This title is really too militant for me, but it somehow seemed appropriate in this instance. There has been yet another attempt to shut us down. While those opposed to this site make moral arguments, the companies—such as JaguarPC—always have a loophole in their Terms of Service (TOS) to allow them to refuse service to anyone on spurious grounds. All protestations of free speech and expression aside, these companies simply want a source of easy money and will act in self-preservation when 1) the work needed to keep a particular client outweighs the benefits and 2) the client expresses views which would reflect poorly on the company in light of mainstream public sentiment. Under different conditions, I would be content to let our detractors have their way but I have learned two important things in my time running this site: 1) Pigtails hold up a mirror to society revealing the flaws it does not want to face and 2) little girls are a kind of spiritual symbol that tells us what is wrong and a clue on how to remedy it. In other words, Pigtails in Paint is of political import and for our own sake, should not be summarily cast aside.

Our New Service Provider: One of the heartwarming things about Pigtails is how it motivates people to help out when it is needed. Our new service provider is in the U.K. and certainly many have commented that a site such as ours needed to be hosted in Europe. Our new host assures us he can handle the usual abuse from fanatical and ill-informed social conservatives and if a legitimate law enforcement authority or an order from the courts is received, we will remove the offending material. In addition, we will continue to comply with U.S. law.

New Facebook Page: I have been thinking about this for a while now. I felt there needed to be a separate site that was part the of Pigtails community for two reasons: 1) In cases like this when the main site is shut down, it can provide and alternate channel of communication to inform readers what is happening and 2) it would be a more practical place to have discussions and debates that do not properly belong to a specific Pigtails post. Other than the site avatar and banner, no images will be posted there. It will also be used to flesh out any details regarding the design of the main site and minor revisions that are being made that are not apparent to those regularly visiting the site. You can visit the Facebook page here.

About the Mirror Site: Our host has also set up this mirror site at pigtailsinpaint.org which is a duplication of the main site. The advantage is that in places, like Russia, where this site is blocked, there is a backup place to go. It will have a separate IP address as well in case the main IP should be blocked as well.

The Protests: The outpouring of concern and support is quite moving. I have been informed of a few places where there have been written protests of the denial of service by JaguarPC. Most notable is this one which has received numerous comments and copied on a few other blogs.

Our Detractors: After being shut down, one of my associates was looking for what people were saying about us. Our most virulent detractors have some strong words about what they think Pigtails is about (note especially posts dated November 9 and 10). This blogger acts as though he were on the inside track. If it weren’t for the fact that many readers lap up these salacious rumors, it would be quite amusing. It seems the blogger is privy to information that even those who run this site are not aware of!

Reinstating Stolen Dreams: In order to cooperate with our former service provider, I agreed to remove the images on the post ‘Stolen Dreams and the Japanese School’. The original request to have these removed did not come from a proper government authority, but a watchdog agency claiming to work closely with the police. Our new host assures me that it is understood that Pigtails does not contain or will ever contain images that satisfy the definition of pornography. Any requests for the removal of materials—under US or UK law—will only take place if given by a proper authority, Our new service provider understands the important contribution this site makes to society and should continue to evolve.

About the Domain Name: There is a temporary problem with the domain name and so, for the time being, Pigtails in Paint will be accessed at pigtailsinpaint.org. Unfortunately, that means that the hard-coded links to other posts on the site will not work properly until this matter is resolved.