I've kept silent on this issue up to now in the hope that Thirsty might exercise his judgement and block the messages posted under the Enema Bond alias.

The occasional snipe at another board participant regarding a specific issue is acceptable.  More so when the poster puts her/himself in the firing line rather than skulking behind an alias.  However a protacted and irrelevant series of postings that targets a particular individual and is not issue specific and moves into the realm of harassment and vilification.  It's not justifiable on the grounds of the right to freedom of speech.  And Thirsty, it's not good enough for you to say that if I contact you you'll consider removing them.  That's your job.

The occasional snipe at another board participant regarding a specific issue is acceptable.  More so when the poster puts her/himself in the firing line rather than skulking behind an alias.  However a protacted and irrelevant series of postings that targets a particular individual moves into the realm of harassment and vilification and is not justifiable on the grounds of the right to freedom of speech.  

My take is that the intent of this poster and those who support him is to punish me for not toeing the line.  It's my body and my brain.  It's your money.  How each of us elects to exercise our choices is nobody's business but our own.  That's what freedom's really about.


-- Modified on 2/14/2005 7:52:03 AM

that post as a parody of a name. The humor of the absurd seems to have gone over many people's heads. Emma, you are being paranoid if you feel your "being punished for not toeing the line". We all need to be able to laugh at ourselves,(and caricatures of ourselves) every now and then. Do you think anyone really BELIEVES you are going to offer BROWN SHOWER sessions for extra charge (and bring your own towel) ???  You are too nice a gal, and would CERTAINLY supply the towel!!!

it was to harass a specific individual, me.  If you really believe that bully boy behaviour is justifiable on the grounds of 'humour' then your judgement is faulty.

When these posts first started on the LA board, it was clear that many people misread it and believed that it was serious post.  That should have been enough to have it pulled.

I am not paranoid, I do have a sense of humour and I'm not stupid.  I know exactly what the intent of these posts is.

-- Modified on 2/14/2005 8:19:53 AM

For months you have made dozens of posts sometimes attacking unspecified people or practices.  You have complained of numerous email and PM responses.  Most of "Enema's" posts are simply over-the-top comments that might appear on SNL or Comedy Central or the Harvard Lampoon.

Those who come into the public eye with a sometimes vicious tongue, need to realize that they may be subject to public ridicule in the future.

However, the name is insulting and TER should ban use of that alias.

You agree that the purpose of the posts is public ridicule, not benign humour.

You are on target in your reaction to the series of posts by Enema, Days of Wine and Roses and his smelly friend. Humor is fine, differences of opinion should be encouraged and discussion of delicate subjects is what this board is all about; but extensive ridicule of another person is never justifiable in any circumstance or place and even more so when those doing the ridicule hide behind aliases and refuse to identify themselves.

To cut through the BS, TER and/or Thirsty should BAN any alias that mocks or insults a specific provider.  One of the best things about the Discussion Boards is that the providers themselves post and give us their candid views on life, etc.  
If we allow crap like "Enema Bond" on this board pretty soon it's just gonna be a bunch of lonely guys playing with themselves.  And as for the idea that any idiot would realize that "enema" is an alias:  (1) It's still an insult; (2) It's obvious from the threads that many readers did not get the supposed joke.

One more thing:  The NYC Board may have gotten over NYC Confidential, but in the post-Jason world the posts have become increasingly boring and obnoxious.  We should clean up our act.  Humor is fine (the BDJ "contests" have been cute) but personal insults and name-calling are not.  ITM.

You are on target in your reaction to the series of posts by Enema, Days of Wine and Roses and his smelly friend. Humor is fine, differences of opinion should be encouraged and discussion of delicate subjects is what this board is all about; but extensive ridicule of another person is never justifiable in any circumstance or place and even more so when those doing the ridicule hide behind aliases and refuse to identify themselves.

I don't think the author of the so called parody should presume to speak for everyone who read it.  I don't know if it's just a sophomoric attempt at humor or something more malicious.  I'll admit I'm a pretty conservative guy and I freely admit that if the internet mirrored my style it would be a mega boring place.  Emma has a personal stake in the issue which I don't, but I think this is much the same as the old obscene caller.  You were never going to get him to stop by talking logic or berating him.  The whole point was to keep you talking.  Same here, the best way to stop the nonsense is to ignore it.  If no one responds it will go away.  Until then my advice is just pass on by.

