Thank You Soupers! - Team PoetrySoup's Blog

JoyceJohnson

Date: 1/6/2013 4:33:00 PM

Thank you Soup for having and enforcing certain limits. I am proud to found on your site. Sincerely, Joyce

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Date: 1/6/2013 1:47:00 AM

May I kindly request that an identification is made available (same as all the other categories by which we label our poetry) where WE may choose (if we wish to) the level of "Adult Viewing". This, to my mind, would be the simplest solution to satisfy this need to identify adult material. NO, no one else needs to "police" this - it is up to each poet if he/she wishes to append this classification to his/her poem(s). Thank you.

Suzette Crous Date: 1/6/2013 12:11:00 PM

It would be too difficult to lock out readers at different levels. In SA, 16 is the marrying age and considered an adult. I do not propose a tolerance of smut, but a level of freedom where we could post poetry without offending the younger audience. My poem, LONELY, might be construed by some as being inappropriate for a eg 12 year old to read.

Becca Lucas Date: 1/6/2013 9:04:00 AM

I'd still like to see 18 and up if any explicit material is allowed... identifying something as "adult content" is like a magnet, I'm sure....

CharmaineChircop

Date: 1/6/2013 12:01:00 AM

It would be great if the site would be divided into two..One part for kids and teens...and the other part 18plus.That way adults can expreme themselves as they wish..and teens or kids would still be able to write their poetry.I know its easier said than done but its just my idea.Happy New Year to all

Charmaine Chircop Date: 1/7/2013 12:48:00 AM

Im already watching what Christina absorbs ..Till now she s still in fairyland..and her only passion is smurfs and munchkins:)

Charmaine Chircop Date: 1/7/2013 12:46:00 AM

If Christina would stay in front of the computer..I definetely be there watching what she s doing when it comes to that Ruben.Its my responsibility to check what she s reading and not restricting what others write.I can t cover her eyes everytime some nude painting is on show..I can t close her ear everytime mazini sings va fan.... I do believe when she s old enough to write adults poetry is the same time she s old enough to read it.Till she s innocent to know how to write certain things..she s innocent enough not to understand.She s going to be in the real world after all sooner or later.I hate lapsus and restricting the muse from doing its job but its my opinion.

Ruben O. Date: 1/6/2013 8:37:00 AM

Dont leave Christina alone in front of the screen if you're in PS! LOL!

JoeFlach

Date: 1/5/2013 6:12:00 PM

I love what most people are saying here and conquer with most of the sentiments. The only additional suggestion I would add is: Try to email the poet first and communicate directly to them your concern about their poem. Give them the benefit of the doubt that the offense was unintentional and can be fixed. If, after that, you still have a concern, then notify Team PS. We can try to resolve issues one on one before turning in our fellow poet to the PS Police. It may be a simple misunderstanding or innocent mistake with a simple soultion. Other than that - I agree - its PS's site and they have the right to make and enforce the rules as they see fit.

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BeccaLucas

Date: 1/5/2013 4:53:00 PM

Ruben, I appreciate you removing your sarcastic statement, and I accept your apology. I respect the fact that you posted the apology openly, here.. that was nice. thank you.

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Ruben O.

Date: 1/5/2013 4:08:00 PM

@ Rebecca: Accept my apologies for my unintentional "mistake"...I changed my comment.

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Ruben O. Date: 1/5/2013 9:11:00 PM

OK...it was not unintentional...and it was not a mistake. : ( Im sorry.

Ruben O.

Date: 1/5/2013 3:54:00 PM

@ James: You would have thought that the adults on this site would be able to read between the lines as to what is and what's not (???) Which is the relationship between adulthood and art? By what measure do you define adulthood? By what measure do you define art? A sexually explicit poem, painting, movie could be considered "art"... it's subjective! What you think it's or it's not is just your opinion. And your opinion is not more important than someone's else opinion. I think this debate is going and going to nowhere. As I said below, I believe that TPS will know how to handle the eventual deletion of a potential "unclean" poem. Happy New Year, James! : )

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James Fraser Date: 1/6/2013 6:10:00 AM

Debate over for me also 'Happy New Year' Ruben :)

DebraSquyres

Date: 1/5/2013 11:20:00 AM

I personally applaud the soup for setting boundaries. There are other sites that allow what is not allowed here and all are free to post there whatever they wish. Keep up the good work, Team Poetry Soup !!

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James Fraser Date: 1/5/2013 2:46:00 PM

I also concur totally :)
Becca Lucas Date: 1/5/2013 12:22:00 PM

I second that!!!

