# Spectre of Pithecanthropus, don't you have something better to do? Chair a PTA meeting, maybe? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [June 7, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664 "2011-06-07T20:58:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/21 "2011-06-10T04:11:16Z")
Well, there is [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=7696990&postcount=5): > [@FAQs - Please Read First - Rules](#): > > Are there any forbidden subjects, like sex and drugs? > [@FAQs etc.](#): > > Sex: The medical approach is OK, the Penthouse approach is not. If you’re not sure, err on the side of caution and/or contact a staff member before you post. How are ball gags and butt plugs **not** the ‘Penthouse approach’? Therefore it was worth addressing in the thread as I saw it. In a different context stronger sanctions might have been called for, but I didn’t think they were needed here. BTW **runner\_pat’s** post was reported, but it was by someone who hasn’t even been in that thread, so it’s no use trying to guess. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/22 "2011-06-10T04:22:47Z")
> [@rachelellogram](#): > > It’s SOP. > > _Nelson laugh_ What’s a Nelson laugh? Really, I just want to know. ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/23 "2011-06-10T04:54:32Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > Well, there is [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=7696990&postcount=5): > > How are ball gags and butt plugs **not** the ‘Penthouse approach’? Therefore it was worth addressing in the thread as I saw it. In a different context stronger sanctions might have been called for, but I didn’t think they were needed here. > > BTW **runner\_pat’s** post was reported, but it was by someone who hasn’t even been in that thread, so it’s no use trying to guess. So what about the fact that the subthread of discussion had died out and the participants had gone back to the actual topic at hand? ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/24 "2011-06-10T05:06:12Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > How are ball gags and butt plugs **not** the ‘Penthouse approach’? Therefore it was worth addressing in the thread as I saw it. In a different context stronger sanctions might have been called for, but I didn’t think they were needed here. I look forward to you policing the whole board in this way. Maybe we ought to change the rules so that no-one _over_ 13 is allowed to join. Thanks ever so much, Comstock. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![NineToTheSky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5a626/32.png) [@NineToTheSky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NineToTheSky)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/25 "2011-06-10T07:32:34Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > What’s a Nelson laugh? Really, I just want to know. [Nelson Muntz](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rX7wtNOkuHo) from the Simpsons? ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/26 "2011-06-10T07:39:37Z")
> [@NineToTheSky](#): > > [Nelson Muntz](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rX7wtNOkuHo) from the Simpsons? Yes. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/27 "2011-06-10T14:51:20Z")
n/m ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/28 "2011-06-10T14:54:09Z")
Rio, from the Marianas Trench ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/29 "2011-06-10T15:20:53Z")
When the walls fell. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/30 "2011-06-10T17:58:58Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > Well, there is [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=7696990&postcount=5): > > How are ball gags and butt plugs **not** the ‘Penthouse approach’? Therefore it was worth addressing in the thread as I saw it. In a different context stronger sanctions might have been called for, but I didn’t think they were needed here. Are you somehow under the impression that the only discussions/comments on sex around here are of the medical persuasion? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/31 "2011-06-10T18:25:03Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > Are you somehow under the impression that the only discussions/comments on sex around here are of the medical persuasion? Or that Penthouse publishes articles as lame as indirectly inferring you’d put a buttplug up someone’s ass? A Penthouse letter would explicitly describe the act in full detail. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/32 "2011-06-10T19:06:50Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > How are ball gags and butt plugs **not** the ‘Penthouse approach’? Therefore it was worth addressing in the thread as I saw it. In a different context stronger sanctions might have been called for, but I didn’t think they were needed here. Thank you for answering. I’m siding with the protests on this one. It wasn’t much in the way of a hijack, though that _might_ have been grounds. But modding for sexual content? On a board where I learned about felching, and has running jokes about goatse and an initiation of moderators that involved getting raped by a goat and/or a squid, the mention of a ball gag and a butt-plug rates negative offense numbers. -1 on modding. > [@](#): > > BTW **runner\_pat’s** post was reported, but it was by someone who hasn’t even been in that thread, so it’s no use trying to guess. By “in” I assume posted, because they’ve likely been in the thread to read it. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/33 "2011-06-10T19:32:44Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > Are you somehow under the impression that the only discussions/comments on sex around here are of the medical persuasion? Not at all. Read the rule again: > [@](#): > > Sex: **The medical approach is OK** , the Penthouse approach is not. If you’re not sure, err on the side of caution and/or contact a staff member before you post. (Emphasis mine) It’s not saying that _only_ the medical approach is OK, but there’s a definite declaration to the effect that the Penthouse approach is not. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/34 "2011-06-10T20:02:48Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > Not at all. Read the rule again: > > (Emphasis mine) > > It’s not saying that _only_ the medical approach is OK, but there’s a definite declaration to the effect that the Penthouse approach is not. I freely admit that my memory ain’t what it used to be, but I could swear that plenty hundreds of threads have contained material much more racy than ball gags and butt plugs. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/35 "2011-06-10T20:14:30Z")
I think “The Penthouse Approach” refers to the traditional “Dear Penthouse: I never believed it would happen to me, but as I was delivering pizza to the sorority house…” type of story, which is much more of a first person approach than discussing butt plugs in reference to a third party who isn’t even in the thread. Much more masturbatory, IOW. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/36 "2011-06-10T20:31:31Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Much more masturbatory, IOW. “Pornographic” is the word you’re looking for. The comments that SOP smacked down weren’t even close. Spectre, if the comment had been, “boy - back when I was in college I dated a girl that looked just like Sarah Palin, and let me explicitly detail the night we had involving buttplugs and ball gags…” and then did so - THAT would be a Penthouse letter. On a board that took months to get rid of someone who kept talking about what he wanted to sexually do to small children, I cannot believe we’re even having this discussion. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/37 "2011-06-10T21:25:12Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > “Pornographic” is the word you’re looking for. No, I meant “Masturbatory” - using the Board as a way to get your rocks off. I don’t think anyone was doing that with the thought of Palin in a ballgag. Appealing, yes, erotic, naah. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2011, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/38 "2011-06-10T21:42:21Z")
Yes, of course - I read that completely backwards. I see what you mean. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2011, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/39 "2011-06-11T05:35:07Z")
The moderator comment has been retracted in the original thread, [here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=13903476&postcount=116). ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2011, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spectre-of-pithecanthropus-dont-you-have-something-better-to-do-chair-a-pta-meeting-maybe/584664/40 "2011-06-11T05:47:12Z")
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