UK or England thread?

Post Reply New Topic

Yeah, we have:
UC which I rarely see these days, which means universal but aimed at little kids and most adults will find it boring
U which means universal which is for anyone
PG which is for anyone but parents (or guardians, like if the kid's being fostered or at school) have to make a decision as to whether they think the kid can handle it
12A which replaced 12. 12 is what I grew up with and easier to understand - you weren't allowed to watch it if you were 11 or under. 12A means if you're 12 + you can watch it, anyone else it's treated like PG, but the stuff that's allowed through that is more grown up than a PG movie and the movies tend to be aimed more at adults.
15 which means nobody 14 or under is allowed to watch it.
18 which means nobody 17 or under is allowed to watch it.


I think we probably have some obscure X rated movies or something but that's porn and extreme violence and doesn't get put on at regular cinemas, I'm just talking about our regular rating system + UC which I have experience with because I've got a good memory of watching nursery rhyme videos and the like when I was about 4.

This game says it allows PG13 rated content. I was slipping in some innuendo jokes. Edgy if you understood them but that would fly over the heads of kids, and I didn't think kids under 12 were using the site. I was wondering if it had censored me but this morning it seems it didn't do and there was just a bug on the site.

It got me wondering as to what the ratings actually meant.

Does that mean that if a kid wants to watch a high rated thing and they have an irresponsible parent who lets them, it's legal in America? Is that because of the first amendment? I know of parents who let their kids play 18 video games and I feel bad for the kid seeing all that violence etc. Could a kid just walk into a cinema over there and watch a movie intended for adults?

We did watch Schindler's List at school when some of us were 14 (it's a 15) but that has historical value and merit and we weren't doing it for entertainment purposes but to drive home to us what the holocaust was.

Personally, I like either psychological 15 rated horror movies or stuff that's in the U-12A ratings. The more grown up stuff which is 18+ is too gorey for me.

I think the way it works here in regards to R rated and PG13 rated movies is that in theaters you aren't allowed to watch them if you are underage unless you have a parent with you (correct me if I'm wrong? To be honest I never went to a movie theater much as a kid).

And it's really just meant to be a guide for parents not an actual law about what kids can watch. My parents never really cared about what movies I watched or video games I played. I've been enjoying horror movies for as long as I can remember I used to rent them on VHS all the time when they took my and my sibilings out to rent videos once every couple of weeks. Also I used to love scary video games about zombies and monsters like Resident Evil and Silent Hill.

But as a kid I actually KNEW that stuff was all fake (though entertaining). It never made me want to become a violent psychopath and go around shooting up people or building bombs. Frankly I think society uses violent movies and video games as an excuse for criminal behavior that is unexcusable. Not every kid who enjoys violent or adult programs becomes a violent psychopath.

Although to be honest I find myself hating violent stuff more and more as I get older. Now I prefer the kind of horror movies that show little to no violence like the classic B&W movies such as Nosferatu, Carnival of Souls, Night of the Living Dead (nowhere as violent as today's zombie movies), Psycho, and House on Haunted Hill. Also some classic horror movies like The Shining and Carrie had some violence but nothing super gory and those movies made you think.

Also I really hate Game of Thrones. I tried to like it but that s**t is basically torture porn.

My favourite horror stuff is either psychological horror, gothic horror or things which don't even label themselves as horror but speak to my fear of and obsession with Plato's Cave, such as Inception. When I first read the Plato (not in translation but retold as part of Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder) I broke down crying because it scared me so much, and it still does quite a bit as an adult.

I don't think violent movies can turn a child into a monster. I do think they can have impacts on certain children and frighten them too much to be healthy. I also think it depends on where their starting point is. If they're living in a world free of violence, they can probably handle it better than if it's their day to day reality.

I read things when I was about 12 which had negative impacts on what I allowed into my life. Not going into that on here because it's personal (other than to say it was canonical literature not intended to have this impact), but I think certain topics which directly impact on teens and children need to be discussed frankly with them before handing over media which would have different impacts on adults.

