It seems my favorite newsgroup on the POV-Ray news server has been 
darkened by pornography. Of course I'm talking about binaries.images. 
Webster's dictionary defines pornography as, "obscene literature or 
pictures." Can you call what has been posted anything less? There is a 
time and a place for such things, but I never thought the POV-Ray 
newsgroups would be one of the places.

It is because of this I won't be posting anything there anymore. I don't 
have to put up with people who insist what they are doing 'has to be 
accepted'. I am not blind to the world portrayed in those images, but I 
don't have to be reminded *every time* I visit the newsgroups. As a side 
note, my message filters don't work or else I'd use them.

Am I the only one (besides Greg, Tyler, Bob, and Patrick) who feels this 
way? Please speak up, or else nothing will be done about it. I hope to 
enjoy these newsgroups again someday.

Happy Raytracing Everyone~

-Samuel Benge

Post a reply to this message

I'm very displeased as well.


"Samuel T. Benge" <stb### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message
news:407### [at] hotmailcom...
> It seems my favorite newsgroup on the POV-Ray news server has been
> darkened by pornography. Of course I'm talking about binaries.images.
> Webster's dictionary defines pornography as, "obscene literature or
> pictures." Can you call what has been posted anything less? There is a
> time and a place for such things, but I never thought the POV-Ray
> newsgroups would be one of the places.
>
> It is because of this I won't be posting anything there anymore. I don't
> have to put up with people who insist what they are doing 'has to be
> accepted'. I am not blind to the world portrayed in those images, but I
> don't have to be reminded *every time* I visit the newsgroups. As a side
> note, my message filters don't work or else I'd use them.
>
> Am I the only one (besides Greg, Tyler, Bob, and Patrick) who feels this
> way? Please speak up, or else nothing will be done about it. I hope to
> enjoy these newsgroups again someday.
>
> Happy Raytracing Everyone~
>
> -Samuel Benge
>

Post a reply to this message

> It seems my favorite newsgroup on the POV-Ray news server has been
> darkened by pornography. Of course I'm talking about binaries.images.
> Webster's dictionary defines pornography as, "obscene literature or
> pictures." Can you call what has been posted anything less?

It seems to me that we may run the risk of having a discussion about what is
"art" and what is "pornography", but to the most part I agree with your
assessment. Some of the images posted recently are unnecessarily graphic,
and though the artist may not have intended them to be offensive, they
obviously are to some people, and probably more than those who have spoken
out. For that reason, plus the fact that at least in my country this sort of
image is not allowed to be shown to minors, I think these sorts of images
should not be posted on the POV-Ray newsgroups, despite what artistic merit
they may have. This is regardless of whether they are posted as a URL or
with a warning.

> It is because of this I won't be posting anything there anymore.

Well now, give it some time. It hasn't turned into a pornography fest.
There's only one person posting the controversial images; wait until it gets
sorted out before making a decision like that.

> Am I the only one (besides Greg, Tyler, Bob, and Patrick) who feels this
> way? Please speak up, or else nothing will be done about it. I hope to
> enjoy these newsgroups again someday.

Much as I hate to get involved in controversy, I will admit that I agree
with you on this issue. I think we need to come up with a rule or two
regarding this type of image, and enforce it.

 - Slime
 [ http://www.slimeland.com/ ]

Post a reply to this message

"Samuel T. Benge" <stb### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message
news:407### [at] hotmailcom...
> It seems my favorite newsgroup on the POV-Ray news server has been
> darkened by pornography. Of course I'm talking about binaries.images.
> Webster's dictionary defines pornography as, "obscene literature or
> pictures." Can you call what has been posted anything less? There is a
> time and a place for such things, but I never thought the POV-Ray
> newsgroups would be one of the places.
>
> It is because of this I won't be posting anything there anymore. I don't
> have to put up with people who insist what they are doing 'has to be
> accepted'. I am not blind to the world portrayed in those images, but I
> don't have to be reminded *every time* I visit the newsgroups. As a side
> note, my message filters don't work or else I'd use them.
>
> Am I the only one (besides Greg, Tyler, Bob, and Patrick) who feels this
> way? Please speak up, or else nothing will be done about it. I hope to
> enjoy these newsgroups again someday.

You sure aren't the only one, but I was under the impression that this could a
problem that would solve itself by ignoring it.  Maybe not, and maybe I'm not
willing to find out, hence this reply.

cu!
--
camera{location-z*3}#macro G(b,e)b+(e-b)*(C/50)#end#macro L(b,e,k,l)#local C=0
;#while(C<50)sphere{G(b,e),.1pigment{rgb G(k,l)}finish{ambient 1}}#local C=C+1
;#end#end L(y-x,y,x,x+y)L(y,-x-y,x+y,y)L(-x-y,-y,y,y+z)L(-y,y,y+z,x+y)L(0,x+y,
<.5,1,.5>,x)L(0,x-y,<.5,1,.5>,x)               // ZK http://www.povplace.be.tf

Post a reply to this message

If it's "art," it sure is <bad> "art."
d.

"Samuel T. Benge" <stb### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message
news:407### [at] hotmailcom...
> It seems my favorite newsgroup on the POV-Ray news server has been
> darkened by pornography. Of course I'm talking about binaries.images.
> Webster's dictionary defines pornography as, "obscene literature or
> pictures." Can you call what has been posted anything less? There is a
> time and a place for such things, but I never thought the POV-Ray
> newsgroups would be one of the places.
>
> It is because of this I won't be posting anything there anymore. I don't
> have to put up with people who insist what they are doing 'has to be
> accepted'. I am not blind to the world portrayed in those images, but I
> don't have to be reminded *every time* I visit the newsgroups. As a side
> note, my message filters don't work or else I'd use them.
>
> Am I the only one (besides Greg, Tyler, Bob, and Patrick) who feels this
> way? Please speak up, or else nothing will be done about it. I hope to
> enjoy these newsgroups again someday.
>
> Happy Raytracing Everyone~
>
> -Samuel Benge
>

Post a reply to this message

Samuel T. Benge wrote:
> It is because of this I won't be posting anything there anymore. I don't 
> have to put up with people who insist what they are doing 'has to be 
> accepted'. I am not blind to the world portrayed in those images, but I 
> don't have to be reminded *every time* I visit the newsgroups. As a side 
> note, my message filters don't work or else I'd use them.