Ruben O.

Date: 1/5/2013 11:03:00 AM

Anyways, my concern here is WHO is going to decide WHAT is explicit or not and under WHICH particular (religious?) view of morality, of obscenity... of sexuality? TPS doesn't read every posted poem... so...we're going to have to read or write just what Mr. "I-am-not-longer-active" (a military personnel) or Mrs. "eating-versicles-all-day-long" decide do not deserve a SoupMail-complaint to TPS. (???)

Becca Lucas Date: 1/5/2013 4:58:00 PM

You too Ruben!! :) lol

Ruben O. Date: 1/5/2013 4:36:00 PM

Happy New Year, Rebecca!! : )

Becca Lucas Date: 1/5/2013 4:20:00 PM

I agree with James. Soup sets the rules, we follow the rules. Or, we can choose to go to another website... there are plenty that don't care what is posted.

Ruben O. Date: 1/5/2013 3:58:00 PM

No! We don't have to police ourselves! If we don't like what we're reading we "click" and that's it. Control, control, control...let them be!

James Fraser Date: 1/5/2013 2:45:00 PM

The simple rules here are, we should know how far to go. If a poet or poets do step over the line, then we have to Police ourselves and if this were to happen, we have to report such which in turn the reporter will never be revealed, simples!!!!

Becca Lucas Date: 1/5/2013 12:20:00 PM

:) Thanks, TPS for not backing down... and keeping a great sense of humor. I love that :)

Team PoetrySoup Date: 1/5/2013 11:20:00 AM

Thanks Ruben. We think we have a great poetry family here and part of the reason it is great is because of our standards. All families have family rules...or should. :-)

Ruben O. Date: 1/5/2013 11:18:00 AM

Im going to trust you. : )

Team PoetrySoup Date: 1/5/2013 11:11:00 AM

As you can see Ruben by all of the comments, everyone has their own opinion on this. So, guess whose opinion matters the most on PoetrySoup? Hehehehehe.

Ruben O.

Date: 1/5/2013 11:02:00 AM

@ Charles: I read the Kama Sutra, the Marquis of sade, the Decameron...even Tropic of Cancer in my early teens...and just because at that age I was really interested in sexuality. Although sometimes I suffer from torticollis, Im an inoffensive adult who enjoy his sexuality in a "proper" manner. Those books didnt hurt me. Do you "really" think that we have to be 18 years old to read an erotic poem? ------------------------------>

Charles Henderson Date: 1/5/2013 10:19:00 PM

for those like me who were never a child, I think 13 or 14 would do. Trouble is you can't regulate that. However in mos places 18 is a legal age, which gets the soup off of the hook.

Ruben O.

Date: 1/5/2013 11:01:00 AM

@ Rebecca: You say that you "feel VERY uncomfortable walking in to Blockbuster and seeing some of the images being proudly displayed there!" I dont know what to say! I guess you would feel unfomfortable even in The Musée du Louvre. I respect your ideas although I don't share them.

James Fraser Date: 1/5/2013 2:41:00 PM

T.P.S. sure know how to handle this and long may it continue, and let the laying of letters to words be the foundation for this terrific site. When I look back to G S Poetry & Writers-Network, the Soup is Galaxies ahead of them.

James Fraser Date: 1/5/2013 2:35:00 PM

In the UK, Blockbuster don't hire or sell top shelf material. For this I applaud them totally. Porn & Art is being is the question here, and it's deciphering what is and what is not. I would have thought the adults on this site would be able to read between the lines as to what is and what's not!!

Ruben O. Date: 1/5/2013 1:44:00 PM

But....we're always going about the same thing...What is art? What is considered art? Is a erotic-explicit poem art? Is a picture of a couple making love art? Im finished here...I think that TPS knows how to handle the complaints. Peace and Love.

Becca Lucas Date: 1/5/2013 12:22:00 PM

I love art.

Team PoetrySoup Date: 1/5/2013 11:16:00 AM

This is why you do not see XXX magazines in your local grocery store or Walmart. Most people don't want to see that...or have their children see it.

CharlottePuddifoot

Date: 1/5/2013 5:06:00 AM

we all obviously have sexual experiences otherwise none of us would have children, so why is it that we are so deeply affronted by poems on the subject? it's just another experience in life and art should imitate life...there are too many people trying to police other people in this world...

Team PoetrySoup Date: 1/5/2013 7:08:00 AM

I'm sure most parents here (including you) don't take their children to XXX movies, so drawing the line is not unusual. Some people just draw it in different places.

