Resident Government?
by prokofy on 08/12/06 at 2:09 pm
By Prokofy Neva, Community Affairs Desk
Daniel Linden has just posted an announcement on the Official Linden Blob that the much-maligned Abuse Report system, generally acknowledged as ineffective or even abusive itself, is going to get an overhaul. But rather than add Linden or resmod hands to review some 2,000 reports coming in per day of rampant, mainly free-account harassment of residents ranging from shooting to bursting in unannounced and naked, the Lindens have decided to go in the other direction and devolve responsibility for policing the world and adjudicating disputes to residents themselves.
LL has long been adding to the menu of grief-fighting tools by refining forms of ban by name or payment status, mute, eject, and prevent-object creation. The latest version of SL contains the ability to keep out unwanted placement of objects and also enables avatars to hide their status online and avoid stalkers or spamming.
While still cagey about what exactly this new resident-driven justice system will look like, Daniel has mentioned the new system will involve "enabling and encouraging the development of inter-Resident mediationand dispute resolution options for those issues Linden Lab isn’tequipped to resolve."
Responses have predictably expressed fears of a resident government coming down the pike.
For a deeper glimpse into the history of what the Lindens have long been thinking about in this regard, check out this post from SL Views and also recall when we had these meetings on covenants — the transcripts of which appeared to have disappeared down the memory hole but were covered here.
Artemis Fate
Dec 8th, 2006
I can only imagine the only thing worse than a flighty understaffed official LL police is a overstaffed itchy to show their powers group of people like the touchy babyfur with the diaper or jackass military groups banning people for looking at them wrong way. Or even worse, gorean liasons banning people for badmouthing gor in non-gorean areas like in Active Worlds.
Isis Eagle
Dec 8th, 2006
I think that’s a great idea, actually. It’s democratic, and it could be like craigslist’s “flag” system which seems to work great. Conflict resolution & community mediation would be great things to have on SL and could make the grid into even more of a user-created place. That’s exactly the kind of social experimentation I want to see on SL.. it interests me much more than the newest virtual shopping inventions and PR whorefests.
Bruno Ziskey
Dec 8th, 2006
Linden Labs is actually cutting down on their own policing abilities? This doesnt look good…….military policing griefing groups will have a field day with this… *shakes head in despair* WHY LINDENS?! WHYYYYYY! Is it just me, or does Second Life get worse day by day? I know that the Lindens have granted us the ability to better deal with griefers by stronger land control and all, but seriously, the Lindens are what stands between us and the griefers.
Urizenus
Dec 8th, 2006
No I think this is the right move by the Lindens. Stop dabbling and let the residents handle it. There is no joy in telling the Linden’s “good move” but here I feel I must. Good move. And about time.
Prokofy Neva
Dec 8th, 2006
Uri, do you think you will enjoy being blocked in the dam, pinned down underwater icons, with giant dam blocks, trapped and forced to listen to top-40 and a X-mas Muzak from shoutcast for hours, with no Verve Cliquot, let alone Sicilian blood oranges, only warm, treacly Orange Kool-Aid, and no adoring mafia gun molls but only scores of tenants asking you why their furniture is returning all the time? Because that’s what will happen to you for dissing my Russian elf look and calling it “over-fed David Bowie”. And you’ll be hollering — screaming — for Daniel Linden to come save you, but in my realm, you will face this treatment…
Urizenus
Dec 8th, 2006
Please Prok, it is *Veuve* not ‘verve’.
Zeus Olympus
Dec 8th, 2006
Please Uri, it is Greek feta, not Turkish.
marilyn murphy
Dec 8th, 2006
the idea of some self policing govt. by players with any real teeth in their courts is pointless. 2000 complaints a day? how much money will be invested in getting any people to sit still to listen to all that?
if people are just doing it as a public service, they can just say, well, im bored. see ya. who wants to log in and listen to and deal with complaints all day? i would do it, but not for free.
view with suspicion anyone who would do it for free.
foodie
Dec 8th, 2006
Actually Zeus, Greek feta cheese is just the most famous and popular white cheese of its kind. There are other kinds, including Turkish, Bulgarian and Romanian.
Urizenus
Dec 8th, 2006
*thank* you foodie. Obviously some readers of this blog have been buying their food at the Circle K for far too long.
