New Photo Forum

[traveller123]

Faster still - sorry guys

[Aikuchi]

Faster still - sorry guys

 

Not too fast - dont burn yourself out  

[Gwydion62]

There's a 'minimum character' threshold before a post shows in your count so you are wasting your time.

 

 

As for the change, as I said earlier, Admin/Mods can set things up as they see fit then members can decide whether to continue on the forum. No problems.

 

It's just a shame that one extremely awkward, seemingly unpleasant, member having a hissy-fit can make changes necessary.

[jfarmer017]

Well hopefully with this issue being put to rest, everyone can move on. But I would like to close with just a few points:

 

1) Obviously, Admin/mods are fully within their right to set whatever limitations or parameters on the forums as they see fit. No disagreement here.

 

2) That said, I do think it was a bit of a solution in search of a problem. Beyond that, no protest from me.

 

3) For those members whose experience of the forum who will be adversely effect by the change the admin has implemented, I apologize.

 

4) Frankly, I think this notion of using photos "without permission" is a bit of a crock. I have seen hundreds and hundreds of photos on this site, and it would be absurd to assume that even a fraction of the posts were done by people who had "permission" (in any sense that the word means) to distribute and publish those pictures. If someone sends you a photo via a messaging or other internet app that they have taken themselves, then that photo for all intents and purposes does belong to you. In fact, the exact same photos of the boy in question were posted on the "Model Photoshoots" months ago without issue. 

 

5) I was well aware when I made each of the posts over the past couple of weeks that they were a bit on the edge of what certain members would consider in good taste. Not wanting to see the forum descend into a parade of soft and hard corn pornography is a legitimate concern. I received some positive feedback after the first couple, including through DM, and decided that it might be a little thing to keep going. Seeing what he descended to proved me very wrong.

 

6) As I said before, the whole point of the posts was for members to read and maybe get a bit titillated by. I did genuinely feel bad that the pics of one of the guys got back to him and caused him any problem. 

 

7) As for samebb and his contention that, "Just because a THAI boy has facebook or grindr, doesn't mean he is a money boy." Well, that is certainly true. But as for your "friend," perhaps you are not as familiar with him as you seem to believe. He, in fact, has been a money boy, and I have known him for several years, including when I first met him at a bar in sunnee plaza. 

 

Nonetheless, I am perfectly content with foregoing making anymore posts in that style and henceforth will not. We can legitimately disagree on the content and the tone, but I could do without some of the overwrought hyperventilating by certain members here.

[a447a]

I like the idea of a new forum but think 200 posts is a big ask. I would like to see it lowered, especially as many more members seem to read the forum and prefer not to post.

 

Whether they post or not, as members, they are still participating of they log on and read the forum.

 

I'd hate to think that we lost members because of it. The newbies, of which there are many on this forum, will take ages to rack up 200 meaningful posts. It would seem like an eternity to them and we are in danger of them leaving. We need to do everything to encourage them to stay.

[stijntje]

I fully agree

I think the 200 cutoff may have unintended consequences and suggest it be lowered. I counted just 89 members who have posted more than 200 posts and 32 of those have not posted in a year.  The members page lists 826 pages with 20 per page, so you have over 16000 members.  This doesn't include the folks who may be reading without becoming members.

 

In my case, do I really want to continue reading the forum if the pictures are gone/unviewable for me?  Do I feel like posting for the sake of upping my post count? I get bored fairly quickly so it is more likely I will drop off as a reader.

 

[Vessey]

I can understand entirely why a new forum has been created with a relatively high threshold.

 

If we choose to post pictures we need to be able to do so in the confidence that if someone recognises one of the boys he isn't going to go rushing over to show/tell him all about it and then come and derail the thread by kicking-up a fuss.

 

If there is an issue with a picture, then the 'report' button to the Moderators is in easy reach.

[sglad]

I like the idea of a new forum but think 200 posts is a big ask. I would like to see it lowered, especially as many more members seem to read the forum and prefer not to post.

 

Whether they post or not, as members, they are still participating of they log on and read the forum.

 

I'd hate to think that we lost members because of it. The newbies, of which there are many on this forum, will take ages to rack up 200 meaningful posts. It would seem like an eternity to them and we are in danger of them leaving. We need to do everything to encourage them to stay.

 

Agreed.  Never mind meaningful posts, it takes forever to rack up 200 inane posts!

[Guest]

I tend to agree with the many comments and PM's I've received.  We want the photo forum to be restricted but not restrictive of active members.  We will move the count to 100.  It will not be moved below that mark.  The site relies on people to participate actively and only those with over 100 posts will have access to that forum.

