So a funny thing happened last night. I'm not sure how, but lots of people looked at the Blog - like, over 20,000 people. Apparently someone posted a link to it on "digg.com" or something, but I've also found links to it on a few other TV / Entertainment websites.
Long story short - all the visits quickly exceeded my bandwidth in my Photobucket account, making all my pictures disappear until the 20th of the month (when the bandwidth counter will reset).
Part of me is excited all these strangers have read my site, but we all know the only reason they came in the first place is because of one particular picture in the post below.
Which brings me to my moral dilemma. According to some of the comments on the post below, the whole "Make a Wish" story is true. They also claim that this kid basically had the picture stolen by his friends, who posted it on the Internet. After finding out what happened, he felt bad about it and requested that websites take it down... to which they all obliged (I mean, who's going to turn down a terminally ill kid?!)
So here's the question: do I have a moral obligation to take it down as well? I could see both sides of the argument:
1. Yes. Although I didn't obtain it through any shady means, it was originally obtained that way. I shouldn't make the situation worse.
2. No. At this point, the proverbial cat is out of the bag. I could take it down, but we've all already seen it. Others have saved it, hosted it elsewhere, and passed it along to their friends. I wish we could go back and erase our memories of the whole thing, but that technology is still years away.
As I easily succumb to peer pressure, I'll let you all vote via the Comments section. Majority rules.
25 comments:
If you survived Digg and can't confirm the facts, keep it up until you get some solid info. I was one of the 20,000 sorry. Thanks!
Keep it...
<___<
Unless the kid personally contacts you and asks you to take it down.
Funny. I would have expected you to lose the picture by some other dirty means by "THEM!" Hehe!
But, hey. It's the business of the internet. If you're not reached by someone from ABC or that kid, I wouldn't worry about it.
no reason to take it down...it proves nothing really
I say you should take it down, but then again I don't know if I would have been saying that before I had seen the picture. I will not save it to my desktop just out of moral obligations, but I still think had i not seen it I demand you put it back up. However, it is all up to you, but if you need a vote, take it down. I mean it's a terminally ill kid, and if he wants it off the internet, then I'd say take it off.
However, this doesn't prove he is an other anyway, so, although it is a big spoiler, it's not like it proves that Henry is not an other. I think they will let him go, only to find out sometime later that it belonged to someone else, possibly Desmond as mentioned before. Anyway, again, it is your choice. You decide what to do with it.
I'd go to www.snopes.com and check and make sure it's not an Urban Legend first.
Its just a picture, Keep it. Do it for the losties. I'm sure the little boy would understand, if he exhists.
Keep it up.
I found out about your site from digg.com and although I'm thankful, I think you should take the image down for a couple of reasons.
1) I like to read about lost and read about other peoples thoughts about lost, but I'm definitely NOT into "spoilers." I've been reading your page for the past couple days and haven't noticed any other "spoiler" type things, which means that your "most controversial post ever" title was probably true. I would like to continue reading this site since it gets me thinking about some of the plots I may have forgotten about and give me something to do while I wait 2 months for every new episode (hah). I wouldn't however continue to come here if there were legitimate "spoilers" which I consider this picture to be. Sure, it doesn't really confirm anything, but it's still a little bit across the line of revealing plot development imho.
2) If the sick kid didn't mean for it to happen I don't really care THAT much, but I guess it would just be another reason to take it down.
So I guess I only have like 1.2 reasons to take it down, but that's my vote.
~left at the Moral Ambiguious Altar, stands a tall shadow.~
There is nothing anyone can truly do, if anyone wants to blame themselves it should be ABC's public advisors that are at all times on the set of LOST, doing just that, keeping publicity away, The kid doesn't need to feel bad because even though Make a Wish is a great organization, it also follows business rules, which means contracts and policies are important, even though they just want the kids to have a great time, rules are always needed. With that being said, The Kid in no way violated these rules, therefore at a business perspective Whats Rightfully his not under infringement of Copyright, is still rightfully his, so anything obtained legally from that set is and will be his. ABC can't do anything about it. Sure get lawyer involved, but without enough circumstantial evidence and the proper contract saying no Flash or Video Photography then this case is already closed. So from a business perspective, (which ABC is highly about) Then I say Keep It.
Now from the point a Giant fan of LOST and everything involving the theories to the spoilers, It seems like even though "the cat is out of the bag" but what does this prove?
