If the topic is the one that I recall, it was entitled "Do you think that children should be allowed to have sex with adults? I do." and there were posts that were copypasta straight from NAMBLA.
I know, that'll gross some out, offend others, and some will think that the discussion is "just talk" and believe that this is a perfectly fine place for it.
Think about that for a second.
All we need is 1 parent, one child-protection activist group, one lawyer, or one news organization looking for a headline in order to get readers/viewer and advertising bucks to see that on these forums.... then what happens? Anyone remember [url=http://halo.bungie.net/news/content.aspx?type=topnews&link=BWU071709]Harrison's Mom?[/url] She was upset over her child seeing images of adults drinking. How would that parent (or any of the millions of parents like her) react to seeing a long and involved discussion about "how children as young as 6 can consent" (which I saw posted in that one thread)? Think that any of them would shrug and say "well, Internet is gonna Internet"? Or do you think that they would DO something? Like call a lawyer, a cop, their local news? It'd make a real attention getting headline, especially since we all know how many news organizations already have mentally linked games and violence. Now they would have something even MORE attention getting. How would that headline look?
[quote]Game Developer Website and Chat Forums are a Haven for Child Predators[/quote]
Then what happens to:
This site?
This community?
Our hosts attempting to sell Destiny?
Destiny itself?
This site exists because our hosts provide it for us. As a courtesy. As a favor. Because they (for some strange reason) happen to LIKE us. All that they ask is that we "play nice" in the playground they have provided for us. Why do people think that is an open invitation to "do anything"?
Sorry folks, this is private property, not the town square. You don't have freedom of speech here, not every subject is open for discussion, not every topic is allowable. If any member puts this community, our hosts, or this site at risk of such accusations? Please leave the premises. You are not welcome. You are not desired. If you insist and persist at returning, you are going against both the rights and desires of the property owners, are falsely representing (lying/perjuring) yourself when you click on "I agree to the terms and conditions of this site", and you are not doing anyone here a favor.
If you're looking for a place to discuss and share views on particular matters that our hosts have decided they do not wish their property to be used for, then you are asked (nicely at first) to please find a more appropriate, a better, and a place where such exchanges are allowed and encouraged by the hosts. This is not such a place.
That's the view of [u]this member[/u]. I am just another guest (like you). I am not speaking on behalf of our hosts, I don't have their permission and I don't know what they are thinking. But if I owned a business and my guests were willing to put me and my company at such a risk? I'd pull the goddamned plug before some small group of jackasses harmed my company and my ability to please my customers.
So, just think. Please. Just try. I know that for many, it'll be a new experience, but we all have the ability to use our brains and see what our actions can result in. Show some foresight, show some intelligence, show some consideration, exercise some restraint. In four words, "grow the hell up".
English
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I agree entirely that this website is not the appropriate forum to talk about the litany of topics under the umbrella of pedophilia (few places probably are). That being said, I would like to reply to your premise that this is being done as a means for Bungie to protect against negative publicity (I know this is your opinion and may not actually be the case, but still...) I buy deeply into the thought that the internet should be the grounds where anything goes. It's the repository of the whole of human knowledge, and that includes both the good and the bad. Do people have a right to filter out content they don't want to see? Absolutely. Do owners of websites have the right to operate their websites under whatever rules they wish? Again, absolutely. But if you begin to filter your website (and especially one with a forum) in such a way as to try and avoid any topic which people can get angry about, rally around, and hold against you - the internet is not the place for you. Anyone with an agenda can come to this site and manufacture outrage. Topics regarding weed? Bungie fostering a drug culture. Topics regarding prayer in schools? Bungie is fostering anti-Christian sentiments. There is even a My Little Pony group on this website. I've seen groups who believe that allowing even a modicum of discussion on that topic means you support the "homosexual agenda". If someone wants to come to this website and attempts to take advantage of it's large swath of permissible topics in order to stoke outrage, I say we show them that this community is far more than the sum of it's parts. Show them how much money we raised for Haiti. Show them the passion with which members create new artwork, new stories, and (in the case of Whisper Studios) new companies. Show them the kindness of individual members like TomT117 and his 500 lap marathon to raise money to fight Endometriosis. Yes, pedophilia doesn't belong here but there are better reasons to explain that choice than "we should be scared of how someone outside the community will perceive us". It is the wide berth of freedoms (in regards to discussion) that we enjoy here that has allowed me to see that this is far more than just a gaming community. It is that same large berth which would allow us to fight back against any unjust characterizations of what the community is and isn't. Bungie should not bow to outside pressures seeking to define what is appropriate conversation, they should honestly and thoughtfully decide it for themselves.
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It's about time someone gave me a reasonable answer instead of going apeshit about pedophilia. Thank you, and if that's the case, then the rules should be updated.
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Yes so much yes.
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This.
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Great response.
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Well said.