I understand that whatever website you log on to, there is going to be someone who is a little odd, rude and even inappropriate, but I find the number of messages I get here on italki a little outrageous. Not a week goes by where I don't get a message from a member of the opposite sex saying they want to get to know me, can I add them on Skype for chatting, and recently I even got a message saying 'I want to kiss you'. I'm a teacher on this website, and it should be pretty clear from my profile that I am not here to flirt, but to provide education. So where are all these people coming from? Do other people have this experience as well?
Can I broach a delicate subject here?
We're dealing not only with misunderstandings between the sexes, but also between cultures. I'm by no means condoning sexist behaviour, but there are cases where you can understand why some guys - particularly those who come from more repressive societies - may get the wrong message.
Needless to say, Shona's photo is lovely, and wholly appropriate for a site such as this one. However, there are some girls and women here whose profile pictures would not seem out of place on a dating site. We all know the ones - cleavage on show, heavy make-up, alluring 'come on' expressions. Some of these photos would hardly be out of place on the covers if so-called 'glamour' magazines.
These pictures make me feel uncomfortable and embarrassed. What kind of messages are these women trying to send out? Look but don't touch? No wonder some guys are confused. What do other members think?
Hi Shona!
Depending on the level of annoyance, I:
1. unfollow them
2. block them
3. block and report them.
Yesterday I blocked and reported one user for the first time, as a matter of fact.
It seems to have worked.
The person's account has been deactivated.
If I might make so bold,Shona I think it is because you are a young (blond) female.I am an older woman,and fortunately I have not had those kind of messages on here.I do get them frequently on websites where I have an avatar indicating that I am female but not my age or my real photo.The internet is a hotbed of weird people and they think they can behave as they wish because it is all anonymous.Sorry to hear about this but not at all surprised.Just make it clear to them that you are not interested.They think they can "try it on" even though of course your profile makes it clear that you are a serious teacher.
All the best.
Have you considered to delete those messages?
So here's the latest message I received:
hello
you're beautiful
Please let's be friends
how old are you
I like you
I want to kiss you
marry me
from Sungkavol (http://www.italki.com/user/1700873) who apparently thinks it's acceptable to ask a stranger's hand in marriage via website. This kind of message isn't worth my time but someone mentioned about name-and-shame and it sounded like a fun idea. Plus, I wonder if it was a copy-paste message.
