Intellectual Property and the Law
Nexxus
Burned Fur movement or any such topic. The Burned Fur
movement has never been directed towards
anthropomorphic artwork or writing, and I have never seen
them bring FurNation up in their comments or arguments.
I have tried very hard not to respond to the threads that
have started as a result of the artwork on FurNation. We
are presently working on a solution that should fix all these
problems with what is considered 'appropriate' and
'inappropriate' content on the FurNation server.
But everyone seems to want to make a 'leap across the gap'
and make claims that some forms of artwork are legal while
others are illegal.
I have not found any images on FurNation that would be
considered illegal under any present laws in the United
States. I have not scanned all the directories yet, so I may
still find something which should be removed.
If fictional works depicting bestiality were illegal in
California then Woody Allen would be in prison right now
for his work on the movie "Everything you always wanted
to know about sex but was afraid to ask". If you have not
seen the movie it portrays Woody Allen falling in love with
a sheep. The movie has very graphic content condoning
bestiality. I can also think of a few movies with sex scenes
involving human and animal morphs such as the "Howling"
series. Not to mention the graphic depiction of bestiality in
the recent movie "South Park".
If condoning bestiality in artwork was illegal then a lot of
museums would be raided for having graphic Greek and
Roman artwork available to the public. I remember many
field trips to the St. Louis Metropolitan Museum while
attending grade school, and I don't remember anyone being
arrested when we viewed the 'offensive' ancient statues and
pottery on display.
Murder is also illegal. How many movies have you seen
with people getting their heads blown off in cold-blood?
How many photos? How many books have you read with
this content described in vivid detail?
If I was to make a 'leap across the gap' then every image
and text file in furry fandom would be illegal, as any
human/animal hybrid morph must surely have come from
the mating of a pure human and pure animal.
Drawing or writing about something that is illegal is NOT
the same as actually doing the act in real life. Don't confuse
the two. One is freedom of expression, one will put you in a
jail cell. Writing or drawing something from your
imagination does not mean you have done an illegal act,
after all, no crime has been committed. There are no
'Thought Police' that will break down your door (at least,
not yet).
There is one exception to this rule: Drawings containing
pedophile content. The law was enacted at the
congressional level in the United States. Most other
countries have similar laws.
Nuf' said on this argument.
Now, to fix the problem that everyone seems to have
pointed out to us: We need a solid Rules and Policies page
so that FN can become more 'mainstream' with the furry
public...
We are working hard to ensure that FurNation will always
be an open and uncensored forum for anthropomorphic
works. It will take a few weeks to iron out all the details. I
would like to ask that everyone refrain from creating new
threads in this newsgroup until we have had time to work
on the problem.
FurNation has always been a pure anthropomorphic site
where both erotic and non-erotic imaginary works can be
displayed. If everything goes according to our plans no
artist or writer will feel they have to hold back on their
creativity, and at the same time we will attempt to satisfy
both sides of the argument over what should and should-not
be included in furry creative works on FurNation.
I now present you with several links to wonderful artwork
that can be found on FurNation. I feel that I should begin
to actively promote FurNation for the benefit of the artists
and writers who use the system to display their works.
Enjoy the pictures, and remember that all of these images
are copyrighted by their respective owners.
------------------
01: First on my list is Eugene Arenhaus (Chipmunk) for his
wonderful (and large) image called "Renaissance Portrait"
(600 by 857, 283,759 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/Chipmunk/images/as_cdr.jpg
02: Everyone in fandom knows of Eric Schwartz. Here is a
print he did in '97 called "Cool Duo".
(800 by 600, 81,018 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/Eric_Schwartz/pix/CoolDuo.jpg
03: Frank Gembeck is known more for his erotic artwork,
but like most artists he also creates milder images. Here is a
unicorn in pose called "Rain".
(500 by 378, 42,551 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/Frank_Gembeck/rain-a.jpg
04: Here is a piece from Andre' Heinonen. Be warned:
these furs are NAKID! (grin, about as naked as Bugs
Bunny).