Suzette Crous

Date: 1/5/2013 12:39:00 AM

I am happy to abide by the rules and as it was stated here, if I feel uncomfortable reading a poem or a blog, I leave and have many more to choose from which are to my taste. Now here is an enigma: I posted the poem "Evil Follows Good" as a test on another site and after receiving rave revues, it was removed after a complaint was received that it promotes hateful thoughts. Go figure! I posted it here on PoetrySoup, together with the blog giving the background to the poem. The content, it seems, might be viewed differently by different people. I would like to see just one change on PS and that is that we as poets may comment with constructive criticism - it would help us to grow as poets.

Suzette Crous Date: 1/5/2013 12:45:00 AM

If a poem is excellent, there is not much more that can be said about it. But if there needs to be a tweaking of a phrase or a spelling mistake, then it is cumbersome to soupmail every time.

Suzette Crous Date: 1/5/2013 12:45:00 AM

Other poets might disagree with the assessment and be allowed to comment. A debate or input from various poets would be helpful to me. Thank you. I have in the past suggested that we indicate which poems are for adult reading only - one of my previous blogs.

CharlesHenderson

Date: 1/4/2013 10:00:00 PM

One other point I wanted to make and did not have the room. It is usually the same people all the time who complain most, of being censored. Most of the people, most of the time, try to stay well within good propriety, but the same few are always pushing the limit.

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CharlesHenderson

Date: 1/4/2013 9:39:00 PM

Ruben, If you have a 12 year old or younger kid on the soup reading some of the things that older people could care less about, it does make a difference. If the soup would hold the membership age to 18, I don't think anyone would/could complain. But until then I have to stand with enforcing the stated rules. Since the soup wrote the rules it is up to them and them only to interpret their meaning and make the final decision on what is or isn't appropriate soup material. None of us have the right to demand they remove or leave any particular work. There would be a growth period while we learn what they are likely to take off, but I think most basically know already. Cyndi has the key.

James Fraser Date: 1/5/2013 2:29:00 PM

Poetry Soup has to remain exactly as it was intended to be, and that's for all ages. I applaud this totally, and I always will......

TeamPoetrySoup

Date: 1/4/2013 9:33:00 PM

20 - 30% of the users of this website are under the age of 18.

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TeamPoetrySoup

Date: 1/4/2013 9:31:00 PM

@Ruben, of course it is subjective. What is NOT subjective? There are PLENTY of poetry sites that allow anything. That is not the choice of the owners of THIS website. Not all bars are nude bars. Not all music companies produce gangster rap. The owners of the company decide.

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Joann Grisetti Date: 1/5/2013 8:26:00 AM

Thank you. Everything has a place, just not all of it here. I can post elesewhere if I want to get slammed.

CYNDIMACMILLAN

Date: 1/4/2013 7:41:00 PM

A direct question for Soup Administration... please... do you consider the Song of Solomon vulgar? If you say, no, I have a better understanding of what you deem acceptable. If you say yes, I have another decision to make. Now, I do understand, as others SHOULD, that this site is for all age groups (we did not sign a "I'm 18 or older" waver when we signed up for a membership) so I understand the need to stay clean, promote a safe environment for the 12 plus group, but I also believe that sensuality can exist in well written poetry, tastefully written. Are all poems that even suggest the sensual forbidden? Thank you in advance for a response, Cyndi

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Team PoetrySoup Date: 1/4/2013 9:26:00 PM

No, to Song of Solomon being vulgar...we LOVE it.

Ruben O.

Date: 1/4/2013 5:30:00 PM

One more thing, just in case: I dont write erotic poems and I'm not a fan of them either. I can say that (paraphrasing Voltaire) "I disapprove [erotic-explicit poetry] but I will defend to the death your right to [write] it."

Team PoetrySoup Date: 1/4/2013 9:39:00 PM

We dont have a problem with people writing explicit poetry, we just have a problem with them posting it on PoetrySoup. Plenty of other websites for that.

CYNDI MACMILLAN Date: 1/4/2013 7:33:00 PM

I was a diehard Holt fan, Bet :)

Debbie Guzzi Date: 1/4/2013 6:27:00 PM

LOL even being so against censorship there are things I wouldn't want my kids to read [those under 21..hmmm maybe 18] The only one I ever spoke to a libraian about was L Ron Hubbard's Mission Earth the was enough real foul S & M in there to gag a maggot!!

