Dear Source:
Dear Mr. Devine: While I thank you for the correction, I still stand by my earlier assertion. From the tone of your article, one would have thought that the ads were sanctioned links approved by UVI. These are posts within an open forum that, as you clearly pointed out, no one can stop because it would be inhibiting the person's Free Speech…whatever that may be. To go into the forums and to see that is somewhat different than saying it is on the main web pages, which your article never differentiates. Those posts are like the spam/junk mail you get in your inbox or the junk mail you get at the Post Office. You can curb the flow, set up SPAM guards, but no matter how good it is, a few will always trickle in. All you do is delete it, or never surf the net again. Yet, I understand it may have been done so to state a point. Unfortunately, just about every single open forum/discussion board today will have have those types of illicit posts. Once you sign up then you get free reign. Perhaps the moderators should be more vigilant, but I am sure that UVI is more than working on that since a fine upstanding citizen as yourself has, I am sure, informed them of this before making your concerns/points public matter.
I would think, with your level of concern, that if should you find the same smut I found, you would promptly contact the UVI staff who are in charge of monitoring this site, paid for by public funds.
In all honesty, if I found the same level of smut on that site or any other site, I would not give it any attention. That is how you give ignorance a chance to take hold and grow. It is something you find everywhere. What would have surprised me if there had actually been hits or responses to the illicit ads. Then what does that say about our community? Like I said, be careful of what you write and what you say, each of us represents this territory on a grand scale when we post on the net or on public forums. What we say is as important as how we say it and WHAT we CHOOSE to say. Leaving out something can change the outcome and even possibly the intent of the message. Taking things out of context and omitting information is just as dangerous. But the point is Free Speech, and though it is my understanding that certain parts of the Constitution and American Laws hold no bearing here as we are not considered full citizens (since we cannot vote for president and none of our children who were born here can ever run for President yet our children and friends can die in any war they so choose) then we need to protect the very little they do allow us to have. God Bless America!
Y. Hanley
Freedom City, St. Croix
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