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I know that there are better things on the OT forum but I just had to share this as I don't get it's purpose at all.

Just logged into Facebook and some of my friends have changed their profile photos to cartoon characters. I ask someone, who claims that changing their photo will stop child abuse Now sorry for this, but a scumbag who attacks children is not going to be moved by a few childish photos on Facebook. Like last year, when every girl put the colour of their bra to raise awareness for breast cancer: How? How does that honestly make a difference?

Stop me if I'm going on a bit, but why do people get drawn into these fads, so to speak? I know about 4 people (including me) who aren't bothered about changing their profile photos, and we get blasted for it. Lets hear your opinion on this Dakka, do you get drawn into these too, and what good actually comes out of it?

Nothing good comes out of it, just a fad for teenage girls.

Exactly what I told them

I have a Facebook account which i use solely for gaming. My profile photo is an orc's face from one of the Lord of the Rings films.

I don't know what awareness it raises, but I get a chortle when I receive autospam on my account along the lines of, "Saw your profile, you look sexy, chat to me on www//ripoffsiteinrussia.com."

How do you know it really isn't a Russian with an Ork fetish?

Valkyrie wrote:I know that there are better things on the OT forum but I just had to share this as I don't get it's purpose at all.

Just logged into Facebook and some of my friends have changed their profile photos to cartoon characters. I ask someone, who claims that changing their photo will stop child abuse Now sorry for this, but a scumbag who attacks children is not going to be moved by a few childish photos on Facebook. Like last year, when every girl put the colour of their bra to raise awareness for breast cancer: How? How does that honestly make a difference?

I don't think any of them are claiming it will "stop child abuse". It's simply a support/seasonal thing. Like how people here give their avatars Santa hats for Christmas.

Stop me if I'm going on a bit, but why do people get drawn into these fads, so to speak? I know about 4 people (including me) who aren't bothered about changing their profile photos, and we get blasted for it. Lets hear your opinion on this Dakka, do you get drawn into these too, and what good actually comes out of it?

Probably because it's a cause they actually care about? It makes them feel better for having done "something" about it, even if it really isn't anything that will make changes.

Well Valkyrie, clearly the only solution is a bit of the ol' Ultra Violence

As Kan said, probably just helps people feel that they are contributing to a cause; problem is, some people then getting all high and mighty about it.

It is surely as much about awareness.
tashes on avatars ring any bells?

no one assumed that putting a tash on their dakka avatar was going to prevent prostate cancer

People can be awfully silly and like to bandwagon onto the moral high ground.

Banding the hardman cynical twotwagon are you?

Some people actually care about these issues.
Hard as it may be for some on dakka there is this thing called empathy
nothing to do with bandwagons
bog all to do with morals on hilltops or otherwise.

I guess they do it to show that they care about the issue, it doesn't actually help.

Personally I don't really care for these kind of things.

This is the original post that is being repeated on facebook...

Change your facebook profile picture to a cartoon from your childhood and invite your friends to do the same. Until monday (December 6th), there should be no human faces on facebook, only an invasion of memories. This is for violence against children..

This is what I re-posted when I changed my profile picture...

Change your facebook profile picture to a cartoon from your childhood and invite your friends to do the same. Until monday (December 6th), there should be no human faces on facebook, only an invasion of memories. This is for some dumbass reason that won't actually help abused children, but is kind of fun and get's people to feel good about themselves for doing absolutely nothing.

Pfft, it;s stupid fad, I just used it as an excuse to Post a picture of Alucard as my Profile Pic. (Because he is insanely awesome)

My college had an article on the frivolity of these kinda things (it's a rare thing when that paper has a good article). You know what a better way of raising awareness for breast cancer is? You know maybe actually talk about it instead of saying the colour of your undergarments.

Not directly, of course.

This came up before in a comment war on one of my FB friend's statuses. I agree, it's quite silly and poorly written at times. I don't agree, however, that it is point\useless. The point is to raise awareness on the given cause.

Personally, I'm tired of people claiming that it is point\useless. They go on and on about concrete action and how what we're doing helps no one. They even discourage us from doing any of 'em. I'm no blind optimist, of course, I find myself as more of a realist. I am aware that what we're doing is little more than wishful thinking, but it is definitely not useless. I know that changing my PP on a social-networking site won't stay the hand of a abusive parent, but I know that, together with others, I might just convince someone to do something about it.

Well if you're trying to raise awareness these gimmicky things won't help. Why not organize a club or have a seminar on the issue. You know communicate instead of this sillieness

I actually think that using a forum like Facebook to promote such causes is more effective than organizing a club or a seminar because of the diversity of the population. It's not meant to "do" anything persay, but it is meant to make people stop and think.

asimo77 wrote:Well if you're trying to raise awareness these gimmicky things won't help. Why not organize a club or have a seminar on the issue. You know communicate instead of this sillieness

Sometimes, people, especially us young people, just can't find the time( School, Work, etc.). Since most people aren't all die-hard supporters of the given cause, they're not going to go out of our own ways to do so. FB is a community as much as Dakka is, albeit the former is full of gak at times, so all the pages\groups are much like seminars and clubs.

