by The Fifth Spirit » Mon Jan 17, 2022 5:09 am
I didn't know that DNI lists existed until yesterday, and today I've finally found the time to sit down and write down my thoughts.
First off, I'd like to extend a thank you to staff for this decision. There will never be a decision made that doesn't piss off or upset someone, so I'm not surprised at the variety of reactions in this thread. I do wish some posts were worded more kindly, and this extends to ones that support both sides of the conversation.
Secondly, after reading the entirety of this thread (or at least whatever posts survived staff purging), I have to say that I personally feel more comfortable on this site knowing that these things that I didn't even know existed will no longer be an allowable feature. As someone with a mental disorder (no, I will not share specifics because I don't owe that to anyone), I can understand why the internet might feel like an unsafe or unwelcoming place. However, I don't think that's a valid reason to publicly share a list of triggers, things you don't like, etc. in the interests of keeping those things/people away from you. Because as others have said before, what are the chances that it'll actually work? Someone with blatantly [insert-prefix-here]phobic views, regardless of whether they publish them online, will probably not care in the slightest about DNI lists. Or they could be someone like me, who didn't know they existed and would never think to check for one before sending a trade or posting in the forums.
As others have said, it's not other people's responsibility to be aware of someone's triggers. If I had to check a DNI list for every single person I traded with, I wouldn't bother using this site. That's a waste of time, could potentially lead to me exposing myself to discomfort or my own triggers, and makes no sense in the context of trading pixel pets. I can see how they have more of a pull in the forums, but in that case it's a player's responsibility to block someone who has info in their sig about a fandom they don't like or make sure they're not engaging in forum threads that could potentially expose them to triggers, etc.
Overall, DNI lists give me a sense of "I'm expecting someone else to be responsible for my emotional well-being" and that's not a safe thing to do. The internet is not the place to entrust strangers (or friends!) with that sort of thing.