1.)Nothing, Producers of LOST have proven time and time again "We are never deceived; we deceive ourselves." So we begin to think and think until the Ultimate Theory is created which in reality is far from the truth.
2.)The Balloon itself really isn't the spoiler, we almost all knew a "infamous" flashback would occur, so why not stumble upon this almost placed balloon and be like hmm he must be one of us, let him go, and well I'll leave the rest to the scriptwriters.
If anything this spoiler has left me wanting to know so much more, and I have told almost all the communal lost fans,and whenever this episode premieres, it will def be anticipated, LOST producers and writers know where there doing, I think with them acting this way could also be a giant act, proving that we are just as lost and the survivors are.
So from a LOST fan point, i still say Keep It.
~All deception in the course of life is indeed nothing else but a lie reduced to practice, and falsehood passing from words into things.~
Southey
~Anoy
Well,
If we can trust statistics (which can be used to prove anything that's even remotely true), this looks to be enough of a random sampling to say that the picture is going to stay.
dujoducom,
Rest assured, I don't post anything that could be considered a "Spoiler". This site is more about analyzing what we've already seen to predict the future than to randomly give away new information. Where's the fun in that?
In the end, I think this picture did one thing: made us all doubt that Henry is an Other. Up until this point, I think everyone was on the "Henry is an Other" bandwagon. But now there appears to be some argument for the other side (pun intended).
Full analysis post coming soon!
I read a whole lot of your blog today after seeing the balloon post on Digg. Nice work, very thought provoking for Losties =)
I may have come as one of thousands. But I read your blog. And it's great. I'll be sticking around. :)
Whether he's dying or not, he's the copyright holder. So both legally and morally, you are in the wrong.
Copyright infringement has never stopped me before, so I don't see why it would stop me now :)
Hello, leave it up. Don't cave - I think it's a conspiracy to make people take it down.
The photo of the balloon is fascinating and also the apparent story behind it. However, note that the balloon that Henry Gale describes is much different from the one in the photo. Henry describes a legitimate long distance balloon. The dimensions that he gives exactly match the balloons that Steve Fossett uses for his adventures. The one in the photo is a very different type of balloon. It is the colorful hot air variety with a wicker basket for the passengers. I have flown in this type of balloon. They typically go up to 1000 feet or so and drift for a few miles. The long distance balloons like Henry describes are much larger, use a combination of helium and hot air, fly at much higher altitudes, have an enclosed and heated gondola, etc. So, this begs the question as to what this photo means. If someone Photo-Shopped it, they did a darn good job. Or maybe ABC is teasing us? Or maybe Henry's story is only partially true...
leave it up.
and i found u that way, and am now a subscriber :)
This is pretty cool. I feel like one of those people that follows a small bar band before they blow up and become huge since I was reading this ish before the "controversey." Brian, for me, the American people, Delta Sig and anyone else, keep that picture up. Yeah, the kid is dieing, that sucks and all. But now he is a semi-famous dieing kid. We do justive to this brave little guy by infringing on any kind of copyright rights he has and keeping this picture alive and strong.
I'm another one of the Digg-noids who came through in the deluge. I subscribed too. As for the photo, I have no opinion. Like someone else said, it doesn't prove/disprove anything.
Leave it. Although I believe that Henry is an other, I have heard rumors that he may just be the real deal.
>>It's almost as if these people have never watched a serialized network drama before
I must say you're an absolute moron :p
Yeah, we have drama series' in the UK too. But we don't have massive mid-season breaks or sets of repeats half way through!
The fact that you think it's impossible to have it any other way makes me laugh!
I have many questions.....if you look at "the staff"....doent the picture look like a medical/hospital signal??? Could that be where they were keeping Claire?????Also.....if they sent a plane or something to drop the parachute off.....why didn't anyone on the beach see it.....or hear it for that matter....What happened to desmond....will they bring him back??? But my main question is the hospital thing....if you noticed in the show Claire went back to that place....it had Darma written on the door.....idk...if you could look into it and mention it in the next entry it would be appretiated.....by the way....great work....keep it up
ROFL!
I've had a laugh reading this thread. This is the kid who visited the set. I'm not terminally ill, I had a bone marrow transplant which cured me just over 18 months ago. I decided to wait until I was fully recovered before going on the wish, I thought I'd enjoy it more that way.
Oh, and to 'sarah' who said she thinks I was a conspiracy - HAHAHA. That made my day... Still in stitches from that one.
Good day to you all!
That's a great story. Waiting for more. » » »
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