But I'm coming at this from the POV of not making a kid more vulnerable, rather than the POV of not making the kid into a monster. I don't think media can turn kids into monsters.

And I agree, the older I get, the more media has an impact on me. In book form, when I was about 18, my favourite writers were people like Irvine Welsh and Chuck Palahniuk. I don't feel as comfortable reading that sort of writer these days and prefer things which are less extreme. And kids seem to get younger the older I get so when I was 18 I was ok reading about violence against young teenagers, now it would be like reading about violence against any other child.

I don't know about over there, but over here and in my own experience, a lot of the parents who give their kids access to violent media are similar ones to the ones who are under protective in other areas, as well. There's always a chance of parents being overprotective, which we talk about a fair bit online etc, but I think it's a balance rather than it being good to go the other way.

One exception to this was my cousin who was allowed to watch Saw movies when she was four. She still loves gore to this day however a mixture of these and stories about world war two gave her nightmares. She had/has perfectly decent parents in other regards.

^ I definetly agree about the way we view young people. Like when I was a little kid I used to think being a teenager was the same as being an adult so I never felt bad whenever something bad happened to them in a horror movie. But now whenever I see a teenager or an early 20 year old character get killed I think to myself "that could have been my baby sister" or "that's somebody's child!". It makes me feel awful... in fact I can't stand seeing ANY random character get brutally killed including grown men because I think to myself "They just killed somebody's father, brother, or son!".

The only 'tipping' I've seen in Aus is in some cafes and pubs, where they have a money box on the counter and you can put in some money if you like.
Penalty rates have now been removed for hospitality workers so I expect the tip jars to become more common.

When we go out to eat my mom leaves the waitress or waiter a tip on the table or she leaves them a little money at the counter when she pays for the food.

I think when it comes to American bars we leave tips in jars for bartenders too.

The last place I waitressed (terrible job for Autistics) all tips, whether given to you directly or left on tables had to be

put in the till for the owner. That isn't the norm but it's not uncommon either. I was a barmaid for donkeys (much

better for us) no tips but 'get yourself one' was common, and there were a few 'keep the change' I never tip, having

done all of those jobs I know the most important thing is to be polite. Also the pay is the same as shop assistance

and factory workers.

I worked in a restaurant when I was 18 and a pub.

The pay in the restaurant was way below the minimum wage and we were expected to make up our wages in tips. The management was horrible.

The pub was minimum wage but we did get drinks bought for us which we could have at the end of the evening. I liked the pub more because it was my local too and I knew most of the customers.

I am glad I had the brief experience of both because it opened my eyes up to the difference in how I could be treated.

^Our dragon queen has returned to us, hurrah!

For non-Brits the min wage then was more of a guide (totally ignored in Lincolnshire). When the proper one came

in just before I got my first job I was . Everyone called it a pittance on the news but here it made a real

difference to a lot of people.

Ah, bless you my love for being so kind and happy to see me.

I am here a lot more than I post, checking up on everyone and enjoying their posts.

My brain is still recovering from my last v attack.(vertigo) The doc says I might have meniere's disease which is another bummer for me but life goes on and I am trying to recover in a healthy way and not get too depressed about it all.

The minimum wage did make a big difference to a lot of people who were being exploited. Now the government just exploits the sick and disabled instead. I won't get started on this as I am having a pleasant day.

So what you been up to Fluffy? Any bulbs coming up yet? Any new pastimes or written work?

I was just going to ask if you are feeling alright Tem as I could not read in fluffy's quoted post that she was kind and happy to see you. I didn't notice her other comment , glad I didn't mention anything and embarrass myself

Ha ha, but I would have understood as it was a separate post.

And you are you of course.

What is vertigo?

Vertigo is the sensation of moving when you are not.

It can be quite aggressive at times or in the background waiting to spring any moment.

Everything spins when I move my head and I have trouble focusing and concentrating.

The biggest challenge is to not fall over and get injured.

It is worse than being drunk all the time.

It is usually caused by an inner ear problem of some sort.