I would like to ask anyone who reads this to avoid the Furtopia message board and community. I was recently contacted by the admin for using inappropriate language and instructed to "keep it clean". You might observe very little vulgarity in my journal; and in fact I never swear. I'm too literal; I use words for their meaning, and not for their shock value. Nor did I swear on the Furtopia message board, or use any inappropriate language. I posted an offsite link to let people know I too have dealt with amorous jerks online, and participated in their ranks sadly. I made sure to put in a disclaimer, and not in any way violate the board's PG-13 policy.
I got a private message today from the board's owner, a lion name of Benjamin Eren Robinson. In it he said
I've edited your post in "Don'tcha hate it when..." which had some rather inappropriate material.\ Keep it clean, please.\ Thanks!Now, in hindsight I agree that he has the right to censor me from that board of thousands of people, but he can't get away with doing it in a clandestine manner. I myself don't agree that an off-site link constitutes a violation of PG-13 guidelines, but that's not enough for me to ask you to stop using the Furtopia message board. There's more.
I'm no longer allowed to post. Without any notice or warning I have been made unable to defend myself in the claim of inappropriate behavior. Not only that, I can no longer participate in the board. I can only look at my profile and read posts. No notice has been given of this, nor any method of appeal. All the other Furtopia users remain unaware of what has been done to me, and I can't tell them.
Furthermore, the post where I put my "inappropriate" material was edited to make it look like I deserved to be censored. It could just be Benjamin trying to be cute by spitting my words back at me, but it could also be him trying to use me to look better as an admin. The offending text I originally posted was deleted by Benjamin forever, but it went something like this:
I prolly shouldn't say this, but... I have had a really bad experience before, both the fault of me and the person I was colliding with. Don't read this if you're not allowed, but if you are it's pretty darned funny. n.n http://synx.dyndns.org/~starling/the_seduction_of_starling.txtShould such a lavascious, bad taste and borderline illegal log be referred to? Debatable. Could I get attacked by the State for my honesty? Probably. But was it inappropriate language, and did I not "keep it clean?" Absolutely not!
Now here's what Benjamin did to the post:
I prolly shouldn't say this, but... [Edit by Benjamin: Yeah, you probably shouldn't say it. Keep it clean, please. 'Tis a PG-13 board, after all.]\ Look, Benjamin, I'm sure you're a great person. In fact, you're probably a honest forthright Christian who works hard at his job and supports our troops overseas, selflessly administering a message board on top of that and Sunday night football. But you don't have to imply that I was swearing and lewd and vulgar in the post itself, so that before the darling children could turn their eyes away they learned what the word sex looks like. I know your religion, whether it's Christianity or "Status quo"ism, teaches you that anything sexual is dirty and wrong, so you have to "keep it clean" by censoring that stuff, otherwise the State will shut your board down for COPPA (Christian Orthodox Prudes Persecuting Amorousness) violations. You have a lot to deal with, and I respect your need to remove my link from your board.
...but you didn't have to imply that I used vulgar language.
To my friends at large, therefore, I have no choice but to ask that you stop using the Furtopia message board. I have been censored there to protect the children, and that is reason enough to avoid the place. I have been prevented from apologizing or arguing my case, due to a secret ban stopping my ability to post. I have finally been ridiculed and used to make Benjamin look like a more competent and capable admin. For those three reasons I'm going to have to find someplace else to be furry. I ask that you, my readers, follow suit, not just out of some silly notion that anyone actually reads this blog, but as a warning to help you avoid such persecution. Furry is about acceptance, love and understanding, not about "keeping it clean."
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