(790 by 1022, 172,372 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/Heinonen/pix/myrla-ah.jpg
05: Here is a sample of Jeremy Bernal's work. This one is
called "Moon Goddess" and displays a bunny in a
semi-erotic pose (Warning: may cross over the PG rating
for some).
(399 by 576, 135,174 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/JBernal/MoonGoddess,_copyright_1998_J.W.Bernal.jpg
06: John Boulton was one of the first artists I came across
when I learned of furry fandom. Here is a nice sci-fi piece
called "Cougar".
(489 by 640, 62,728 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/John/images/Cougar3d-jb.jpg
07: Here is one of the only oil paintings by Nakira I can
remember him creating. From a character called "Foxster"
who I just met a few days ago (he lives near me now).
(595 by 720, 133,578 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/Nakira/furry/W_foxstr.jpg
08: This piece is by Qul, a recently added artist on FN. He
lives in Japan. Nice styling in his works. This piece is
called "Torainu Kun".
(610 by 755, 72,082 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/Qul/images/furry/torainu01d3.gif
09: Ravenwolf continues to improve in his styling every
time I check out his directory. Here is a sample that I want
to buy from him at the next convention. Called "One
Tribe".
(337 by 462, 67,158 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/Ravenwolf/opnmyc.jpg
10: Werepuppy emailed me once and asked if I thought his
artwork was good enough to be hosted on FurNation. Take
a look and see what you think. I think you will be
pleasantly surprised. This one is called "Celtic Coon".
(424 by 550, 194,019 bytes)
http://www.FurNation.com/Werepuppy/celtcoon.jpg
Enjoy the artwork!
Sincerely,
Nexxus
FurNation Administrator
http://www.FurNation.com
Webm...@FurNation.com
M. Mitchell Marmel
Re: Werepuppy: Wow.
-MMM-
ilr
> If fictional works depicting bestiality were illegal in
> California then Woody Allen would be in prison right now
> for his work on the movie "Everything you always wanted
> to know about sex but was afraid to ask". If you have not
> seen the movie it portrays Woody Allen falling in love with
> a sheep.
Eeeeewwwwwwwwww!! (no pun intended ;)
> I can also think of a few movies with sex scenes
> involving human and animal morphs such as the "Howling"
> series.
Naughty :)P
> Not to mention the graphic depiction of bestiality in
> the recent movie "South Park".
Eeeeeewwwwww!!! Haven't seen it yet.
"Dirty Chicken Ho!! You will respec mah Authoritah!"
That show's worse than anything I've ever seen in "furry".
Crappier Drawing. More violence. And Flamingly tasteless
sexual references. The worst furry artists can do is not try.
These fukkers on the other hand TRY to squick people out.
Makin Big Money too. It looks like Sexual-Depravity is becoming
in 2000, what Horror Films were in the 80's. "American Pie" and
"Something about Mary" for instance.
Furry perverts might just be worth their weight in gold
in a few years. And from what I've heard, that's a lot of Tonnage ;)
--- i l r
Atara
>
> Good stuff, Nexxus. Thankee!
>
> Re: Werepuppy: Wow.
*checks the links*
Whoa. That "wow" is seconded.
There's a TON of great art in the fandom. Sometimes you have to look for
it, and sometimes someone will show you where to see it. Fantasic stuff.
And as for the "all the art is crappy" threads that pop up once in a
while - if you see an artist whose work is "sub-par" by your
standards... Check back with them in a few months. If they've been
practicing, they might have improved.
If not... give them some pointers. "Your paws could use some work - try
using real life models." Etc.
Possible result of your five minutes of effort? A better artist.
--
Atara
"I've got a pantheon of animals
in a pagan soul..." -Rush
http://www.FurNation.com/Atara/
William Earl Haskell
>
> >
> > If fictional works depicting bestiality were illegal in
> > California then Woody Allen would be in prison right now
> > for his work on the movie "Everything you always wanted
> > to know about sex but was afraid to ask". If you have not
> > seen the movie it portrays Woody Allen falling in love with
> > a sheep.
