Since the membership of the community has gotten older over the years (but there are still younger members), we will be opening up the community to be more free-speech oriented. Because of this, the age ratings used on the blogs will expand to most other public-facing areas of the community. Keep in mind that the "M" rating is not "AO", "XXX", "NC-17", etc., so that does not mean admins will tolerate pornography or graphic violence. Admins will also still warn and ban for slurs against ethnicity, sexuality, religion, etc. If a member has set a birthday that determines age to be below the age rating, a warning will display, but no content will be blocked. The profanity filter setting will also produce a warning but allow access.
This community generally allows freedom of speech. However, there are some limitations when they infringe upon other members. There will be no toleration for direct attacks upon other members, including for reasons of race, religion, sexuality, disability, etc. This also includes bringing fights from outside sources into the community to make this a hostile environment.
Since members can activate a profanity filter, general usage of profanity is not bannable, but excessive usage can be. Please keep such language within the bodies of age-rated blogs or within age-rated chatrooms. Terminology and slangs related to sexuality, racism, etc., are not generally bannable in age-rated blogs and chatrooms, but if they cross thresholds to be deemed pornographic or abhorrent by admins, then admins can ban or delete content at their own discretion. Just because you belong to a particular group to which a slang may be directed, it does not mean it is appropriate for you to "reclaim" such terminology to lessen the impact of usage. Pornographic or targeted violence in artwork is bannable. Any illegal or inciting activity is bannable and may be reported to appropriate legal authorities.
Treat T-rated content as roughly the MPAA movie rating of PG-13 and M-rated content as roughly the MPAA movie rating of R. Nothing should be AO-rated (MPAA NC-17). Members known to be too young to partake in age-rated chatrooms will be kicked and may be banned upon repeated entry. Age-inappropriate content in general chatrooms may result in a kick or ban.
As a general rule, members here are permitted to post on just about any topic that is not illegal and does not directly attack any specific individuals. This includes being permitted to make statements others may see as controversial on a number of topics.
If a member has set a birthday that determines age to be below the age rating, a warning will display, but no content will be blocked. The profanity filter setting will also produce a warning but allow access.
Tobacco companies have decades of experience marketing their products to kids and teens. From ad campaigns to product placement to cartoon characters, Big Tobacco has spent big bucks on getting kids to start using tobacco products. These tactics are grossly deceptive and gloss over the fact that tobacco is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. The truth is that the only way the tobacco industry can make up for the adults who die from tobacco-related disease is to have kids start smoking. Every day, more than 1,200 youth under age 18 will smoke their first cigarette and 60 kids and teens who had previously been occasional cigarette smokers become regular daily cigarette smokers.
-The American Lung Association
“You know what I'm going to do right?” He shook, eyes wide with fear, sweat dripping off his forehead. He didn't answer. “I'm going to cut your dick off!” Before he could react, I started sawing through it. He passed out immediately and I stopped, leaving it hanging half on and half off. I stood up and spat on him. “It was small anyway.”