Safety for teen users of The Ledge

[holidayroad]

Of course, most people by now know the current situation concerning a Ledgie minor. Whether or not everyone agrees with how that is being handled, it does bring up some concerns about whether The Ledge is safe concerning underage users.
I know that teens (or anyone who posts) Should feel safe, but you never know who is at the other keyboard. I feel that the Ledgies here are trustworthy, but it does concern me that any guest could come here and see anything a minor has posted.
The moderators may or may not agree that anything different needs to be done, but it is something to think about. I think it would be a good idea that if a minor comes to The Ledge and posts something like what school they attend, the city they live in, or a phone number, that it should be able to be deleted by a moderator.
This post is something that LikeAWillow and I have been discussing and hope that other members have ideas they would like to share about how The Ledge can stay safe for all users.
Of course, it is also up to the minors using The Ledge to be sensible and use discretion when posting about themselves. Never share any information that leads to your location

[daniellaaarisen]

I have no idea what happened with a Ledgie minor.... is in appropriate to ask?

EDIT: Miranda... got it. I agree that minors should be protected on here, but was it really an issue of Miranda posting anything inappropriate? Or were her parents just uncomfortable with the entire situation in general?

[ButterCookie]

No, Dani, it's about Miranda's leaving... I think.

However, as a teenager, I do agree with the notion of deleting posts that give away location. I have posted where I live online before then gone back to it and thought "Why the HELL did I do that?" I don't really like the thought of the area for teen ledgies though, that was suggested in another thread. I get on better with people older tham myself and often have trouble communicating with people of my own age. For me an segregated area would make me feel like I was back in school. I like being able to read everyone else's posts and share my view on them in all the parts of The Ledge

[TrueFaith77]

I personally feel that nobody under the age of 18 should be allowed on the Internet at all. If I were President. . .

[ButterCookie]

Originally Posted by TrueFaith77

I personally feel that nobody under the age of 18 should be allowed on the Internet at all. If I were President. . .

For real?

[RickRobert]

Originally Posted by TrueFaith77

I personally feel that nobody under the age of 18 should be allowed on the Internet at all. If I were President. . .

Bye...

No seriously, what about us who don't like most people in our own area? You'd rather us have hardly any friends? I probably have four of five friends I actually care about here, where as I have about ten online, most of which I've known since I was 13/14...

[HejiraNYC]

Originally Posted by daniellaaarisen

I have no idea what happened with a Ledgie minor.... is in appropriate to ask?

EDIT: Miranda... got it. I agree that minors should be protected on here, but was it really an issue of Miranda posting anything inappropriate? Or were her parents just uncomfortable with the entire situation in general?

Well, nothing happened, really. Personally I would hate to see this incident (caused by some overzealous parents IMHO) set a precedent for turning this place into even more of a nanny state. Yes, everyone here should adhere to a self-regulated, rational code of conduct, i.e., don't be an ass. But I would hate to see this place become all Disney unicorns and amber waves of grain just to assuage the irrational overreaction by a couple of skittish parents. If you are a minor and you are joining this board, you (or your parents) should have already received an education on the basics of online safety and conduct. If you haven't and you unwittingly or intentionally do something stupid or self-destructive on here, then that is something that needs to be addressed by yourself- don't drag others down with you. There can only be so many safeguards. I think the Ledge as it stands already sufficiently promotes a non-hostile, safe, friendly environment.

I do feel bad for Miranda, and I can only imagine that this will only further strain an already strained relationship with her parents. But as others have mentioned, perhaps there is another side to the story that we haven't heard. There are three sides to any story- one side, the other's side and the Truth. The only good news is that she will only have to endure this kind of suppression for a few more years...

[HejiraNYC]

Originally Posted by ButterCookie

No, Dani, it's about Miranda's leaving... I think.

However, as a teenager, I do agree with the notion of deleting posts that give away location. I have posted where I live online before then gone back to it and thought "Why the HELL did I do that?" I don't really like the thought of the area for teen ledgies though, that was suggested in another thread. I get on better with people older tham myself and often have trouble communicating with people of my own age. For me an segregated area would make me feel like I was back in school. I like being able to read everyone else's posts and share my view on them in all the parts of The Ledge

I agree... it's no fun to sit at the kiddy table away from the grown ups. But I don't understand why it would be dangerous to give away your location. Yes, it would be stupid to give away your street and house number. But what's wrong with stating the name of your city? The only thing that makes me cringe a little is seeing pictures of friends of friends of friends. I wonder whether these people would appreciate having their mugs plastered on some anonymous forum on the interwebs, especially if said friends are intoxicated or otherwise not ready for prime time. But, eh, what do I know...

