worst topic ever

Is cigarette brands really an appropriate empathy topic, for a "family site"?

aaaarhggg... you again.

when u gonna learn.

I thought it was a "online turn based games" site...

I agree :)

promoting cigarette companies is wrong, so I don't care about any taboo on discussing a topic that should not be chosen to begin with.

Even the USA have banned tobacco advertisement and they are big on free speech and corporate rights.

@Robert Irvin

Well certain words aren't allowed IIRC and the 7 words you can't say on TV are a lot safer than the poison put out by the cigarette companies.

The quote about this being a "family site" was from another user way back and just means the site is suitable for young children and adults who blush when certain words are used.

well, I mean no disrespect, but it seems to me that saying the current empathy topic promotes cigarettes is like saying the term "charles manson" promotes serial killing.

Sorry, I shouldn't be debating it while the current game is going on. I'm sure it will be a lively enough topic after it's over. My apologies everyone, I'll keep my trap shut till after the current game.

"A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject."

Sir XXXXXXX Churchill

what's a cigarette, anyway?

@robert irvin , that example was Great.

king of THE BESL ,lol.

go to play club penguin instead of ruining our games.

if it seems politically incorrect, well just don't play this round.

Please don't discuss ongoing topics!

something about that god is great

I think this should be on the GOE-forum. And the golden rule there is *never* discuss an ongoiing topic! And yeah, charles manson is a good suggestion for the next topic ;-)

I am wondering...

are you realy arguing with the "freedom of speech" to tell somebody, that he shall shut up?

That's strange.

Kitaktus

Don't discuss the current topic. Do not even follow paths that lead from discussion of the current topic.

I was planning to make a similar post as Fat Phil

sorry for falling in this tramp, but is not the first time the guy do this.

@kpato: Is that you? When did you switch back from "kp4to"?

originally i was always Kpato, there were a pair of impostors.

And i change my nickname to do the difference with they.

i used KPT and kp4to.

And i realized that i couldnt go back to my original name.

Richard did for me, when i became LGmember.

Now that you have reclaimed your rightful name, I shall call you Na'onak no longer.

@aganju

Cigarette is the english spelling of the americanised cigaret.

Usually tobacco and carcinogens wrapped in paper and burned, known to cause cancer, heart disease and cause impotence.

This game of empathy was effectively a tobacco advert.

Children who play this topic could be influenced to smoke if they are exposed to tobacco company propaganda.

Charles Manson is not the same Manson is doing life in prison without parole.

The cigarette is legal and there is much propaganda aimed at getting children to smoke (since they all killing off the current customers) the same is I assume not true of brazenly recruiting people as serial killers.

The golden rule is actually 1st do no harm, I'll stand the potential harm to the health of children over the arguable spoilage of a round of GOE. Like most people won't have gone to the favourite search engine/checked for a repeat and chosen the same answer they would have chosen without this thread.

What is the purpose of the so called "don't discuss rule"? I assume to discourage manipulating the game to somebodies advantage, I was not colluding with anyone or trying to get a particular answer/s chosen.

Free speech is very much here (to the extent richard can arbitrarily remove anything he objects to and any legal restriction on what people can post) that means your right to whinge about me and my right to disagree.

I haven't broken site rules.

Then post your answers here below, if you think you're acting ethically.

You are very wrong KOTB

Well with such convincing reasoning and from some I respect so highly I'm convinced.

*someone

The reason for not discussin an ongoing topic is that ANY comment about that topic can disturbe the game. For example, your first post COULD cause more people to choose some general term about cigarettes rather than actual brands. And it's very hard to tell what will distort the game and in what way. So: Don't comment any ongoing game is a very good rule.

Also, I don't see why you couldn't have waited with your comment until AFTER the game had ended. Then maybe you could have actually gotten a discussion about whether the topic was suitable or not. After you posts here, I no longer find that discussion appealing.

Child plays GOE, doesn't know about brands, is exposed to cigarette propaganda through researching and is potentially influenced to smoke, I am not going to wait a week (which if the daemon broke down again it easily could be). If you knew child was going to potentially watch something that could cause them to be harmed in some way would you wait a week?

If my response meant people didn't choose cigarette brands, then that would have been a good thing. Advertising tobacco is illegal in most developed nations and this topic was what was I'm assuming an unpaid tobacco advert.

Rules of the game are clearly listed on the empathy page!

Okey guys, the next round its going to be "Teletubbies"

and watch out, do not use rude words like "gay".

Happy KOTB?

teletubbies are not known to cause harm

And what about this topic?

