Smoking: Influencing vs Programmability

[Sammy Huntsman]

1 minute ago, Ayeleeon said:

I think it is more than this. Why do you choose that imagery, and what are you trying to say with it? Adding a cigarette to the hand of a villain to make him look evil is one thing, adding one to the hand of a beautiful woman to make her more glamorous is another. Where does your attitude come from? Are you influenced by the marketing of tobacco companies without even realizing it? 

No I am not influenced by anyone, If I put a cigarette in my hand in my pics. It is to literally set the mood of the pic. That is it. 

[Ceka Cianci]

Actually the worst thing about smoking is the smoke..besides all the chemical crap the cigarette companies put in there..

I had a list of I forget how many pages of the crap that goes into cigarettes besides nicotine..

either way, everyonelet's all light up a paper bag and start inhaling..once it's out and we're done with it, lets all run a quick mile and report back here..

On your mark!!

Get set!!

GO!!\o/

 

 

hehehehe

[Luna Bliss]

2 minutes ago, Ayeleeon said:

25 minutes ago, Luna Bliss said:

how the portrayal might affect society

I think it is more than this. Why do you choose that imagery, and what are you trying to say with it? Adding a cigarette to the hand of a villain to make him look evil is one thing, adding one to the hand of a beautiful woman to make her more glamorous is another. Where does your attitude come from? Are you influenced by the marketing of tobacco companies without even realizing it? 

Well yes, all that you described is an elaboration on how the portrayal affects society, and why.

[Sammy Huntsman]

1 minute ago, Luna Bliss said:

The Western world is overly-individualistic and does not want to admit to a connection between self and the rest of society in many cases. It's all about "freedom" and "taking responsibility for self" without any notion that each individual is connected to the whole.

How each person connects to the whole is complex and nuanced, and many just want that simple, black & white answer.

We are individuals at the end of the day, and we do have to take responsibility for ourselves. I mean I shouldn't have to censor my content, just cause some Karen gets offended at the fact that I put a cigarette in my hands. When they can just as easily scroll on by. 

[Silent Mistwalker]

2 hours ago, LittleMe Jewell said:

I grew up in the era of cigarette ads on TV and lots of smoking in TV shows/movies.  My relatives smoking influenced me far more than any of that.

IMO, what people see and hear around them, at home/school/work, being done and said by people they know, will have far more influence on folks (even young minds) than TV shows & movies.  The biggest exception being sports players -- for some reason they seem to have extreme influence on people of all ages, especially here in the US.

Almost everyone I grew up around smoked. The only exception in my immediate family was my mother. 

Not even forcing me to chain smoke a few to the point I was gagging was enough to discourage. It was something to do for a child who had no friends (only books and tv), no where to go and a family that made no effort.

 

[Shiera Kealoha]

 

5 minutes ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

But here is the thing, you are not being forced to look at that image. You can just as easily scroll on by, to avoid getting triggered. So the accountability and responsibility doesn't lay on the artist, it is on the viewer. We need to stop putting it on the creator, I mean YouTube is a fine example of that. Creators have to create content that is either family friendly or has some kinda warning of adult content. As somehow they are responsible for their viewers who watch it. 

You are responsible for what you choose to portray. And it can influence someone, whether that be negatively or positively. It is that simple. I have posted my character smoking a blunt and drinking champagne and wine. I know that images of my character drinking or smoking could still be influential to someone at the end of the day. I know it may sound absurd, but that's really just how it is. 

Edited September 30, 2021 by xLunaea

[Shiera Kealoha]

4 minutes ago, LittleMe Jewell said:

I'd say the predominance of women responding has more to do with the ratio of women to men here in the forums.  

Yeah, I am noticing that it's more women who are on here than actual men. 

[Nick0678]

26 minutes ago, Ayeleeon said:

But how many times has it been said, "behind the avatar is a real.petson with real.feelings" it seems that is said when it is convenient and forgiven when it's not.

Unless it's a BOT of course or those AFK f*dolls.

[Sammy Huntsman]

1 minute ago, xLunaea said:

 

You are responsible for what you choose to portray. And it can influence someone, whether that be negatively or positively. It is that simple. I have posted my character smoking a blunt and drinking champagne and wine. I know that images of my character drinking or smoking could still be influential to someone at the end of the day. I know it may sound absurd, but that's really just how it is. 