[tilthefirefades]

Most forums don't allow guests to come and go as they please. Perhaps The Ledge should hide all posts unless you are registered.

[HejiraNYC]

Originally Posted by tilthefirefades

Most forums don't allow guests to come and go as they please. Perhaps The Ledge should hide all posts unless you are registered.

I'm not sure if michelej1 would be equipped to handle the surge of new registrations in a timely manner!

[ButterCookie]

Originally Posted by HejiraNYC

I agree... it's no fun to sit at the kiddy table away from the grown ups. But I don't understand why it would be dangerous to give away your location. Yes, it would be stupid to give away your street and house number. But what's wrong with stating the name of your city? The only thing that makes me cringe a little is seeing pictures of friends of friends of friends. I wonder whether these people would appreciate having their mugs plastered on some anonymous forum on the interwebs, especially if said friends are intoxicated or otherwise not ready for prime time. But, eh, what do I know...

I don't live in a city. I'm in a little village and I gave it's name away. I'm also the only 16y/o with short hair in this place, that's all (:

[LikeAWillow]

Originally Posted by tilthefirefades

Most forums don't allow guests to come and go as they please. Perhaps The Ledge should hide all posts unless you are registered.

I really like this idea, although I'm sure implementing it would be tough. I've gotten a few somewhat creepy PMs over the years, but at least I then had a username in mind to stay away from. Also, though I never received anything blatantly report worthy (just the sort of messages that make the hair on the back of your neck stand up, even if you can't say why), it was always nice to know that if something really made me uncomfortable, I could report that person. If there's any way the board could become members only without crashing the server and causing Michele a lot of undue hassle....I think it would be a fantastic idea.

Somewhat side-note: I'm not a fan of the teen board either, although to clarify, I think the idea holidayroad had in mind was to have a board that only teens had access to in addition to their access to the rest of the forum. Then it could just be a place where they could feel more comfortable about opening up a little more and sharing details about school/life/etc without worrying that everyone on the internet could see it. I'm sure it would be difficult to manage, though, and even more difficult to patrol (verification, etc.) Having younger kids here and having them be able to mix with the older posters is great. I wouldn't be half as interested in politics as I am if it weren't for how active the political threads were when I first joined the board. 15 year old Marissa gives a belated thank you to disention, irishgirl, strand, etc, though none of you post any more.

[nailatixela]

Originally Posted by LikeAWillow

I really like this idea, although I'm sure implementing it would be tough.

It would be really easy, actually. You could make all the forum sections viewable only to registered users. Or just Chit Chat. Of course there are pros and cons to doing this - even without considering user safety. But still, anyone can register and just lurk.

But I think the Ledge is a safe place. Even though Miranda isn't allowed on, it's not like anything horrible happened which caused her "banning." I think the safest way to be safe anywhere on the internet is limit the amount of information you put out there. I know if I was a parent, I wouldn't want my child to post their picture on a forum, or give any information such as their city - or anything more detailed than that. In the end it's up to the parents to decide what they want to allow their kid to do online.

[LikeAWillow]

I meant tough in that there would be a ton of new registsrations over a very short period of time

Originally Posted by nailatixela

But still, anyone can register and just lurk.

But at least you know there's a name attached to everyone viewing somewhere and that said name can be banned (and the ledge's registration rules make it more difficult than usual to have multiple accounts.) Let's say right now, OnlinePredator23434 sends me a message saying "Hey there, you seem like fun. Let's meet up." I say, "Sorry, buddy, I don't meet up with strangers on here." He says "Like that's going to stop me? You go to Wellesley College. [enter malicious threats here.]" I report this to Michele. Michele is kind enough to ban him. Well, OnlinePredator23434 can still view the ledge and all its happenings as a guest even after he's banned. Change the system and you have a better shot at keeping out people who have proven they need to be kept out.

[LikeAWillow]

Originally Posted by nailatixela

Even though Miranda isn't allowed on, it's not like anything horrible happened which caused her "banning."

Nope, not at all! Miranda was just the spark that started this discussion, she isn't the topic of it.