Cars increase the impact of accidents. How about the lobbies of the automotive industry in favor to keep using fosile fuel? And what about how they polute the environment? I'de rather smoke a cigarette then get too close to the exhaust system for 5 minutes.

To answer your initial question: "Yes, it's appropriate".

@KingOfThebesI: Just curious. Can you tell us some countries where advertising tobacco is illegal? I know it has been forbidden in TV in some countries but I had no idea there was a total ban somewhere.

In Norway there is a total ban against tobacco advertisement, and has been for quite a long time. However, I'm pretty sure this game with this topic would still be legal. There are lots of other restrictions regarding tobacco too. Lately, it's even become forbidden to place tobacco in visible places in shops, so you have to ask a clerk in order to buy it. Apart from this info, I think the discussion should rather be about respecting peoples wishes about not discussing ongoing topics rather than about health risks concerning smoking, or even what topics are "decent". Such discussions might be interresting, but should be started in another way.

I heard there are plans to ban recognisable cigarette brand names from... the cigarette packages here as well. A pack of cigarette should be selled in a with package with the brand in a small script (but containing, as is the case now, some big warning against the use)

United States, United Kingdom, most if not al EU nations I'm fairly sure there is an EU directive governing the matter. Notice why F1 motor no longer has the tobacco logos on the cars or any more billboards of smoking cartoon character.

What a ban means probably varies from state to state.

The cigarette used as intended will harm the user and anyone breathing the same air as the user. Car adverts are legal, the fumes while harmful are not addictive. The more polluting models are penalised with higher taxes. People get cars as adult and are hopefully developed enough to make a mature decision.

Oh come on... Millions of advertising by tobacco industry, but childeren will start smoking not because of the advertising but because of the GOE-topic... Really?

Nobody has advertised smoking. Cigarette brands are just part of popular culture, they are mentioned in many movies, novels, etc. Why such overreaction?

Its true that society is changing and what was correct 50 years ago is not necessarily correct today. Maybe the day comes when nobody dares mentioning a cigarette brand, but today there is no need to become an inquisitor.

PD. Smoking kills. It is not cool, it is stupid, dirty, expensive and unhealthy. Nobody here is arguing for smoking.

Exept for when some pod is added.... Just kiddin'! JUST KIDDIN'!

There are countries where even that is legal, you know... so it can't be that bad:)

Well, even eating bean sprouts (taugé) is legal nowadays...

I think the important thing is to teach the children that not everything on the internet is good or true. If you have access to the internet you have access to the sickest things (even if there is some kind of filter like parental control, just use a proxy and you've got no problems). You can't control everything, so you better look that the children don't think smoking cigarettes is cool. Informing instead of controlling.

Does bean sprout have some particular significance in Netherlands? I thought bean sprout was a harmless green vegetable.

off-topic, but: the EHEC-bacterium caused about 20 death in germany last week, and bean sprouts might be the source... I make bad jokes all the time, on friday even worse...

I checked urban dictionary out, didn't realise that bean sprouts were allegedly the source of the deaths, what I heard it was thought to be cucumbers.

It seems like they (=the media?) are pretty certain the bean sprouts are the sources now. But then again, they seemed pretty convinced it was the cucumbers earlier, so...

heroin

Marius mentioned the most important point.

You KOTB, You were disrespectful to the democratic decision of the game.

the 50%+1 of the players, Chose that expression.

If u are not agree, just shut up or leave this Portal of "inmoral" people.

And if left something to say, say it after the game, please.

Though I am on the pro-"cigarettes"-as-empathy-prompt side, your math is off. You only need >12.5% to vote for a topic. Probably even >=12.5% could do it (not sure how ties are handled).

Anyways: Isn't it just as likely that someone who can't come up with ten brands and googles "cigarettes" will be less likely to smoke? The first link when I google it is the Wikipedia article which summarizes all of the detrimental health effects of smoking.

True Dustin, if all players vote, but it is even possible that 1 vote is enough, because by default no entry is selected.

jwajwja you are right, >12,5% is right.

But the thing is that the game was chose in a democratic way.

It could be actually less than 12.5%, down to any number just above 0%, because voting is not mandatory:

If for example 1 billion people play, and only one votes, he represents 0.0000001% of the participants, and still he decides. Not very realistic though, I agree.

We could also use the democratic system of the USA, and count the votes within each (to be determined) group, and then each group sends a Representative that votes for the group, then the chosen topic could win even if others had more votes. Or vote first for all players in Iowa, and tell the others the results, and then vote. Fortunately we don't do that. Oops, I think I'm digressing.

but i mean >12,5% of the voting players.

In your example. that unique player represents the 100% of the democratic votes.