, and cause family or workplace issues for some people I think they shouldn't be here.

Hu
 
ShootingArts said:
I know that the avatars will remain but the best reasons they should go are that they create what can be considered a hostile environment, here and in a workplace. Any posting of a picture of a girl or lady playing pool is almost certain to be responded to with a crude comment, the nature of the site. I have to think a part of that is the overall tone of the site with the avatars that are so popular.

A more serious issue for many is that the avatars and the occasional image other places aren't workplace safe. I worked at a company that employs tens of thousands of people, maybe hundreds of thousands I don't know after retiring in '93. We were free to surf the net on our time but a single complaint that we were creating a hostile environment for female workers led to instant dismissal, I'm talking within an hour or two. A female coworker complained to me because I wore a cap to work one day that said "Hooters 500" on it with no image. I had attended Richard Petty's last race and received a promotional package that included the cap. It happened to be the only solid cloth cap I had at the time so I wore it on a rainy day. Had the lady chosen to complain to management instead of me I would have been gone before noon.

Obviously the above story represents runaway political correctness but that is often the real world today. When I spent time on other forums the avatars had to either be forum related or family pictures with the occasional picture of a pet or hobby. This seems reasonable to me and was the policy at my forum when I allowed avatars.

This site, both members and management, exhibited considerable bias in the past when several women put up avatars showing males that were no more offensive from a purely intellectual standpoint than the pictures that men post. I have to admit my gut reaction was "damn that is disgusting!" but I couldn't say it was fair to object to the ladies doing the same thing the men did. I think most here would howl if there were as many pictures of scantily clad men in similar poses as there are women. I'd definitely turn off avatars as I have in the past. However I found that I missed some like Joey's POW/MIA avatar and how could we know that there was a red rep run on without Smorg's famous cat in the red helmet avatar?

This battle was lost long ago but I'll add my voice to those that think that a pool forum isn't the place for these avatars. Not that I find them offensive, just out of place for the normal forum content. Considering that they are offensive to some readers, are out of place, and cause family or workplace issues for some people I think they shouldn't be here.

Hu
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Very nice post sir. I too was disgusted with some of the avatars put up by the women, but I also felt, like you, that is was fair considering the circumstances. Even though I enjoy the sexy avatars, this is not that type of site. It is a pool site. I will not surf or surf cautiously according to my environment. I also enjoy the most popular thread and it too is sometimes racy or disgusting in another way. Freedom of speech and freedom of the internet will always give us extremes. A nice feature would be if you could rate avatars as being "racy" and have the option to only turn them off. In the end, it is what it is at this point and probably will stay that way.
 
nelldrake said:
I agree totally with you, dsoriano. I think the avatars should reflect something about the sport of pool and have stated so on this forum more than once. Some of these pictures belong on a porn site and I feel that this does not help the image of the billiard industry. However, I do believe in the freedom of expression. I just wish some of the posters would change their avatars.
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Is my avatar and are my pics too racy? I put them on there because she's my favorite female player. She's a genuinely sweet and beautiful girl. That's Yu Ram Cha if you can't tell.
 
Brozif said:
Is my avatar and are my pics too racy? I put them on there because she's my favorite female player. She's a genuinely sweet and beautiful girl. That's Yu Ram Cha if you can't tell.
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TOTALLY ACCEPTABLE! Got any more? :)
 
Brozif said:
Is my avatar and are my pics too racy? I put them on there because she's my favorite female player. She's a genuinely sweet and beautiful girl. That's Yu Ram Cha if you can't tell.
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I'm sure that she's a very nice person, and there's no question that she can play. I remember reading very favorable articles about her, in fact.

Sometimes women -- not all -- do play on their sexuality, for lack of a better word, to advertise their skills set in pool. Sex sells, as we all know. We see it on TV commercials all the time. ;)

That said, speaking as an older female, the photos of her in your sig line and avatar are in good taste, not racy, but they are suggestive.

I mean, in the avatar, her hand between her legs, legs which are spread open, draws the eye to that area.

In the picture where she's leaning on the tree, what is she doing? It looks like she's trying to accentuate her bosom with her butt protruding outward in the opposite direction. In fact, it looks uncomfortable.

The next photo, she's raising her dress to show a little thigh action.

Again, I don't find them racy, but they do exude something that I guess I can't, or won't, put my finger on. :grin:
 
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