Cousin Emma, when I created the character of "Enema", it was a parody of your name with a few references to your aussie roots ("he was covered with so much POO that that he looked like he'd been rolling in a mudhole in the outback)".  The character was NOT intended to "punish or ridicule" you personally. I have nothing against you, and find you more than a little bit attractive. I've got to admit, I had NO idea how illterate and/or gullible some folks are. I had wrongly assumed that readers would "get the joke".  I was stunned when so many were worried about "Enema's" health and the number of costipation remedies submitted. LOL  I'm sure you haven't had any potential clients call and ask about the "special rate" for brown showers. I admit to having a "Lampoonish" sense of humor. I trust this Valentine's Day has you feeling healthy (and regular). In the spirit of Valentine's Day, I extend a rose to you and I drop the Charmin.  This post was never meant to defame you. I hereby permanently retire ENEMA !! Now Emma, can we get together for a hot Greek session to kiss and make up???

can we all stop taking ourselves too serious and get back to the task at hand. That's not directed to a specific person but to the whole board in general. This is a business of pleasure, let's just have fun. Be safe and enjoy!

Actually, Emma I did my job! I looked at the thread and decided, in my best judgement, it was parody. I thought he was having fun with your username.

I suggested that people could contact me if they wanted me to take a second look at a post. This is the first time that I've heard from you. If you have additional information that would show this is a personal attack, please contact me.

[email protected]

Our correspondence will remain confidential.

Nobody wants censorship. Am I supposed to just arbitrarily decide which aliases are acceptable? How close can an acceptable alias be to an actual username? One letter off? two? three? four?

Another factor...I am not psychic. A few people have adopted aliases to write BelledeJour parodys. Should I assume that BDJ has zero tolerance for such posts and delete everything?

I was not aware of similar posts on the LA board. I will investigate to see if they were removed.

thirsty

"Please do not post messages that are simply mean, or meant to cause trouble for trouble's sake."

So sayeth the heading at the top of this board and so should it be. Puerile sniggering is beneath us all. Let's further at least the semblance of a class act.

Thirsty, I believe Emma was incorrect.  The posts started on the National board.  Never on LA

You're correct. It's still there.

Some people call the General/National board, the LA board.

thirsty

I respect your POV but your very post shows that it would be impossible for a moderator to selectively ban threads/posts unless the moderator is a mind reader. As I wrote in my last post in this thread, how do I determine where to censor. You say you like the BDJ parody. Somebody else (including BDJ) may not. I found out by reading this thread that Emma has Aussie roots. I didn't know that. Should I now ban any questionable alias that has the word Aussie in it? All a moderator can do is use his or her best judgement. If a provider contacts me with additional information, I will take that information into consideration. What I will not do is selectively censor for the sake of PC. Apparently Girl Next Door agrees with me because the parody post remains on the General board as well.

As to the direction the NYC board has taken post-Jason, I think people are just trying to lighten things up. I know I can't let the board turn into COMEDY CENTRAL. It's a hobby board first. I will contact the various comedians and ask them to cut down the frequency of their performances a bit.

thirsty

Constant ridiculing of another person should never be acceptable under any circumstance  And certainly when Enema goes on for 25 posts not counting those of his two sidekicks, it is no longer humorous or a parody. Yes, one should be allowed to discuss any issue and have fun but not at the expenses of others.  This is especially true when a poster hides behind an alias.  Let's return this board to an exchange of information and with a sense of humor that respects, and does not put down,  other particpants.

Thirsty, if this is you exercising your "best judgement" then, based on the responses to this thread and my own opinion, I'd say your judgement needs some fine tuning.  I suggest you go back and read the posts in dispute and try to understand why I and others find them unacceptable.

out, but can't take a joke. Why don't you applaud the fact that the alias has been retired on good faith.  Cry Babies !!!!   Peace to the Cry Babies!!!   eom

He has apologized.  He gave up the alias.  Why not just let it be?  Do you have to win 100% all of the time?  People who live in glass houses.....

I'm Emma's cousin and I'm the one in trouble..can't you tell by my name??

Point taken.  As for your Comedy Central comment, again on reflection I agree.  The idea is not to ban humor.  But we can all, to quote a friend, "tighten it up a little bit."  Following that advice, Enema would have quit while he was ahead.  

Thanks for listening.  ITM.

The guy really is a decent person. he appears to have somewhat of a whacked sense of humor, but that is not a bad thing to have these days. Form what I know of the guy, he more than likely is sorry about hurting you with his parody and I do not think that he intended to hurt you. I hope that he PM you and you at least read and respond to his PM, if you do that, I think things will work out. Be safe and I hope you are feeling better, I have had a stomach bug on and off for the last month and I can attest to the fact that it is no fun.

Thirsty, what is seen as a parody by one person is seen as an alarming insult by another. Your tone in moderating is just right, IMHO.
I am sorry to see that Emma was angered by the parody of her username, but I have exchanged PMs with the person that likely did the parody and I do not thing that he is a mean person.
I hope that the owner of the parody handle PM Emma so that things can start to work themselve out. Understanding will not happen in the glare of public posts.

"The more you fan de turd, the more it smelleth... Don't wear it as a necklace."