Seattle library lets man watch porn, despite complaint

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Fabian wrote on 2012-02-03 08:50

Hehehe, time to go to my library.

:XD:
TheKartheus wrote on 2012-02-03 09:09

There's kind of a big difference between censorship LAWS, and censorship RULES.

Porn itself isn't illegal, but they censor it in highschool, because that's not something you allow kids to see. If they do it at home, that's there own business. But I know I wouldn't want to be in a room at school with someone watching porn. I'm glad they have those censors, or I know people would. So why is it any different at a public library? I don't care about there not being a law saying they have to; the library should decide for itself that people can't do that. I don't care if the kids "have to learn about it eventually". One of them was 7 years old. Other people have no right to thrust the choice of when to talk about it onto you like that.

And someone said something about not whining and complaining, and fixing it yourself. If this woman isn't fixing it herself, I don't know what is. She talked to the librarian, she talked to the guy, she talked to the police. She can't physically touch him or she's the one who gets in trouble. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't consider MLK Jr. a whiner/complainer, even though all he did was talk to people about stuff being wrong.
VorpalAvian wrote on 2012-02-04 03:28

I think there's a big difference in what we're starting to talk about, I don't think the library should have to censor anything. I think they should just make it so that the things that might require censoring could at least be put in an area where they can be viewed if they want to w/o restriction to the people that want to view it, but in an area where those that might not want to see those things can be shown what they might see if they happen to be entering -.- tbh for all we know the man could have been under-age and just looked older and then that would bring up the problem of just making it so that people that ask for the rights of unfiltered content could just go to a certain area
Nithiel wrote on 2012-02-04 03:56

I have no problem with the library letting people view porn. I have no problem with people viewing porn in public in general.

Maybe they could turn the computer area around so that the only thing behind them is a wall, that way if your kids are seeing it you know they saw it on purpose because there is no other reason to be back there.
VorpalAvian wrote on 2012-02-04 03:59

Quote from Nithiel;761941:
I have no problem with the library letting people view porn. I have no problem with people viewing porn in public in general.

Maybe they could turn the computer area around so that the only thing behind them is a wall, that way if your kids are seeing it you know they saw it on purpose because there is no other reason to be back there.

That's a good idea
Osayidan wrote on 2012-02-04 04:30

I only read it quickly but it looks like all the quoted complaints are from women. Were there any men who complained? Were the quoted complaints the only complaints there were?

I find the whole thing weird but I do respect that library for not censoring anything.
Don't library computers have privacy walls though? All the ones I've ever been to have had them. The kinds that are built onto the desk.
Nithiel wrote on 2012-02-04 04:49

Quote from Osayidan;761989:
Don't library computers have privacy walls though? All the ones I've ever been to have had them. The kinds that are built onto the desk.

Must have been a fancy library.. All the libraries I've ever been to just have the computers sitting out on tables where everyone in the library can see them. No privacy of any kind.
Sayoko wrote on 2012-02-04 06:05

No food, drinks, or talking in the library please!

However watching porn in front of kids is perfectly fine.

Geeeeeezzzzz
Episkey wrote on 2012-02-04 07:47

Hmmm ... Wasn't there a bunch of controversy before - about people checking out library books/materials on how to make bombs and poisons? Yet pornography is okay D:
It seems a little hypocritical if you ask me.

Of course, what appalled me was the fact that the guy didn't even move. These are children we are talking about!
If I was a parent or a person working at said library ... :infract:
Cannibal wrote on 2012-02-04 08:06

Quote from Episkey;762242:
Hmmm ... Wasn't there a bunch of controversy before - about people checking out library books/materials on how to make bombs and poisons? Yet pornography is okay D:
It seems a little hypocritical if you ask me.

Pornography isn't going to kill someone. Did you even think before you typed that?

Kids are going to be exposed to pornography (or things really close to it) no matter what. Have you turned on your t.v. recently?
Episkey wrote on 2012-02-04 08:18

Quote from Hanna's Lover;762266:
Pornography isn't going to kill someone. Did you even think before you typed that?

Kids are going to be exposed to pornography (or things really close to it) no matter what. Have you turned on your t.v. recently?

Well, I suppose it's a drastic example. But, I was correlating the whole "censorship" aspect of it. At least in my head D:

Also, just because someone will be exposed to something - doesn't mean that they HAVE to.
I don't know about you, but this is a library you're talking about.
Cannibal wrote on 2012-02-04 08:22

Quote from Episkey;762283:
Well, I suppose it's a drastic example. But, I was correlating the whole "censorship" aspect of it. At least in my head D:

Also, just because someone will be exposed to something - doesn't mean that they HAVE to.
I don't know about you, but this is a library you're talking about.

I understand it's a library. A kid could go pick up a r18 book and start looking through it and see every sexual word in the world. A kid could go through the movies section and pick up a dvd and see a half-naked lady on the cover.

I never said that they should see it, I'm simply saying that it's how things are these days. No, I don't agree with the man viewing porn where children can see, but I don't think he should be kept from viewing it.
Ninjam wrote on 2012-02-04 15:15

Quote from TheKartheus;761123:
There's kind of a big difference between censorship LAWS, and censorship RULES.

Porn itself isn't illegal, but they censor it in highschool, because that's not something you allow kids to see. If they do it at home, that's there own business. But I know I wouldn't want to be in a room at school with someone watching porn. I'm glad they have those censors, or I know people would. So why is it any different at a public library? I don't care about there not being a law saying they have to; the library should decide for itself that people can't do that. I don't care if the kids "have to learn about it eventually". One of them was 7 years old. Other people have no right to thrust the choice of when to talk about it onto you like that.

And someone said something about not whining and complaining, and fixing it yourself. If this woman isn't fixing it herself, I don't know what is. She talked to the librarian, she talked to the guy, she talked to the police. She can't physically touch him or she's the one who gets in trouble. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't consider MLK Jr. a whiner/complainer, even though all he did was talk to people about stuff being wrong.

Well, in a way she is fixing it herself, i guess. I just see too many stupid parents to even believe there are any smart ones. I have heard of parents asking why **** book was on these shelves, or why THERE WAS PRON ON ONE OF THE COMPUTER SCREENS (it was a student studying anatamy or something, she had already checked with the librarian to see if it was ok). I used to have a class in the school library and got to study a lot of this kind of stuff, it was fun.

The proper solution for this would be to have better organization. Most libraries ive seen were perfect, they clearly marked the children's sections and sectioned it off with a desk near it for staff. 10 year old me loved it cause i knew that they kept the good books somewhere else. I was a strange child, i much preferred to try and read something interesting than books that i could read in my sleep. It was ok with the library because it ment i would only be checking out 2 or 3 books instead of 10 or 11 i could read in 15 seconds.

Anyway, the library was in the right for not censoring, but in the wrong for not moving the computers away or asking him to leave. Just turn them away from the major walkways or set up privacy walls would be good.

And the guy was stupid, who watches porn in a public place anyway?

And MLK was a whiner/complainer. A very very good complainer, who knew how to tick people off nonviolently to fix some big problems that were happening because the government is stupid.

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