Quote:On the other, political correctness is starkly enforced, and you claim there's things 'we don't really want minors to see'. This essentially makes ultimate moral choices for everyone on the server as to what they are and are not comfortable with--and, worse, making the 'Big Brother knows best' judgment for anyone who happens to be under 18. How can one's fantasy be unrestricted when their reality IS restricted? This is a clear contradiction in the rules. Either do away with insisting everyone be 'nice', or do away with this age limit. Or, just do away with saying that any RP is allowable. These values are mutually exclusive and will butt heads sooner rather than later.
Because fantasy and reality are two separate and unrelated things. There is no contradiction here.
I think you confuse the notion of political correctness with rules that enforce maturity. And yes, I find making use of stereotypes or doing blanket insults on groups of people to be highly immature. Continuing on, this has nothing at all to do with how things operate ICly. You can be the worst bigot in the world ICly (so long as it fits within the world) and I wouldn't care.
If it were in my interests to have the server be totally "politically correct," you can imagine that I would not let as many of the off-color and inherently sexual jokes go by, that do so daily on the LFG channel.
We CAN have it both ways. I was on a MUD that successfully DID have it both ways. No problems occurred.
Quote:Further, while you might not want people to think this isn't a 'sex server', "18+" and "roleplaying" taken next to each other means EXACTLY THAT. I'm positive a search of Yahoo Groups will back me up on this. I can take screenshots of Neverwinter Nights servers with those two keywords and post extremely censored versions of them here if anyone requests that I produce the body on this claim.
And I can also show you adult-themed games and servers that AREN'T entirely sex-oriented. I don't think this logic is going to go anywhere.
Quote:Also, on the note of 'extreme depictions of violence and death'; I'm sorry, you could write a paragraph intricately describing blood, gore, and pain, and the depiction of it is still going to be weaker than the violence in any of a huge list of M rated games. Half Life 2, for example, allows players to light humans on fire and listen to their agonized screams of "GOD, KILL ME!" or the sobbing cries of "PUT IT OUUUUUTTT". I'll also note that Half Life 2 sold millions upon millions of copies...with a huge chunk of the target demographic being 14-17.
Half-life 2 is rated M. The ESRB's website notes that this means the game is intended for people aged seventeen and older. If people below that age bracket get the game, then it's not on Valve or the ESRB. Point being, HL2 was *warned as being an adult-oriented game.* Your example just strengthens that case. The only difference is that for games, there are no laws that prohibit the sale to minors (in the US.)
Also to point out, the ESRB has the ability to stamp an AO (Adults Only) rating on games simply for being too violent. Their definition of an AO rating shows that.
The point being, sexuality is not the only "adult theme" possible in a game. On that note, do not underestimate what people can do with words.
Quote:It's not only a wasted gesture, it's counter-productive to blanketly assume that anyone under 18 is a kid. I'm not saying that there aren't fragile people who couldn't handle roleplaying with adults--I'm saying that there are at least as many people, if not more, that ARE.
Everyone under 18 IS a kid. That's the definition. Yes, there are some adults that are immature. That's why we have other rules that enforce maturity.
Quote:Some people are uncomfortable that minors might be exploited or mocked? Aren't those things already forbidden in the server's rule of 'be friendly and politically correct'? Also, none of the roleplaying that I've seen done so far was done in such a way that the entire world could see it and not look away. If someone is uncomfortable RPing around minors, it only takes a simple question and a quick request to get rid of them.
You greatly overestimate people if you think they're going to pause before every adult situation and say "Ok, is everyone here over 18?" It's not going to happen, period.
Quote:Lastly, and mostly: How in any way are these really rather minor comfort preferences taking precedence over an entire group of people that are ALREADY on the server and have been making wonderful contributions? Why do a few peoples' desire for a little extra peace of mind outweigh the desire of an entire group of people to play at all?
First off, playing here is a privilege. We can remove you from the server for any reason whatsoever. Kretol doesn't like the color of your shirt, he can boot you off the server. That is how private servers work.
Does peace of mind outweigh the desire of a group of people to play here? In this case, I think it does. Mark my words that, as populations grow there WILL be a problem caused if minors and adult situations are continued to allow to be happened side-by-side. It's only a matter of time. I see no problem with working to prevent a problem before it occurs, instead of waiting for it to happen and then dealing with the likely messy aftermath.
Another note on legal liability: there may be a law that protects server owners. Guess what? That doesn't apply here. The server is illegal, the law wouldn't protect it or Kretol. On a more extreme example, a drug-dealer cannot press charges on someone who stole his merchandise. He shouldn't have had drugs to begin with.