[Aikuchi]

haha ... and i was just about to get 200  

[sglad]

I tend to agree with the many comments and PM's I've received.  We want the photo forum to be restricted but not restrictive of active members.  We will move the count to 100.  It will not be moved below that mark.  The site relies on people to participate actively and only those with over 100 posts will have access to that forum.

 

Thanks, Scooby!

[steveboy]

addressing other members and contributors "idiots" is NOT a community building exercise

 

And he has the nerve to call his witch hunt a "community building exercise"?

[kokopelli]

For what it's worth, with the exception of the photos from a commercial porn site (clearly indicated by the photo's watermark), every picture I posted was either taken personally by me or was sent/given to me by the subject. And every picture posted is of someone I have known personally. No photos were taken from the Internet or "stolen" from anyone's social media account. 

For me it is not worth much.  Personal photos taken by  or given to a person, by the subject, are personal and should not be posted. An action best described as unethical .  This discussion has been discussed previously on this forum. 

The worst were the three photos featuring the boy with dark hair, two showing his face and one of him being fucked by a farang.

Would anyone like those type of photos of themselves being posted? 

[a447a]

Yay! An administrator who actually listens to his members.

[jfarmer017]

For me it is not worth much.  Personal photos taken by  or given to a person, by the subject, are personal and should not be posted. An action best described as unethical .  This discussion has been discussed previously on this forum. 

 

That very well may be true, though I still think it is certainly a gray area. Personally, I think that when you share photos of yourself and post same photos to Instagram and FB accounts, there is not much "privacy" to be expected. But nonetheless I concede it's an ethically ambivalent question. But mostly that response was to the originally offended party who believed that the pictures had been randomly taken from his friend's FB account. 

 

Again, I think the ethical question is pretty absurd given that the "Some Model Photoshoots" thread is hundreds and hundreds of pages long, and I don't recall much discussion over whether the subject of any of those photos wanted their photos shared on this site. 

 

The worst were the three photos featuring the boy with dark hair, two showing his face and one of him being fucked by a farang.

Would anyone like those type of photos of themselves being posted? 

 

 

Those photos were taken from a commercial pornographic website and are accessible to anyone with an Internet connection and about five seconds of googling. 

[emailbroken]

That very well may be true, though I still think it is certainly a gray area. Personally, I think that when you share photos of yourself and post same photos to Instagram and FB accounts, there is not much "privacy" to be expected. But nonetheless I concede it's an ethically ambivalent question. But mostly that response was to the originally offended party who believed that the pictures had been randomly taken from his friend's FB account. 

 

Again, I think the ethical question is pretty absurd given that the "Some Model Photoshoots" thread is hundreds and hundreds of pages long, and I don't recall much discussion over whether the subject of any of those photos wanted their photos shared on this site. 

 

 

 

Those photos were taken from a commercial pornographic website and are accessible to anyone with an Internet connection and about five seconds of googling. 

Honestly I think it is really good that we keep discussing this, even though each time a calm point is made someone starts shrieking.

 

I guess with the a photo of a model there is clearly implied that the photo will be widely shared.

 

Again, really good that we keep these things in mind. 

[jfarmer017]

I guess with the a photo of a model there is clearly implied that the photo will be widely shared.

 

I agree that there is a difference, but that is using "model" in the loosest since imaginable. Yes, some of the photos posted are professional shoots whose subjects could be said to be models. But the photos that have been posted here are of all sorts of provenance, including those taken by the members themselves, those discovered on the internet, those taken from pornographic sites, and those taken from social media and hookup apps and sites. If we are going to apply a standard of legalese to photos that is not completely arbitrary and capricious, then probably 95% of the photos posted on this site would need to be removed.

[Moses]

probably 95% of the photos posted on this site would need to be removed.

 

GT isn't "fap-site", so if 95% photos of boys here will be removed, then I will not take it as a tragedy, but if 95% of reports about travels and visits to Thailand and South East Asia will be removed  then GT will be almost useless for me.

[Guest ryanasia]

I agree that there is a difference, but that is using "model" in the loosest since imaginable. Yes, some of the photos posted are professional shoots whose subjects could be said to be models. But the photos that have been posted here are of all sorts of provenance, including those taken by the members themselves, those discovered on the internet, those taken from pornographic sites, and those taken from social media and hookup apps and sites. If we are going to apply a standard of legalese to photos that is not completely arbitrary and capricious, then probably 95% of the photos posted on this site would need to be removed.

There is no difference really. Except some of your pics seem to be personal and you have seemed to hit a chord that many people think is in bad taste.

[jfarmer017]

There is no difference really. Except some of your pics seem to be personal and you have seemed to hit a chord that many people think is in bad taste.