That was Richard Marx, I think. I saw this exerpt at ConFurence a couple
of years ago. So sad - that poor guy, winding up down & out on the
sidewalk, swiggin' Woolite.
John Urie
>
> Enjoy the artwork!
Thanks! I NEEDED that!
John
( What the Major said! )
Uire
BlackNo1
Ace is still my werepuppy favorite.
Andrew Thompson
: That was Richard Marx, I think. I saw this exerpt at ConFurence a couple
: of years ago. So sad - that poor guy, winding up down & out on the
: sidewalk, swiggin' Woolite.
Really? I thought it was Gene Wilder.
JPR/AT
Nexxus
Now I am confused. But, you may be right. I know
Woody Allen made the movie, but now that I think
about it more...
Yes, I think I was wrong. It was Gene Wilder who played
the part.
Sincerely,
Nexxus
FurNation Administrator
http://www.FurNation.com
Webm...@FurNation.com
Andrew Thompson <apth...@shell9.ba.best.com> wrote in message
news:379540c1$0$2...@nntp1.ba.best.com...
rans...@au-au.extern.ucsd.edu
"Nexxus" <Webm...@FurNation.com> writes:
|> 10: Werepuppy emailed me once and asked if I thought his
|> artwork was good enough to be hosted on FurNation. Take
|> a look and see what you think. I think you will be
|> pleasantly surprised. This one is called "Celtic Coon".
|> (424 by 550, 194,019 bytes)
|>
|> http://www.FurNation.com/Werepuppy/celtcoon.jpg
gheezus h! "not good enough"?!
--
"I want to lick your motherboard
Taste your scuzzy drive
When you feel me power up
That won't be Intel inside"
-"I Don't Want No Cybersex", Mojo Nixon
Joe Rosales
> We are presently working on a solution that should fix all these
> problems with what is considered 'appropriate' and 'inappropriate'
> content on the FurNation server.
As an aside, I would like to point out here that according to the
FurNation charter, the intention of FurNation is to provide a
non-content-restricted forum for funny animal and anthropomorphic art.
The intention was always to provide a display area for furry artists of
many levels of quality in which they could put up whatever they wanted,
as opposed to forums (such as Yerf, meaning no disrespect) where strict
guidelines and merit tests were the standing order.
I cannot fault the goal of giving some free server space, even to people
who aren't very good or whose material is not what most would consider
socially acceptable. It is unfortunate, in my opinion, that many take
the freedom offered by such a forum as pure license, and that such
places occasionally become mere showcases for the fetishes of the
artists. But the alternative is to run on a system based either on
commercial success, which would mean that most of what you see on the
net would be by Terrie Smith, Michelle Light, and myself; or by merit,
which means that someone must decide for you what you can and cannot see
before it ever passes before you. I believe the flaws in both systems
are apparent.
In fact, the one questionable flaw in the FurNation system is that it
places the responsibility for content squarely on the shoulders of the
webspace occupant, making it prey to the irresponsible spaceholder. The
honor system breaks down when the honoree doesn't read the rules or
simply decides not to do what is not permissible. Nexxus was never
meant to be a policeman over the system, and I am disappointed that it
has come to that. I also do not think he must be blamed for the
inappropriate use of his server space, which he provided in good faith
and as a public service. When someone stores contraband in the
U-Store-It, it's not the owner's fault for providing the space and
trusting the renters to follow the rules, and it's not the Parks
Department that's to blame when someone throws trash all over the park
walkways.
You may not like or approve of a lot of what's on FurNation. I know I
don't. But you can always hang around Yerf, where all the work has been
cleaned up and doublechecked to make sure that there is nothing that
will offend you or anyone else. I don't disapprove of Yerf; I have my
own archive there, Scotty is a friend of mine, and we're both big fans
of each other's art. But the purpose of Yerf is radically different
from that of FurNation. And Yerf is, by its nature, a restrictive
forum; and while you see much good art on it, it will not substantially
push at the bounaries of furry material in any direction, and it
certainly will not provide a forum for people who are really out there
to improve and develop through online display and feedback.
