Scratch

PlutoIsHades wrote:

The_Dancing_Donut wrote:

imnotbob wrote:

Exactly. I honestly don't see the point.

I'm sorry, Scratch, but you have let me down... those threads are like an outlet for us. Some LGBT people can not talk to others and need a place to do so...

Same. The discussion was not THAT bad, if you exclude the people that say either:

'LGBT is stupid/unnatural/why is this on Scratch hohohoh'
'Why do we need this? It's inappropriate.
or
'Ew you kiss other girls ewew cootiessss!!!!11!1'

I really think this was a bad move, ST. Sorry. You're making it look like LGBT is inappropriate and alienating people in that group. Just my opinion, I stress.
At least it was a good debate rather than 'I just got Minecraft'. -.-
People have a right to self expression and it helps people get to know each other better.
Sexuality is no less important/personal than favourite band; or eye colour.

Just saying.

+1
Yes, cheddar, I read what you said, but I still believe that this post is right.

Yeah, but in some cases, discussing sexuality is more of a heavy issue to talk about, much like religion, or politics, or sometimes even social issues, its something not to be taken rather lightly whereas things favorite band or eye color are not as serious or pressing. And for more serious issues, it better to find a place that is guided and lead to more constructive talk.

My point still stands - some topics are just better off under more guided supervision, one that the Scratch Forums doesn't have the resource to provide.

imnotbob wrote:

cheddargirl wrote:

PlutoIsHades wrote:

+1
Yes, cheddar, I read what you said, but I still believe that this post is right.

Yeah, but in some cases, discussing sexuality is more of a heavy issue to talk about, much like religion, or politics, or sometimes even social issues, its something not to be taken rather lightly whereas things favorite band or eye color are not as serious or pressing. And for more serious issues, it better to find a place that is guided and lead to more constructive talk.

My point still stands - some topics are just better off under more guided supervision, one that the Scratch Forums doesn't have the resource to provide.

It can be a heavy discussion, but it may be easier to moderate and less heavy if people who do not agree with LGBT people do not post there.

I disagree, the forums are an open place, so anybody can really post in any thread they want so long as it's done in a respectful manner. And even if only people who agree with LGBT people are the only ones who post in that thread, there's no guarantee it will be done in a sensitive and constructive way that can be appropriate for all ages.

imnotbob wrote:

cheddargirl wrote:

imnotbob wrote:

It can be a heavy discussion, but it may be easier to moderate and less heavy if people who do not agree with LGBT people do not post there.

I disagree, the forums are an open place, so anybody can really post in any thread they want so long as it's done in a respectful manner. And even if only people who agree with LGBT people are the only ones who post in that thread, there's no guarantee it will be done in a sensitive and constructive way that can be appropriate for all ages.

Most of the people who were homophobic were not posting in a respectful manner.

True, but if it's inappropriate, you could report it.

And there were those who did. 

Actually, from that thread, there were those who were acting disrespectfully from both sides, causing the thread to be shut down a couple of times. This, coupled with the experience with the religious and political threads from the past shows how fast a thread with more heavy issue can degrade without guided supervision, and there's currently not enough resources to do so (unless by some miracle a large of adults with experience as counselors, advisors, or  teachers were willing to volunteer to monitor the forums very frequently  ) - and even then, it seems like a waste to spend much time moderating heavy issues when most of it should be focused more on Scratch and the heavy issues can be redirected more towards a place that is better suited to guide those things in a more positive direction (the links in the first post for the LGBT threads, offsite debate forums for political threads, etc.)

The_Dancing_Donut wrote:

NeilWest wrote:

I think threads about piercings and Doody's Puberty threads have really pushed the limit. I always thought that the Mischellenous forum was for discussing interests, like video games or recent movies.

How on earth is a piercings thread 'pushing the limit'?
It turned out to be a fairly popular topic :L
So the fact that I (along with many others, in fact) have piercings (which can be classed almost as an interest) means that I'm bad and I'm not allowed to discuss them? ._.
Haha.

Some users are more open to piercing whereas some are not - things like cultural background and health issues are underlying reasons as why some are squeamish with the piercing thread.

And everyone goes through puberty, the mods cleared up the graphic posts ^^

To be honest, I'm not too fond of that thread, among some others. It's an issue that I brought up with the Scratch Team, we're still discussing the issue.

imnotbob wrote:

cheddargirl wrote:

imnotbob wrote:

Most of the people who were homophobic were not posting in a respectful manner.

True, but if it's inappropriate, you could report it.

And there were those who did. 

Actually, from that thread, there were those who were acting disrespectfully from both sides, causing the thread to be shut down a couple of times. This, coupled with the experience with the religious and political threads from the past shows how fast a thread with more heavy issue can degrade without guided supervision, and there's currently not enough resources to do so (unless by some miracle a large of adults with experience as counselors, advisors, or  teachers were willing to volunteer to monitor the forums very frequently  ) - and even then, it seems like a waste to spend much time moderating heavy issues when most of it should be focused more on Scratch and the heavy issues can be redirected more towards a place that is better suited to guide those things in a more positive direction (the links in the first post for the LGBT threads, offsite debate forums for political threads, etc.)