 

"Many people" seems to be a bit of a stretch. I think so far I have counted two people who seem to have any significant problems whatsoever. And one of those seems to be under a misapprehension that his "good friend's" photos were stolen and lies told about him. Neither of which is true. 

 

I just find it odd that my posts are deemed "in bad taste" when this forum is full of "reviews" of guys from Gayromeo, Grindr, Hornet, etc. as well as "trip reports" in which photos are posted, where guys were met, what they charged, and graphic descriptions of the sexual activities they engaged in are all discussed. 

 

Does anyone fret about any of the "boys" in the reviews or trip reports having given permission for their sexual proclivities and activities to be discussed frankly and gloated about by their customers? I have certainly read trip reports or descriptions of interactions with guys that I thought certainly pushed the envelop of good taste. But here's the difference between me and some other members here. I can accept that different people have different tastes, and they are as entitled to their taste as I am to mine. What I do not do is throw a hissy fit and demand that actions be taken because my sensibilities have been offended. As the great British wit Stephen Fry once famously remarked, the only proper response to "I am offended," is "Well, so fucking what?" 

 

I think this board is broad enough to accommodate the various members and inquisitive guests who come for all sorts of reasons. There are certain members here whose posts I do not care for, and i have a very simple solution to the problem: I don't read them. But for the certain subset of human beings who are absolutely determined to be offended, there is not much you can do about them.

[numazu]

"Many people" seems to be a bit of a stretch. I think so far I have counted two people who seem to have any significant problems whatsoever. And one of those seems to be under a misapprehension that his "good friend's" photos were stolen and lies told about him. Neither of which is true.

Lol. Why is it so hard to believe that samebb is good friends with the boy. I know samebb personally, and can vouch for him. And there is significant chatter offline about your post too. Unfortunately the loudest voices on this board are usually the most abrasive.

 

I used to write a shit ton of content for this forum because I enjoyed sharing my stories, and stories that actually happened to me mind you. Not some cockamamie fantasy. Nowadays I think why even bother to do that if it just devolves into this.

 

Ok we can go back to the bitching now.

[jfarmer017]

Lol. Why is it so hard to believe that samebb is good friends with the boy. I know samebb personally, and can vouch for him.

 

I never said that it was hard to believe or that it wasn't true. What I said was not true was (a) the photos posted of the boy were not taken from his social media account (some he shared with me and some I took myself personally), and (b) that I lied about his friend. I did no such thing. I have met that boy myself and have met him several times. Samebb's accusations about what I did were what I was disputing, not his contention that he is good friends with the boy.

 

 

And there is significant chatter offline about your post too.

 

 

Well without being privy to such chatter, I have nothing to say about it. If anyone has any issues with something I have said or done, they are more than welcome to bring their concerns to me, and I will give as honest a response as I possibly can.

 

 

I used to write a shit ton of content for this forum because I enjoyed sharing my stories, and stories that actually happened to me mind you. Not some cockamamie fantasy.

 

What stopped you?

 

Not some cockamamie fantasy. Nowadays I think why even bother to do that if it just devolves into this.

 

 

I think you are confusing two things. There is a difference between posting a "trip report," which is meant to convey an honest reflection of a trip you have taken, and when you post something that never pretends to be anything more than an escapist fantasy. My posts were really no different from the hundreds of "model photoshoots" that have been posted over the years with the exception that I added some narration to spice it up a bit. They never made any pretense to be anything else.

 

And as for "devolves into this," there are 30 topics on the main GT forum page. About 90% of which have nothing to do with any of this. Again, I think this is a tempest in a teapot, "offline chatter" notwithstanding. 

[stijntje]

Thank you Scooby

I tend to agree with the many comments and PM's I've received.  We want the photo forum to be restricted but not restrictive of active members.  We will move the count to 100.  It will not be moved below that mark.  The site relies on people to participate actively and only those with over 100 posts will have access to that forum.

[sglad]

Yay! An administrator who actually listens to his members.

 

While I salute a moderator who considers the views of his members, a moderator who listens to his members will end up being like the old man and his donkey.

[lilbob69]

I like the idea of a new forum but think 200 posts is a big ask. I would like to see it lowered, especially as many more members seem to read the forum and prefer not to post.

 

Whether they post or not, as members, they are still participating of they log on and read the forum.

 

I'd hate to think that we lost members because of it. The newbies, of which there are many on this forum, will take ages to rack up 200 meaningful posts. It would seem like an eternity to them and we are in danger of them leaving. We need to do everything to encourage them to stay.

 

Yes 200 posts seems a long way away for me at the moment. I probably could get there in a week or two but they would be useless posts that add nothing to the forum, so would it be worth it? For me yes...