wook77 | On Foglines, LJ and TOS

I don't normally do meta. In fact, I normally label it psuedo-meta. This might just be psuedo and it might just be meta but I'm going to leave the label up to you.

Holidays were and still are a fairly big deal in my family. We get together for either Thanksgiving or Christmas. Doesn't matter that we're scattered throughout the country, that's the way it is. You're there for one of the two or mum gets pissed.

My sister, when she was stationed at Camp Pendleton, found it almost impossible to get home for Christmas so Thanksgiving it was. She'd fly into Baltimore-Washington International and we'd do the hour and a half (one way) drive to get her. Coming back up, it was always fairly fun, filled with loads of stories and catching up.

One Thanksgiving, her plane was delayed. Not a shock, right? It just happened to be delayed until 2 am. On the way back up, we were tired, dog-stinking-tired, but chattering away. Obviously, I had multiple distractions while driving. On a turn, I went over the fogline. A mile and a half later, I was on the side of the road with a cop car flashing its lights at me.

At this point in the story, I normally find people going, "but what's a fogline?". It's that handydandy little white line on the side of the road before you go off into a ditch. I didn't know what it was called either until I was doing a sobriety check by walking on it, balancing on one foot (in high heels) and then standing there following a little flash light as it swept back and forth in front of my eyes.

I was upset at the bullshit reason for getting pulled over until the officer explained just what it was I'd done. I could have been drunk. It was a possibility. The cop didn't know that my parents were in the backseat and we were all on our way back from the airport, after all. He couldn't have seen anything besides a young person behind the wheel of a sports car at 2am "weaving" in and out of a lane. After the explanation, I wasn't argumentative and I went along with it. He had the right of it. I could've been drunk and I appreciate him doing his job and acting on his suspicions of drunk driving. I've lost friends to drunk driving and it's a touchy subject with me, just like child abuse.

The entire time, the cop was respectful and polite. He kept me updated with what he was doing and why. He explained what it was he wanted me to do in clear and concise terms. Heck, at the end, he waved us off with a "next time, don't murder that fogline, ladies!" I got a chuckle, we got home only 45 minutes later than we'd thought. I now have an interesting story to tell and he got the satisfaction of knowing that people appreciate being pulled over every once in awhile.

So what does this have to do with LJ and TOSsing people?

There is no fogline so we don't know when we're crossing it.

We have this nebulous dotted line that sometimes means you can pass, sometimes you can cross it, sometimes you can turn, sometimes you can't. It's there and then it isn't. Sometimes, it's on the left, sometimes, it's on the right. We have to guess what it means and where it is.

Let's look at the two artists that were TOSsed. I read their accounts of the contact they had and I looked at the art available. Now, I could get pissed that I was viewing Snarry but I was well-informed before I clicked the link. What I saw was an adult looking Harry Potter getting sucked off by an adult Snape. What I saw was, actually, one of the first pieces of Snarry that actually intrigued me as to the dynamics of how they arrived there. My personal enjoyment aside as it doesn't influence whether or not this is a TOSsable offense, both characters are adults in the artwork. All in all, I saw mutual consent between fictional adult characters.

Yet the email from 6A states that the artist was TOSsed permanently and from all accounts because of "minors engaging in sexual activity". So, um, where're the minors?

The other artwork is no longer on the internet as the only copy was on the LJ file hosting. It's been described as Twincest between George and Fred Weasley during DH. According to canon – that would put them at least 19. Again I ask, where're the minors? Isn't that the reason they were TOSsed?

To put this in the context of the above personal story – how did these two artists not only get pulled over for "crossing the fogline" but they were put in prison for the rest of their lives when they didn't cross the fogline at all? How did this happen when the "law" (TOS) states that they will be contacted to remove the artwork before permanent suspension?

The standard that was clarified and then clarified again states that "they'd know it when they see it". I looked. I don't see it.

What I do see, however, is two cases of adult males engaging in sexual acts with adult males. To me, the artists getting TOSsed isn't just censorship, it's homophobia. This is homophobia couched in terms of "protecting the chilluns" and saving the world. This is also random enforcement of rules that one party isn't given.

Look, I get that this is 6A's sandbox. I get it. They don't want "it" (whatever it might be), that's their call. What I'm asking for is that they come out with a clear-cut set of rules and regulations. Pull me over for crossing that fogline. I did it knowingly, I deserve the punishment. I'll take my lumps and go somewhere else.

Don't just break your rules and then clam up. Again. And Again. Third time's the charm, 6A. Let's get those guidelines you've been promising out there, yeah?

ETA:As suggested in between the annoying macros, the 99 Bottles of Beer postings and various other completely unhelpful commentary - you might want to send a letter of complaint to 6A

ETA2: According to THIS, both artists were TOSsed because they had no artistic merit, not for child pornography.

ETA3: It seems that LJ staffers are checking the news post - See? - They're just doing it to ban people from commenting. Huh.

There are a few comms to check out. A good one is