Avatars - yes or no?

[Saturn]

Those of us who have been around here for a while will remember the debate about whether we should have avatars or not, so, now that there is a new generation of members I'd like to gage their opinion on the subject.

Are avatars unecessary distractions?

Do they take away from the seriousness of the post or are they a fun addition which show the personality of a user?