There is much good material on FurNation which for one reason or another
you will not see anywhere else. In my case, I put up a few nudes (four
years of life drawing have left their mark), and some t-shirt and
animation designs that are not strictly "furry" -- things which range
from the completely innocuous to no more hardcore than you would see in
a soft R movie, but which regardless of their quality would not have
been showable in other more restrictive forums. I am aware that other
people are putting up some seriously godawful material on FurNation, but
that cannot be helped. I would rather have someone else be able to put
up some material I don't agree with than be forced to continuously edit
and alter my own material according to someone else's overshadowing
standards. I may not like some of that stuff, but it's the price of
freedom.
On the other hand, there is a lot that I *do* really like, and that's
the payoff for freedom! And I'm personally glad that I have been given
some space, and that Nexxus and Lyger have done all the hard technical
work of keeping a server running so that I can mess around with HTML and
draw pictures and not have to worry about it. Thanks, guys, for opening
the hostel! I only hope that more people keep their own rooms cleaner
in the future. Or at least dirty them up in an entertaining way.
-- Joe
Visit my website full of stuff at http://www.FurNation.com/Animus. Hey,
it's on the internet, so at least it's free! It's not so bad!
Arved
>
> Werepuppy emailed me once and asked if I thought his
> artwork was good enough to be hosted on FurNation. Take
> a look and see what you think. I think you will be
> pleasantly surprised. This one is called "Celtic Coon".
> (424 by 550, 194,019 bytes)
> http://www.FurNation.com/Werepuppy/celtcoon.jpg
You often hear about humble artists, but Werepuppy
is really excelling in that respect, eh? :O)
> Enjoy the artwork!
Sure did! Thanks for pointing us to these pics.
Arved
Dr. Skorzy MacFarlaighn
<joea...@NOSPAMstic.net> wrote:
> draw pictures and not have to worry about it. Thanks, guys, for opening
> the hostel! I only hope that more people keep their own rooms cleaner
> in the future. Or at least dirty them up in an entertaining way.
>
> -- Joe
Bravo! Well said!
-Skorzy
--
J. Scott Rogers ** sko...@cyberzone.net **
UMASS Medical Center ** jeff....@ummed.edu**
Program in Molecular Medicine Dr. Skorzy MacFarlaighn
Worcester, Massachusetts '99 Anthrocon Artshow Asst.Directorat
--
"Truth, like surgery, hurts, but heals... "
"The Biorg Universe" Anthropomorphic Fiction w/ J.L.Eddy
http://members.limitless.org/~waltzer/tftbu.html
William Earl Haskell
>
> Gene Wilder? Hmmm.....
>
> Now I am confused. But, you may be right. I know
> Woody Allen made the movie, but now that I think
> about it more...
>
> Yes, I think I was wrong. It was Gene Wilder who played
> the part.
You're RIGHT! Give the man a cigar. I goofed.
The question now is, what movie Richard Marx was in?
Jack Furlong
>In article <7n2hdl$n7l$1...@raccoon.fur.com>,
> "Nexxus" <Webm...@FurNation.com> writes:
>
>|> artwork was good enough to be hosted on FurNation. Take
>|> a look and see what you think. I think you will be
>|> pleasantly surprised. This one is called "Celtic Coon".
>|> (424 by 550, 194,019 bytes)
>|>
>|> http://www.FurNation.com/Werepuppy/celtcoon.jpg
>
*Hill flips to the image in question, and his jaw hits the floor*
Scuse me, after seeing that, maybe I shouldn't call _myself_
an artist... Wow, that's good stuff....
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*** Jack Furlong *** http://www.netcom.com/~jfurlong
*** Artist/MUCKer *** Email www.netcom.com/~jfurlong/contact.html
"Dont take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive!" - Bugs Bunny