You know, you don't have to read every post, nor should someone else's
posting (save that of the admin) deter you from making your own posts.
Common sense says: if you think something will be offensive, don't look
at it.

-- 
Tim Cook
http://home.bellsouth.net/p/PWP-empyrean

-----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
Version: 3.12
GFA dpu- s: a?-- C++(++++) U P? L E--- W++(+++)>$
N++ o? K- w(+) O? M-(--) V? PS+(+++) PE(--) Y(--)
PGP-(--) t* 5++>+++++ X+ R* tv+ b++(+++) DI
D++(---) G(++) e*>++ h+ !r--- !y--
------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------

Post a reply to this message

Samuel T. Benge wrote:
> It seems my favorite newsgroup on the POV-Ray news server has been 
> darkened by pornography. Of course I'm talking about binaries.images. 
> Webster's dictionary defines pornography as, "obscene literature or 
> pictures." Can you call what has been posted anything less? There is a 
> time and a place for such things, but I never thought the POV-Ray 
> newsgroups would be one of the places.
> 
> It is because of this I won't be posting anything there anymore. I don't 
> have to put up with people who insist what they are doing 'has to be 
> accepted'. I am not blind to the world portrayed in those images, but I 
> don't have to be reminded *every time* I visit the newsgroups. As a side 
> note, my message filters don't work or else I'd use them.
> 
> Am I the only one (besides Greg, Tyler, Bob, and Patrick) who feels this 
> way? Please speak up, or else nothing will be done about it. I hope to 
> enjoy these newsgroups again someday.
> 
> Happy Raytracing Everyone~
> 
> -Samuel Benge
> 

I, too, am unhappy with the content of this nature showing up on the groups.

-->Jeff


-- 
No signature here, move along...
--- jgentry at ev1 dot net ---

Post a reply to this message

"Timothy Cook" <z99### [at] bellsouthnet> wrote in message
news:4070c191@news.povray.org...
>
> You know, you don't have to read every post, nor should someone else's
> posting (save that of the admin) deter you from making your own posts.
> Common sense says: if you think something will be offensive, don't look
> at it.


Pornography is wrong; it is an affront to the Creator.  Those who find
themselves creators of pornographic content ought not despair on that
account, for there is One who has prepared salvation for them, who says,
"Come to the Feast of the Lamb".  This is the Christian context I come from,
and I believe it to be literal truth.


If there were a newspaper coming into my home where I had to stop to check
the top border to see if a particular page were going to have porn on it,
common sense says don't bring the newspaper into the house, don't support
the publisher.  Common sense says round up persons of good will OF ALL
FAITHS to fight those publishers,  using noncoercive means including
nonparticipation, the soapbox, and the marketplace.


The question for the server owner is whether news.povray.org is to be a
publisher of porn, or even a publisher of URL's to porn images, or porn
hidden in GIF color pallettes.   Once before we faced someone who created
discord in the community over something that had nothing to do with
raytracing (or even beta expirations!).  I have no opinion on the specific
sanction applied to Matt Giwer, but I believe a sanction of some sort is
overdue in this case.

Post a reply to this message

"Timothy Cook" <z99### [at] bellsouthnet> wrote in message
news:4070c191@news.povray.org...
> Samuel T. Benge wrote:
> > It is because of this I won't be posting anything there anymore.
>
> You know, you don't have to read every post, nor should someone else's
> posting (save that of the admin) deter you from making your own posts.

First of all: Oh no! Don't say that Samuel!

Except that to be a part of these povray newsgroups is probably best seen as
a community of just one certain kind of thing (POV-Ray, of course). Meaning,
I think the controversy is about such extreme diversity that it's more of a
deviation from the norm (reflective spheres and other such raytraced shapes)
than merely expression (rusty spheres).
:-)
When povray.general discussions become mostly talk about non-POV subjects
they go (to) off-topic, and this reminds me of the infamous Matt Giwer
expulsion from here. That was about religon or ethics or some-such
controversial topics that were deemed wrong for the groups as a whole. IMO
this might easily be of the same definition, and end result, if it causes an
uproar among a majority or at least the news server administrator(s).

Would be interesting to see a new group crop up for posting explicit
imagery. It would surely be less prone to mistaking it for anything else
than what it's intended for. Problem with that, as I see it, is where to
draw the line. You could subdivide ad infinitum into categories for
photorealism, cartoonism, nudism, etc. Although I don't know of any other
alternatives other than banning or regrouping.

Bob H.

Post a reply to this message

Timothy Cook wrote:
 >

> You know, you don't have to read every post, nor should someone else's
> posting (save that of the admin) deter you from making your own posts.
> Common sense says: if you think something will be offensive, don't look
> at it.


Yes, and common sense tells me I don't have to support a community which 
continues to allow such images to be displayed for all to see. It's not 
like I go around the Internet looking for things to be offended at. It's 
this simple: I'll stop posting my images and source (whatever it's 
worth) if I believe I'm supporting a community which is tolerant of open 
porn.

The content, IMO, is seriously downgrading the quality and atmosphere of 
these groups.

-Samuel Benge

Post a reply to this message