But if you don't like it, you can just easily scroll on by. I mean you are responsible for yourself and what you take from the image. That is my point, no one is forcing you to look at it. No one is forcing you to keep your gaze on it, that and I mean example on Flickr. If you don't like it, and feel it is influencing you in a negative way, unfollow and block the person. Stop putting the responsibility on the artist and hold yourself accountable for your own actions. 

[Luna Bliss]

Just now, Sammy Huntsman said:

3 minutes ago, Luna Bliss said:

The Western world is overly-individualistic and does not want to admit to a connection between self and the rest of society in many cases. It's all about "freedom" and "taking responsibility for self" without any notion that each individual is connected to the whole.

How each person connects to the whole is complex and nuanced, and many just want that simple, black & white answer.

Expand  

We are individuals at the end of the day, and we do have to take responsibility for ourselves. I mean I shouldn't have to censor my content, just cause some Karen gets offended at the fact that I put a cigarette in my hands. When they can just as easily scroll on by. 

Nobody said you must censor your content.

The only suggestion is that it's beneficial to imagine how what you choose to do could affect others.  It's within our power to make the world a better place by considering how our choices influence others.

Like I said, if I'm trying to create something beautiful it would not include an aspect that has caused such harm to others.  A dystopian scene might be different.

[Ayeleeon]

3 minutes ago, xLunaea said:

Yeah, I am noticing that it's more women who are on here than actual men. 

Yeah well who knows about actual gender

[Sammy Huntsman]

Just now, Luna Bliss said:

Nobody said you must censor your content.

The only suggestion is that it's beneficial to imagine how what you choose to do could affect others.  It's within our power to make the world a better place by considering how our choices influence others.

Like I said, if I'm trying to create something beautiful it would not include an aspect that has caused such harm to others.  A dystopian scene might be different.

Like I said before, if you don't like it and it affects you or anyone negatively. You can easily unfollow the person and block them on Flickr or any form of social media. Artists should never be responsible for what others do with their art or how they perceive it. Stop putting the onus on the creators, and start putting the onus on yourself. 

[Luna Bliss]

2 minutes ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

Like I said before, if you don't like it and it affects you or anyone negatively. You can easily unfollow the person and block them on Flickr or any form of social media. Artists should never be responsible for what others do with their art or how they perceive it. Stop putting the onus on the creators, and start putting the onus on yourself. 

It doesn't have to be either/or........it's not a black & white world...both are responsible.

lol...I am the creator...you have it reversed.

All I can do is make choices for myself....I can't know for sure how others might interpret what I create...but by removing the possibility of negative influence the problem is totally eliminated.

Edited September 30, 2021 by Luna Bliss

[Shiera Kealoha]

Just now, Sammy Huntsman said:

But if you don't like it, you can just easily scroll on by. I mean you are responsible for yourself and what you take from the image. That is my point, no one is forcing you to look at it. No one is forcing you to keep your gaze on it, that and I mean example on Flickr. If you don't like it, and feel it is influencing you in a negative way, unfollow and block the person. Stop putting the responsibility on the artist and hold yourself accountable for your own actions. 

Yes but even if someone scrolls past it, later on they may think "I want some wine, I want a blunt." Hell, it has happened to me. That does not mean that those images did not influence me in some way. And it's not about force, because no one forced me to do anything. However, that does not mean that I was not influenced.

[Ayeleeon]

3 minutes ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

Artists should never be responsible for what others do with their art

Great artists are very much concerned with this.

[Shiera Kealoha]

3 minutes ago, Ayeleeon said:

Yeah well who knows about actual gender

Trueeee!!!

[Sammy Huntsman]

Just now, xLunaea said:

Yes but even if someone scrolls past it, later on they may think "I want some wine, I want a blunt." Hell, it has happened to me. That does not mean that those images did not influence me in some way. And it's not about force, because no one forced me to do anything. However, that does not mean that I was not influenced.

But here is the big thing, you chose to do it. No one influenced you whatever, you saw some wine on the TV. You go oh I want wine, but then realize you don't need it. See it is all about choice. You have a choice, to let the influence get to you or not. That is all on you. I see a tonne of ads that make me want something really bad, but I don't get it. 