Yes, and I don't think it was right to be rude to the people who were polite.

I know, but some did try to continue the discussion 
And I only saw it closed once.

The old one was closed once or twice.
And I agree with you about the "not right to be rude to the people who were polite."

maxskywalker wrote:

Uh… what?  The best I can figure is that you're saying that LGBT topics are banned.  Right?

That, and topics about, um, heterosexuality too.

cheddargirl wrote:

PlutoIsHades wrote:

maxskywalker wrote:

Uh… what?  The best I can figure is that you're saying that LGBT topics are banned.  Right?

That, and topics about, um, heterosexuality too.

Well, more like about sexuality in general. Sexuality isn't the kind of topic to be discussed with young children without some kind of guided supervision.

How 'bout a different forums on Scratch that only people a certain age or older can use (the other forums would be there, too :p)

imnotbob wrote:

cheddargirl wrote:

PlutoIsHades wrote:

That, and topics about, um, heterosexuality too.

Well, more like about sexuality in general. Sexuality isn't the kind of topic to be discussed with young children without some kind of guided supervision.

How 'bout a different forums on Scratch that only people a certain age or older can use (the other forums would be there, too :p)

Scratch is open for anyone of all ages, it doesn't make sense to suddenly section off part of a website where young ones will be shut out.

And even then, such a section will still need moderation (perhaps even more moderation than right now since that section will be under bigger scrutiny because of COPPA laws); such a sectioned-off area for an older audience would likely require a group of adults with experience as counselors, advisors, or teachers willing to volunteer their time to monitor such a forum frequently - and as I pointed out before, it seems like a waste to spend much time moderating heavy issues (let alone non-Scratch issues) when most of it should be focused more on Scratch.

Besides, just because some topics are discouraged in the forums, doesn't really bar you from talking about them at all. There are websites that have more resources than the Scratch forums that allow them to deal with these things in a more guided direction - you are still rather free (and encouraged!) to visit those websites instead if you need help.    And aside from that, there are just some issues that should be talked over with by a trusted adult in the first place, not on the internet where anonymity can make such a discussion risky or personally invasive to users, if not dangerous.

imnotbob wrote:

cheddargirl wrote:

imnotbob wrote:

How 'bout a different forums on Scratch that only people a certain age or older can use (the other forums would be there, too :p)

Scratch is open for anyone of all ages, it doesn't make sense to suddenly section off part of a website where young ones will be shut out.

And even then, such a section will still need moderation (perhaps even more moderation than right now since that section will be under bigger scrutiny because of COPPA laws); such a sectioned-off area for an older audience would likely require a group of adults with experience as counselors, advisors, or teachers willing to volunteer their time to monitor such a forum frequently - and as I pointed out before, it seems like a waste to spend much time moderating heavy issues (let alone non-Scratch issues) when most of it should be focused more on Scratch.

Besides, just because some topics are discouraged in the forums, doesn't really bar you from talking about them at all. There are websites that have more resources than the Scratch forums that allow them to deal with these things in a more guided direction - you are still rather free (and encouraged!) to visit those websites instead if you need help.    And aside from that, there are just some issues that should be talked over with by a trusted adult in the first place, not on the internet where anonymity can make such a discussion risky or personally invasive to users, if not dangerous.

I see your paint
Wait
COPPA?
I haven't heard of it 

www.coppa.org

SJRCS_011 wrote:

imnotbob wrote:

cheddargirl wrote:

Scratch is open for anyone of all ages, it doesn't make sense to suddenly section off part of a website where young ones will be shut out.

And even then, such a section will still need moderation (perhaps even more moderation than right now since that section will be under bigger scrutiny because of COPPA laws); such a sectioned-off area for an older audience would likely require a group of adults with experience as counselors, advisors, or teachers willing to volunteer their time to monitor such a forum frequently - and as I pointed out before, it seems like a waste to spend much time moderating heavy issues (let alone non-Scratch issues) when most of it should be focused more on Scratch.

Besides, just because some topics are discouraged in the forums, doesn't really bar you from talking about them at all. There are websites that have more resources than the Scratch forums that allow them to deal with these things in a more guided direction - you are still rather free (and encouraged!) to visit those websites instead if you need help.    And aside from that, there are just some issues that should be talked over with by a trusted adult in the first place, not on the internet where anonymity can make such a discussion risky or personally invasive to users, if not dangerous.

I see your paint
Wait
COPPA?
I haven't heard of it 

www.coppa.org

Ah

PlutoIsHades wrote:

While I know that there is no section to put an LGBT topic, let me say this:
One of my closest friends recently told me her older brother is getting married - to another guy!  She said I was the only one she was going to tell because few others would accept it.
I don't know my sexuality, but from my friends like imnotbob and Earthboundjeff and RedRocker227, that seems like how they feel.  We all need someone we can trust with that kind of stuff, and these guys chose their friends on Scratch.

And there's nothing wrong with that. You can continue your discussions on e-mail, other forums (imnotbob has a nice one), or chatting, but you can't do it here on Scratch.