My favorite forbidden information muckraker, Russ Kick, says: “Violet Blue, Jill Morley, Libby Lynn, and Russ Kick read portions of their essays from the anthology ‘Everything You Know About Sex Is Wrong.'”
Link
Author and sexblogger/podcaster Violet Blue tells Boing Boing that popular social networking site Tribe.net is proactively, voluntarily applying 2257 laws to its members and service architecture.
This makes approximately zero-to-the-tenth-power sense. Tribe is not a producer of content, they’re a forum for end-users to communicate and share content they create or collect. What’s next? AOL, Microsoft, and Yahoo ban jpeg attachments because there’s no way to enforce age documentation for amateur nudie shots swapped by users of those free email services?
Two weeks ago Tribe asked me for a phone meeting; I didn’t know what it was about but I figured it had something to do with Tribe’s mature content. They explained to me in a half-hour conference call that they were gearing up to change Tribe’s architecture (entry pages, etc) to conform to updated 2257 laws, which are record keeping requirements.
The federal law now requires website owners to keep *physical* records documenting, among other things, that “a book, magazine, periodical, film, videotape, digitally- or computer-manipulated image, digital image, picture, or other matter that contains a visual depiction of an actual human being engaged in actual sexually explicit conduct” is over the age of 18. Visual depictions *after* 1990, mind you.
(…) I think they are making a huge mistake, based on a law that is unenforcable. The law violates privacy — I was sent the 2257 information for the porn performers I featured in my last podcast. I now have enough information to steal the actual identity, and stalk, every performer in that film. They performers don’t even know I have that information, or who else might have it as a legal requirement, and nothing makes me more uncomfortable than having that information in my posession.
The law is meant for primary and secondary producers of porn, not online communities. The law violates our federal right to freedom of speech. The law is obstensibly created “to protect children from being exploited as [porn] performers”, not healthy adult enjoyment of human sexuality. In truth, 2257 laws are less about protecting children from porn exploitation, but instead about regulating porn businesses, free speech and healthy adult sexual expression into unfesability.
Link to Violet Blue’s blog post.
Link to text of law.
Previously on Boing Boing:
Bad news for free speech: “Children’s Safety Act” passes in House
Rotten.com: gapingmaw, othersites shut in anticipation of 2257
Image: Jacob Appelbaum.
Reader comment: Tribe.net employee Gary says,
There are a number of interesting discussions going on at Tribe where our members are talking about the upcoming changes, and the impact of 2257.
Discussion of 2257 Legalities: Link; and General Discussion: Link.
Make the world your bitch — elegantly — with a set of rhinestone-encrusted brass knuckles in gold or silver. Link (Thanks, Violet Blue!)
Above, people dressed up as pieces of furniture. Image is tagged as having originated from leenks.com, I have no idea who took it, who these sofa-people are, or whether this happens next. Reader comment: Violet Blue says, “Those furniture bondage pics were snagged from the wonderfully hardworking forniphiliacs at House of Gord. Case in point: Link. Also, a definition:
Forniphilia: the art of human furniture
forni- f. Old French furnir f.
Roman, fornire; to furnish -philia f.
Greek philos; love of, fondness for
Link to full size.
Above: I don’t read Japanese, so I don’t understand all of the details — but I think this photo gallery depicts people dressed up at a comics convention. This image kinda hurts.
(Thanks to Joi Ito for both sets!)
Reader comment: Nicholas Freeman says,
The pictures are from Comic Market 68 (aka Comiket), which happened from 8-12 to 8-14 this year. It’s a regular manga related festival. Info in English: Link.
“Hooves-R-Us” offers this handy (hoove-y?) DIY hoof conversion tutorial for bipeds. LIVE your dreams! Just, please don’t tell me about them in too much detail. Link
(via Fleshbot / Violet Blue)
Link to a gallery of photos by Tom Forsythe which feature nude and de-limbed Barbies in a variety of food-related tableaus. These images were the subject of a legal battle between Forsythe and the doll’s maker, Mattel, which ultimately left the photographer free and thankfully not “saddled with over $2 million in battle costs,” according to a statement on his website:
“That’s how much legal tender it took before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals wrote a scathing opinion that called Mattel’s case against me potentially ‘unreasonable and frivolous.’ From the time Mattel sued me on August 24, 1999 up until that December 29, 2003 decision, the case always seemed unreasonable, while the difficulty was finding a way to prove that in court without going bankrupt. Not that Mattel, who uses attorneys who send mock hand grenades to potential clients with the tag line ‘we’ll go to war for you’, would actually use that as a legal strategy…”
(thanks, Violet!)
