The Alphaville Herald

Looking up Taco Rubio at the Upskirt Museum

by Alphaville Herald on 17/12/04 at 12:21 am

virtual peeper Taco Rubio

In this interview Miravoir and Urizenus talk to Taco Rubio about his upskirt museum at Whinlatter 168, 78 in Second Life. Is it an invasion of privacy for him to take candid pictures up the skirts of female avatars? Or have we lost our minds for even asking the question.

Miravoir Psaltery: hello mr. rubio
You: Taco!
Taco Rubio: good day to you, madam.
You: this is Mir, my reporter, can she hang and ask questions too?
Taco Rubio: of course
You: she has some good interviews with furries and skin makers and stuff
Taco Rubio: oh ok
You: ok starting…
You: OK, Taco, what are you up to here. Why an upskirt museum?
Taco Rubio: umm, well honestly, I was looking through my snapshots and realized i had taken a lot of pictures up skirts, for fun, over the months
Taco Rubio: and so then i figured i should put them in a slideshow
Taco Rubio: and then i figured well hell let’s make a museum. but then i spelled museum wrong on the sign.
You: yes that happens
Taco Rubio: i wanted to show off my uber building and design skills.
You: um, it’s a box
Miravoir Psaltery: so who are these ladies
Taco Rubio: umm some of them are people who found out i tended to take pictures, and so they send me pics of themselves.
Taco Rubio: some are people I just took pictures of while they were talking to me or dancing.
You: so they were, um, candid shots?
Miravoir Psaltery: and why did you choose their particular undies to snap shots of?
Taco Rubio: oh that’s easy
Taco Rubio: it’s mainly of people who have undewear I can get to with a camera.
Miravoir Psaltery: is this a life long habit?
Taco Rubio: umm it’s a SLifelong habit, yeah
Miravoir Psaltery: do you walk around with a mirror on your shoe irl?
Taco Rubio: it was kind of neat to go through all my pics, i don’t know if you’ve ever gone through all your snapshots but you’ll find a lot of funny stuff you forgot about
Miravoir Psaltery: true
Taco Rubio: i was thinking today about selling mirror shoes as a joke.
You: haha

Taco Rubio: but seriously i think is is sort of a social commentary.
Miravoir Psaltery: of what sort?
You: But what mir is asking I think is this: are you a peeping tom?
Taco Rubio: well, you can see i didn’t set this up as a porn theatre.
Miravoir Psaltery: yes do you like to do this offline?
Taco Rubio: it’s sort of a celebration of people going to the trouble to make themselves as unique as possible.
Taco Rubio: do i take pictures of digital vaginas offline?
Taco Rubio: oh!
Taco Rubio: do i do RL upskirts?
Miravoir Psaltery: yes taco that’s what i mean.. rl upskirts
Taco Rubio: not that i can recall. I think that people in SL get so wrapped up in it that they forget it’s not real, and start applying real rules to here. I’d not do this in RL as it would be improper.
Taco Rubio: but I think that improper should be more loosely defined in this world, this should be a freer world than the one we live in.
Taco Rubio: I’ve gotten a lot of angry IMs about this though.
Miravoir Psaltery: you know uri, when i was about 17 i had an encounter with an upskirter.. i was walking down the street minding my own business and bam, this really ugly 40ish guy whips my skirt up and then runs off
Taco Rubio: ahh Mira, but that was an invasion of your privacy as a person, and that sucks. I’m against that completly.
You: well now let me ask you about the thread on the SL forums
You: you posted as an outraged offended person. What was that about?

Taco Rubio: oh that, there was a kookoo thread yesterday from Catherine Cotton, and she’s a nice total nutjob so I was hoping i could replace her
Taco Rubio: so then I thought I’d put up an offended letter about my own building.
Taco Rubio: a lot of people agreed i should be banned without realizing i was complaining about myself.
You: haha
Miravoir Psaltery: so all these ladies know you’re snapping their digital peepees?
You: was that a commentary or just an attempt to generate dwell
Taco Rubio: umm i’m independently wealthy, so it’s not about dwell. You don’t build dwell with a 512m 19prim building.
You: this is true
You: so maybe it was for attention?
Taco Rubio: now that one i caught crap about, that one there
Taco Rubio: i upskirted a bride at a wedding
You: shameful!
Taco Rubio: i prolly think that’s over the top, but that’s what sl is about, experminenting with things you can’t do RL
Taco Rubio: what was for attention? the thread?
You: yep
Taco Rubio: oh no, it was because I came home for lunch and was laughing with somebody about some other stuff i’d posted recently and it came up as an idea.