IMHO, silliness is a lot better than nothing.




Automatically Appended Next Post:

loranafaeriequeen wrote:I actually think that using a forum like Facebook to promote such causes is more effective than organizing a club or a seminar because of the diversity of the population. It's not meant to "do" anything persay, but it is meant to make people stop and think.

This.

Medium of Death wrote:People can be awfully silly and like to bandwagon onto the moral high ground.

Getting people to jump on the bandwagon in order to reach the moral high ground is essentially the point of all campaigns that regard social issues, like child abuse. Its basically a means of laying the groundwork for fundraising.

Chibi Bodge-Battle wrote:It is surely as much about awareness.
tashes on avatars ring any bells?

no one assumed that putting a tash on their dakka avatar was going to prevent prostate cancer

My avatar's tash reflects the fact that I have grown one in real life for Movember. That is genuine action in support of the charity.

loranafaeriequeen wrote:I actually think that using a forum like Facebook to promote such causes is more effective than organizing a club or a seminar because of the diversity of the population. It's not meant to "do" anything persay, but it is meant to make people stop and think.

This; I'm pretty sure the first rule of buissness is to reach the widest audience that you can sell to as possible, same applies to charities.

May I also mention that is doesn't have to be physical abuse, it may also be a drive to raise awareness about internet safety. I'm pretty sure that one of my friends galleries is just the kind of stuff those people would look for, then she has her contact details on there and I doubt she has the powerful security settings on.

Just slightly off topic, my profile picture is of something completely random, in fact, there is (I think) only one picture of me on FB and I don't even own it.

If you want to support the fight against child abuse drop some money to the NSPCC or the samaritans.

The same goes for supporting cancer charities. Donate clothes or other items to charity shops. Give new toys and gifts to hospitals and care centres.

In the UK the majority of such organisations receive no government funding so the rely on anything the public can give them.

Mr. Burning wrote:If you want to support the fight against child abuse drop some money to the NSPCC or the samaritans.

The same goes for supporting cancer charities. Donate clothes or other items to charity shops. Give new toys and gifts to hospitals and care centres.

In the UK the majority of such organisations receive no government funding so the rely on anything the public can give them.

Well yes, concrete action is always the best way to go, but like I said before, some people just don't have the time. Facebook liking is an extremely short process. The point is to advertise and incite concrete action, not promote itself as a form of concrete action. What you're doing right now is a form of direct promotion of concrete action, so good on you.

Discouraging (I'm not saying you are) these things don't really help at all, so if you don't like 'em, don't mind 'em. Once again, I say, silliness is better than nothing.

I would like to say this. I put a picture of the Ninja Turtles up on my Facebook profile.

Why? Because the Ninja Turtles are awesome and it hurts nothing.

I don't mind them at all and it is your choice to go along with it or not. No one is forcing you.

The things which really piss me off are those fracking pointless internet fairies and the promise that bad things will hapen if you don't forward your spam and trojan ridden fairy. "Post this to seventeen friends and receive a special wish!"

Shove your internerd fairy up your arse.

FFS and we are supposed to be an intelligent species!

Elmodiddly wrote:I don't mind them at all and it is your choice to go along with it or not. No one is forcing you.

The things which really piss me off are those fracking pointless internet fairies and the promise that bad things will hapen if you don't forward your spam and trojan ridden fairy. "Post this to seventeen friends and receive a special wish!"

Shove your internerd fairy up your arse.

FFS and we are supposed to be an intelligent species!

+10

I thought that parents being intelligent and actually WATCHING their children and PAYING ATTENTION to their children prevented sexual predators from getting to them. Who knew that it was something completely unrelated like changing a picture or two on some douchey little website. WHO KNEW! .

Anything that get's 80's cartoons, including my avatar the mighty sawboss, is to be welcomed.

It's a simple profile picture change, sure in the grand scheme of things it's trivial, but so is saying please or thank you, and I still do that.

Anyone against it as some of the posters here, just come across as uncaring, souless death machines

I normally ignore these kinds of things, and that's all you have to do, not start some vitriol ridden spout fest about it.

Wait everyone you are all missing the real problem. You are on facebook. Get off facebook and you will find gobs amount of time to actually make a difference.

Pael wrote:Wait everyone you are all missing the real problem. You are on facebook. Get off facebook and you will find gobs amount of time to actually make a difference.

Why just facebook? Make it the whole internet!

Honestly, I spend too much time on this thing.