Debbie Guzzi Date: 1/4/2013 6:27:00 PM

And you know what I got in trouble with the libarian for reading when I was 13, Legend of the Seventh Virgin, by Victoria Holt [Hey the librarian's hadn't read it but it had VIRGIN in the title LOL

JoeFlach

Date: 1/4/2013 5:24:00 PM

I am somehow reminded of the old joke where a psychiatrist is doing an ink-blot test on a patient. With every ink-blot he shows, the patient describes the explicitly sexual scene he sees in the ink blots. The psychiatrist finally states: “You are one perverted and sick individual”, to which the patient replies, “What do you mean, you’re the guy with all the dirty pictures!” Profanity, it seems, is in the eye of the beholder.

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Ruben O.

Date: 1/4/2013 4:58:00 PM

Oh! I love your response! Subjectiveness as its best! So "Poetry Soup" will decide what is harmful, obscene, explicit, implicit, complicit, inexplicit, overexplicit...for us. We, the people (I mean the Soupers), are all individuals who should be intelligent and wise enough to make these decisions for ourselves. Believe me, I can differentiate between what I like or not to read, between what I consider offensive or not, between what I "think" is poetry or not...Yep, still subjective. Kingsley Amis said: "If you can't annoy somebody with what you write, I think there's little point in writing." No, I dont think that "poetry" needs a Police-deleting-force.

Becca Lucas Date: 1/4/2013 6:29:00 PM

There are many website out there which allow explicit erotic stories.. I think it's really up to the owner of this website, what they want to allow and what kind of place they want this to be.

Becca Lucas Date: 1/4/2013 6:28:00 PM

Actually, to be honest, I don't even mind coming across explicit poems here that much.. some I find kind of amusing. But I defend the right for people to not have to come across it, if it does bother them.

Becca Lucas Date: 1/4/2013 6:20:00 PM

To answer your question Ruben, to be honest, sometimes I feel VERY uncomfortable walking in to Blockbuster and seeing some of the images being proudly displayed there! However, I wouldn't have a problem walking in, if they have these types of movies in a separate place where I don't have to come across them as I'm browsing in my preferred section.

Becca Lucas Date: 1/4/2013 6:20:00 PM

Someone had suggested different "sections" here as a solution, I think its a great idea. I don't know if I'm speaking for the majority of the poets here on the Soup though, and that is why I will go with the flow of what is decided. So for example if the soup were ever to decide to allow blatant X rated porn, I won't rant about it (too much) .. I'll find a different place that fits me better.

Ruben O. Date: 1/4/2013 5:36:00 PM

Rebecca, when you go to Blockbuster to rent a movie or type your password in Netflix, do you feel "unconfortable" knowing that in the same store or website there are R or X rated movies? Aha!!! I got you! Here is the same. Think about it...

Becca Lucas Date: 1/4/2013 5:27:00 PM

I posted a poem that might get deleted, I really don't know ? but if it does, I'm not gonna get all upset about it. I'll just send it to someone who appreciate my poetry, and move on.

Becca Lucas Date: 1/4/2013 5:25:00 PM

Come on Ruben. I think the Soup folks are doing their best to keep this a comfortable place to be, that's all. It's really hard to define anything, you know that. We have to just try to use good judgment but not get mad if the soup team decides to delete something, I'm sure it isn't easy for them to decide these things.

JoannGrisetti

Date: 1/4/2013 4:23:00 PM

There are many poems here that I start to read and do not finish, usually because they are poorly written or just plain boring. But everyone has as much right as I have to post and be read. If I start a poem and feel uncomfortable, I just go to another poem. Thanks to TPS for hosting a site like this.

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JamesFraser

Date: 1/4/2013 3:06:00 PM

I think as adults we know the boundaries that shouldn't be crossed. Love, romance & eroticism generally mirrors across cultures. Until as such times I read something on the Soup that is genuinely degrading and disgusting, I'll support such writes. This is indeed a poetry site, where many topics are freely available to be written about and shared. Just my view ladies & gents :) :)

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Ruben O.

Date: 1/4/2013 2:54:00 PM

Sexually explicit language? Could you be more specific? Could you give us an example? Because what is or is not sexually explicit varies from culture to culture. I don't even want to start with the meaning of clean or cleanness. I'll be back to read your response. Thanks.

Team PoetrySoup Date: 1/4/2013 3:06:00 PM

Not sure we can give you a definition Ruben. It's similar to the difference between movie ratings. What's the difference between R and X-rated? Sometimes it's up to the individual...in this case PoetrySoup. :-)

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