[Sammy Huntsman]

3 minutes ago, Luna Bliss said:

It doesn't have to be either/or........it's not a black & white world...both are responsible.

All I can do is make choices for myself....I can't know for sure how others might interpret what I create...but by removing the possibility of negative influence the problem is totally eliminated.

Okay this is where it is very black and white, you have a choice to do the thing or not. This is where you are responsible for your own actions, and the artist is not responsible for imagery or depictions in their art, influencing others. 

[Luna Bliss]

1 minute ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

See it is all about choice. You have a choice, to let the influence get to you or not. That is all on you. I see a tonne of ads that make me want something really bad, but I don't get it. 

Yes, ultimately it all comes down to what we choose. But we also have an unconscious mind and may be affected in ways we're unaware of. It's best to take that into consideration when dealing with any other person -- there's a whole lot of depth there we don't see, and the person we're communicating with may not be aware of.

[Silent Mistwalker]

1 hour ago, Theresa Tennyson said:

It's a pretty effective pesticide too.

It works wonders on bee, ant, wasp and hornet stings. Draws out the venom.

[Sammy Huntsman]

Just now, Luna Bliss said:

Yes, ultimately it all comes down to what we choose. But we also have an unconscious mind and may be affected in ways we're unaware of. It's best to take that into consideration when dealing with any other person -- there's a whole lot of depth there we don't see, and the person we're communicating with may not be aware of.

Again, why are artists or even YouTube content creators responsible with what they put in their content? Why must they basically censor themselves, and they do. Since someone will always get triggered and the artist either gets a strike or even kicked off the platform. So now as a creator, we have to be mindful of others, and not realize people are accountable for their own actions?  Do you not see how stupid that sounds? 

[Luna Bliss]

2 minutes ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

7 minutes ago, Luna Bliss said:

It doesn't have to be either/or........it's not a black & white world...both are responsible.

All I can do is make choices for myself....I can't know for sure how others might interpret what I create...but by removing the possibility of negative influence the problem is totally eliminated.

Okay this is where it is very black and white, you have a choice to do the thing or not. This is where you are responsible for your own actions, and the artist is not responsible for imagery or depictions in their art, influencing others. 

No, it's not black & white. We should always consider how our actions affect others.  The reason we're in such a mess in this crazy world is because we think what WE want to do should be paramount. We haven't considered how we as individuals are connected to the whole.

[Shiera Kealoha]

8 minutes ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

But here is the big thing, you chose to do it. No one influenced you whatever, you saw some wine on the TV. You go oh I want wine, but then realize you don't need it. See it is all about choice. You have a choice, to let the influence get to you or not. That is all on you. I see a tonne of ads that make me want something really bad, but I don't get it. 

You can be influenced into making a *****ty choice. This is why I'd rather not use myself as an example, because I already know that other than me, people are influenced by either positive or negative things that people post every single day.

The original question was:
"But does it help promote the idea that smoking is glamorous and [thus] increase the chance that others might smoke in RL?

And I agree that yes, when someone posts pictures with drugs/alcohol, that can and will influence someone. That is all. This is not about blame or force, but the fact that what others do can lead people into making either good or *****ty decisions.

Edited September 30, 2021 by xLunaea

[Silent Mistwalker]

58 minutes ago, Rowan Amore said:

Not a damn thing IMO.  God, I wish I still smoked weed.  I could use some right now after reading all this nonsense.

 

My arms aren't long enough to pass to you.

[Luna Bliss]

1 minute ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

4 minutes ago, Luna Bliss said:

Yes, ultimately it all comes down to what we choose. But we also have an unconscious mind and may be affected in ways we're unaware of. It's best to take that into consideration when dealing with any other person -- there's a whole lot of depth there we don't see, and the person we're communicating with may not be aware of.

Again, why are artists or even YouTube content creators responsible with what they put in their content? Why must they basically censor themselves, and they do. Since someone will always get triggered and the artist either gets a strike or even kicked off the platform. So now as a creator, we have to be mindful of others, and not realize people are accountable for their own actions?  Do you not see how stupid that sounds? 

It's never easy to decide what should be censored, but that doesn't mean we should not attempt to censor things in a way that would cause the least harm.  It has to be weighed, and it might not always be the correct choice, but we have to try.

Saying "someone will always get triggered" is an exaggeration and doesn't help your argument.