In re needs-more-plot and notaclopbanana on Fausticorn Rule 34 (Link with Image) [Link]
http://notaclopbanana.tumblr.com/post/78874419322/sending-out-an-sos-with-clop-perfection
[Thread removed.]
I have some points and questions for both needs-more-plot/Ambris and notaclopbanana:
First, notaclopbanana says that “[t]his idea that it’s better to sexualize something many people identify with than what one person identifies with is just crazy” to you. But why? It seems we all understand Ambris’s/needs-more-plot’s response to this. The response to that from notaclopbanana seems to be: But on the other hand there are people who care very much but you’re not actually willing to change your behavior for them. But any fan can claim “ownership” of a public figure (celebrity or fictional character), but this is generally regarded as creepy or obsessive. No fan can claim legitimate ownership, so a fan’s wishes, no matter how strong, do not have to be respected.
But Lauren Faust, like any other person with an avatar (pony or not), indeed can claim legitimate ownership of a character. (I have some objections to notaclopbanana’s claim that needs-more-plot is singling out Lauren Faust; I’m confident that Ambris feels the same about other avatars.) I say “avatar” instead of “original character [OC]” because someone can create an OC that is a fictional character, not representing themselves; it seems that these should be treated differently.
But it makes me wonder, again: How much respect do they deserve? Do real people deserve more respect that fictional characters? Of course, real people shouldn’t be harassed (“spammed”) with any porn, much less Rule 34 of themselves. But I’m sure there are people who want to get with any given celebrity, so maybe they get off to or even draw a sexual image of that person.
It is morally wrong to take nude pictures of someone without their consent, but notaclopbanana correctly points out that this is mainly due to privacy concerns. Ambris, what do you think about sexual depictions of real people that don’t involve a breach of privacy, such as with look-alike actors or drawn depictions? If real people deserve this level of respect beyond freedom from harassment, why?
I don’t exactly understand why notaclopbanana sees Fausticorn as wholly separate from the real Lauren Faust; why is that? (The view that Rule 34 of a real public figure is okay doesn’t require this; after all, someone could draw a nude Lauren Faust with no invasion of privacy.)
However, I think notaclopbanana is correct in this response to needs-more-plot: That she looses [sic] the right to her personal self-expression the moment it’s posted on the internet?(No, again, false dichotomy. You have the right to not be harassed, you have the right to not have your work exploited for financial gain, you don’t really have the right to stop people from drawing porn.) After all, do celebrities lose total control over their likeness when people draw porn of them?
This is a very interesting issue, and I’d like to say that I don’t completely agree with either of these two positions.