‘You can’t save people from themselves’:
This about just one of the many scourges on the internet that I talk about but this one has nothing to do with crime per se. This has to do with websites that proclaim that eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia are not diseases but ‘lifestyle choices’.
That’s right. You heard me correctly. There are people out there who actually believe that disorders like anorexia are not only good but are a viable alternative to…you know…eating.
The article sort of poses the question should pro-ana and pro-mia sites be censored? Now if you mean censored in the way that they should be outlawed by the government then no. If you mean censored in the way that webhosts like Livejournal, MySpace, and Xanga should shut them down for violating their TOS then yes.
But places like MySpace, LiveJournal, and Xanga do not want to shut these groups down. They claim that it’s free speech but we all really know what it’s about. They don’t want to alienate a part of their userbase that clicks on their advertisements which in turn makes them money. Never mind if a few people end up killing themselves over what they call a lifestyle choice, there’s money to be made from those skeletons.
Webhosts like MySpace and the like need to be more personally responsible instead of financially responsible. If these groups were to be shut down would it really hurt the bottom line?
If there was a pro-suicide group would the webhosts allow those? Because claiming that eating disorders are a choice is basically the same thing.
The Trench Reynolds Report 
Kudos to Microsoft and Yahoo for clamping down on these sites…I only wish the other ones mentioned would see the light, considering that sooner or later, someone will die b/c of “tips” they recieved on a group devoted to this disturbing trend.
An ep of “Judging Amy” from a few years back actually dealt w/this…in a nutshell, a girl becomes deathly ill from tips she recieved on a pro-ana site, and its owner is taken to court. Initially unrepentant, she has a change of heart after visiting this girl in the hospital and agrees to shut it down…unfortunately, the girl suddenly dies and the site’s owner is then charged w/her murder. Will it take a real life re-enactment of this ep for MS, LJ, etc. to decide some extra $$$ isn’t worth it?
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When are people going to realize that “freedom of speech” has to do with the GOVERNMENT and not for-profit companies????
If anyone at these sites had an iota of a soul, they’d just these groups down.
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Correction: “they’d just SHUT these….”
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Pro-ana websites get a lot of bad press, but they’re not all that bad. True, some of them are full of “tips” like 59-item lists of reasons to not eat, and may lead some people to a seriously unhealthy lifestyle. And if you’re going to a website to show you how to be anorexic, then it IS a lifestyle choice, albeit a very stupid one.
Referring to the Pro-anorexia site on Livejournal, I think it’s great to have a place where I can talk to people who understand what I’m going through. The environment is just so supportive, and everyone there is a real victim who knows the dangers of anorexia. Posts that could be detrimental to a reader’s health, like the above “tips”, are banned, and the moderators of the site make it clear that anorexia is in no way a good or glamorous thing.
I’ve been a member of Pro-anorexia on Livejournal for a month or so now, and I’ve recently began to recover.
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Anyone who thinks of “clamping down” on speech should really think of the big picture first…and if you cannot see the big picture than a trip to China is in order. the ultimate Nanny Society.
The Harassment fine is appropriate. It represents “behavior modification”. We give fines for people who do inappropriate hurtful behavior to others. If we put people in prison for fines..we would have 90% of American society behind bars!!! What if someone didn’t like you and “made up” a case of harassment..but didn’t do it and you went to prison?
The only person responsible in a suicide is the person committing the act. We are entering dangerous territory if we imprison someone for writing text. How we interpret the text is our own damn fault. Should we backtrack and imprison the writers of movie and novel “horror flicks” because someone decided to go out and mimic the murder?
The Internet is not a baby sitter. You would not let your child or teenager run around in it just like you would not let them run around the streets of NYC at night.
The internet is a tool. good and bad. More good than bad. Like any tool..you must teach young impressionable minds to understand how the tool works and respect it and take care of it..and some of these tools may have minds of their own that want to control, manipulate or take your money. Just like in THE REAL WORLD. The faster AND younger they learn this the better!!! Sheltering your kids from knowledge about bad people in the world is the WORST thing you can do. You are limiting their chances of survival of the fittest!
Self-control the ego is another tool to be taught at a young age. Her ego was destroyed..and she was weak about herself…probably from “too much sheltering” and thus the ego, which has such a strong hold, will “eliminate itself” along with the body to protect it or win (It doesn’t care about hypocrisy)! This results in either murdering others for a idealist concept and/or suicide. (e.g. Dr. Tiller murder)
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