Miravoir Psaltery: so, you dont think that people should have personal privacy for their digital selves?
Taco Rubio: I do think people should protect themselves as much as they choose. You’re choosing to wear tights with your skirt here, for example, Mira.
Miravoir Psaltery: lol
Miravoir Psaltery: no actually
Miravoir Psaltery: my skin just didn’t rez
Miravoir Psaltery: happens all the time
You: are you checking out my package too, taco?
Taco Rubio: i do not believe that a person with a full on pussy hanging out of a 2 inch skirt in a world in which everyone has a camera has the right to expect privacy, no.
Miravoir Psaltery: i always am unintentionally looking prim and proper
Taco Rubio: and i’m getting a lot of flak about invasion of privacy from people who have copyrighted posters on their digital walls, and are listening to mp3s that i’m sure they all paid for (sarcasm)
You: haha
Taco Rubio: no Urizenus. I decided it would be better to be sexist with the upskirt pictures.
Miravoir Psaltery: isn’t that the same circular logic given to women that get raped because they are wearing revealing clothes?
You: copyright and privacy are different issues though…
Taco Rubio: because that further illustrates the sillyness of getting defensive about bits, which is all we are here.
Taco Rubio: I don’t know, Miravoir, i’ve never raped anybody.
Miravoir Psaltery: that wasn’t my question
You: what percent of these are snapped without the subject knowing
Taco Rubio: umm hmm, Uriz, that’s a tough question. I’d say zero
You: zero?
Taco Rubio: eveybody knew i was taking a picture.
You: ic, because they heard the click?
Taco Rubio: i never said “can i take a picture of you?”
Taco Rubio: and saw the anim, yeah.
Miravoir Psaltery: did everyone know *what* you were taking a pic of though? lol
You: haha
Taco Rubio: Mira, i do not believe you have the right to privacy in this digital world unless you secure that privacy yourself.
Taco Rubio: these pictures are of people who have chosen NOT to have privacy
Miravoir Psaltery: why is that?
Taco Rubio: I don’t know if they did or not, Mira. If it was a ‘beautiful faces of SL” display, would that somehow be different?
Taco Rubio: umm turn around, Mira
Taco Rubio: I am not breaking into houses and ripping off sleepign wive’s blankets.
Taco Rubio: to take these pictures.
Miravoir Psaltery: that’s not my question
Taco Rubio: i think i forgot what your question was, i’m sorry.
You: haha
Miravoir Psaltery: why don’t you think people should have privacy of their digital lives?
Taco Rubio: wot?
Taco Rubio: i don’t understand that question as it pertains to any of this.
Miravoir Psaltery: you said, people shouldn’t have privacy in their digital lives
You: shouldn’t *expect* privacy
Taco Rubio: can i see your fucking credentials?
Miravoir Psaltery: shouldn’t expect
You: ?
Taco Rubio: I said I didn’t believe you had the right to privacy you didn’t secure.
Taco Rubio: right, what uriz is saying.
Miravoir Psaltery: exactly
Miravoir Psaltery: and i asked, “why is that?”
Taco Rubio: please don’t misquote me, you totally twisted my words.
Taco Rubio: oh here, i’ll show you
Taco Rubio: ok this is a mature area, mind you.
Miravoir Psaltery: i’m not an angel
Miravoir Psaltery: lol
Taco Rubio: now please, you guys, don’t look at this glowing pink dick i’m wearing

Taco’s glowing pink unit

Taco Rubio: NO MIRA your’e invading my digital privacy!
Taco Rubio: that’s a completely silly argument i’m making, as is a skirt that drops an inch past your cooch.
You: it *is* glowing. you should get that checked out
Taco Rubio: it’s a hazard of the industry.
You: yeah
Taco Rubio: well the nice thing is i’ve gotten a lot of nice IMs too.
Miravoir Psaltery: okay, but
Taco Rubio: oh sorry, yeah?
Miravoir Psaltery: what if i took that picture
Taco Rubio: yeah
Miravoir Psaltery: and posted it up on a museum
Taco Rubio: ok
Taco Rubio: well here, let’s keep going with that.
Taco Rubio: what if you took that picture and sold it?
You: or posted it in the Herald!
Miravoir Psaltery: yes, or in the herald
Taco Rubio: for $1000 RL cuz i’m so hot and cute.
Miravoir Psaltery: taco with his glowing pink dick
Taco Rubio: right
Taco Rubio: seriously can I get $1000 RL for it, you think?
Taco Rubio: no really.
Taco Rubio: when we play SL
Taco Rubio: we understand, as we all have the ability, that anything that is exposed and be seen from any angle can be snapshotted.
Miravoir Psaltery: true
Taco Rubio: if I take a picture of a building i like, it’s no different.
Taco Rubio: the problem si that RL norms are bleeding over here.
You: but I could get booted from SL for taking a screenshot from a chat log
You: if I didn’t have permission
Taco Rubio: oh shit we can?
Miravoir Psaltery: yes
You: of course
Taco Rubio: is that because it’s not anonymous?
You: dunno, would have to consult the EULA
Taco Rubio: or because your’e taking a picture of linden proprietary software?
You: no no, its a privacy issue
Taco Rubio: well. I think you’re voiding your right to privacy by joining SL.
You: that’s not what the Lindens’ say
Taco Rubio: you know a really good way not to have your avatar looked at, pictured, or remade? don’t have an avatar.
You: I have chat logs I can’t publish
Miravoir Psaltery: this is true
You: but up skirt…
You: my my
Miravoir Psaltery: up skirts without express permission
Taco Rubio: now you’re applying RL social norms to SL ones.
Taco Rubio: should we have an adultry court here?
You: adultry court… mmm
Miravoir Psaltery: lol
Taco Rubio: now that’s silly
Taco Rubio: but upskirt isn’t?
Taco Rubio: we’re fucking cartoons. Hallaloopee
Miravoir Psaltery: i am merely questioning your whys
Miravoir Psaltery: i have no particular opinions on what you do
Taco Rubio: oh yeah
Taco Rubio: i’m assuming interview is over, if it’s not that’s fine but i’m done even trying to sound with it, uriz
You: hahaha
Miravoir Psaltery: that’s what i do
Taco Rubio: though i’m enjoying this talk so i’m gonna continue till mira gets sick of me and bails
You: let’ssay its over
Miravoir Psaltery: lol
You: hahaha
You: you guys can chat
Miravoir Psaltery: i never get sick of people
You: I gotta try and edit this
Taco Rubio: well honestly, i never realized it would cause people to go ballistic
You: Mir loves all
Taco Rubio: thanks, do i get a free copy of the paper for my mum?
You: sure. tell her to print it out
Taco Rubio: lol
Taco Rubio: yeah it’s very odd, some people took this really angrily
Taco Rubio: and some took it as ‘neat lemme send you my pic’
Miravoir Psaltery: well, people are people taco