The controversial matter of adult-themed fare within iTunes podcast offerings is the subject of a recent Wall Street Journal piece. Among those interviewed: sex blogger Violet Blue.
“Pale pink satin accessories belt with detachable suspenders, fuchsia pink corset ribbon closing at back. Included with the belt is a pair of black sequinned nipple tassels, a pair of black silk wrist ties and a fuchsia pink blindfold. It has various loops and ties for customizing your own tool belt.” Yeah, whatever. But I wonder if you could fit a soldering iron and some drill bits in this thing.
Link (Thanks, Violet Blue, via touchesexy)
Reader comment: John Klima says,
The best thing about the sexy tool belt is that it is also available from Mall-friendly Victoria’s Secret through their online store: Link. Much to my surprise, Vicky’s Secret also sells handcuffs: Link. Just what every middle American was looking for!
Nickel plated steel, leather boxing gloves. About $6K.
Link (Thanks, Violet Blue)
Reader comment: Mike says,
The post of the ‘Argument Chair’ reminded me of a chair a past design professor of mine in Vancouver did several years ago: the TKO chair. I don’t think it was ever put in to production, so I guess you could say it’s one of a kind. Detail image here.
645AM, L.A.: Tags on Flickr that return images related to today’s deadly bombings — three in the London underground and one a bus — include bombs, bomb, blast, terrorism, and London. Pools include The London Bomb Blasts Pool, and London Explosions Pool. (Thanks, Jake Appelbaum)
The Guardian’s blog has good, ongoing coverage. Link (Thanks, Flora).
Other collaborative blogs covering the event include Londonist, and the London Metblog.
Here is a highly informative Wikipedia “current event” page, which includes links to news sources, blogs, a timeline of events, and translation of the claim for responsibility posted on the Jihadist website Al-Qal’ah: Link.
News networks in the UK are soliciting text messages and cameraphone images, videos from viewers. CNN just aired the first footage they obtained from inside a struck tube carriage; the video was shot on an eyewitness’ cameraphone.
Big shout-out to all the Boing Boing readers in London. Peace, guys. Hope each of you are okay, too.
Image: phonecam snapshot of passengers trapped in the London underground system. Alfie from moblog.co.uk says, “This image taken by Keith Tagg Adam Stacey. He was on the northern line just past Kings Cross. Train suddenly stopped and filled with smoke. People in carriage smashed tube windows to get out and then were evacuated along the train tunnel. He’s suffering from smoke inhalation but fine otherwise.”
Update, 1040AM, L.A.:
Image: Detail of a Google Maps satellite image of the affected area, annotated by an internetizen.
Sex writer / blogger / podcaster / author Violet Blue is in London today, and says, “Here’s a great blog, should have interesting posts about it: Random Acts of Reality. [Ed note: blog is described by its author as, “based in London, England, written by an E.M.T working for the London Ambulance Service.”]. And here’s my account: Link.”
Sean Bonner is one of many folks involved in region-specific group blogs for London who are checking for the safety of their blog participants. Sean says,
“Vikky [of metblogs] just posted a head count of the people in London who are still unaccounted for: Link. Hopefully they are just freaked out and not checking e-mail / reading blogs (go figure).”
Boing Boing reader Steven Clift says, “I’ve started a wiki-based links collection and suggested a unique tag for content related to today’s events: london77.”
Tom from The London Line blog says, “Just thought I’d let you know that we’re another blog (for the London alt-weekly newspaper) that’s been covering the bombings today, and will be following up the aftermath over the next few days.” Link.
Reader eye-imagine says, “The london underground blogspot is a good and appropriate place for a running commentary.”
Carl Bialik of the Wall Street Journal points us to a subscription-free roundup of news there: Link.
Joi Ito’s blog contains this post with pointers to more info, as well as excerpts from related IRC chats.
And, Xeni speaking again here — I’ll be a guest on this evening’s edition of CNN Showbiz Tonight (on CNN Headline News) in a segment examining internet response to the attacks in London. Airs at 7PM and 11PM ET (for West Coast US viewers, 4PM PT and 8PM PT). Link.
Update, 315PM, L.A.:
Boing Boing pal Danny O Brien says, “Fox News doesn’t think some Londoners are real Londoners. Here, an overexcited Fox News reporter catches himself dividing beleaguered Londoners into ‘Arab’ and ‘regular’ people. Creepy.” Link to video.