Urizenus
Dec 8th, 2006
Marilyn, there is no reason to suppose that resident dispute resolution mechanisms will involve courts. They might involve more basic dispute resolution mechanisms where things are taken to a local clan leader or respected resident. I’ve seen this work many many times in SL. And of course if it doesn’t work, then that is where paramilitary groups get involved griefing the griefer.
marilyn murphy
Dec 8th, 2006
so, uri, we will upgrade to a feudal system then? local clan leaders resolve disputes? no centralized govt, or rule of law, just a sim by sim thing. im gonna set up a speed trap and kangaroo court in my sim and make me some money!!
Zeus Olympus
Dec 8th, 2006
Actually foodie, you could have clicked on the link I provided on my first post, before replying. Or if this is tricky to locate, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2327205.stm
Obviously some editors have been mixing up SL and RL, i.e., running Copybot on Greek feta cheese, turning it to Turkish.
Now Uri, you can anchor the Herald yacht in Bosporus, visit an Istanbul grocery, and ask for *feta* cheese. I can’t wait to post here the answer of the grocer.
Urizenus
Dec 8th, 2006
Marilyn, speed traps won’t do much for you in a land of teleporting, but you can try.
Zeus, I don’t let terrestrial nation states and their political organizations determine my linguistic practices. I defer to the practice of my local SL clan leader. Possibly Marilyn, if I’ve been ensnared in one of her speed traps.
SLH Yacht Chef foodie
Dec 8th, 2006
The fuck do I care if the European Commission has decided that the only ‘feta’ in the world is Greek feta? The point of that, I expect is to reserve the now trendy and lucrative title ‘feta’ for the Greeks. But that’s not to say that the Turkish don’t make feta cheese… just that in within five years they’re supposed to stop *calling* it that.
So you’re right: next time Uri’s balling out yacht-side, he’ll have to report that he was indulging in ‘Turkish white cheese not unlike feta’. And as the SLH yacht Head Chef, I can personally assure you that if any mofos call that ish ‘feta’ on the yacht, they’ll be sent down to davy jones’ locker after I personally bitch slap them with a handful of non-feta.
Urizenus
Dec 8th, 2006
Good point Cookie. You know, if Ataturk were alive today he wouldn’t stand for this shit.
Prokofy Neva
Dec 9th, 2006
>Please Prok, it is *Veuve* not ‘verve’.
You can dress them up, but you can’t take them out.
Lupus Delacroix
Dec 9th, 2006
Resident policing won’t work. Need we look at rezmods?
People who volunteer for this type of position are usually those who covet power. Occasionally you’ll get a good one in there a person of the “community helper” bent, but more than likely … it doesn’t turn out that way.
Zeus Olympus
Dec 9th, 2006
The n(V)erve! What happened Cheffie? Why are you so frustrated? You remind me of Hera when she finds out that I cheated on her again.
Did you come back with a black eye from the Turkish grocery when you asked for “feta” instead of “beyaz peynir”? Then direct your anger to Uri, it was *him* who was supposed to go to that grocery.
I can understand your frustration though. As a pro chef you have to serve genuine products but keep in mind that SLH’s budged is limited. As a result the SLH Yacht Cheese Platter can only have Turkish feta, Danish stilton, German Roquefort and Romanian Pecorino. Do you wash down with US Champagne, Moroccan Bordeaux and Russian Kölsch? I guess that the “Russian Osetra cavia” (sic) was nothing more than Californian paddlefish caviar, no?
And since you are now sailing the Black Sea, make sure when you disembark in Bulgaria to ask for “sirene” and in Russia for “brynza” (ask Prok for the correct pronunciation) and not for Bulgarian or Russian “feta” cheese.
Prokofy Neva
Dec 9th, 2006
“brynza” is one of those words I let my children pronounce, I know my limits. I hate the stuff too. “Ostetrina” is the word I always heard for those type of fish eggs. Gah, I hate this kind of food I don’t know why I ever got into the business.
Inigo Chamerberlin
Dec 9th, 2006
OK, gastronomy and linguistics aside… (wow, that took a SERIOUS level of self control to avoid a silly single entendre – aren’t I good?)
Has anyone considered what this will do to the TOS?
LL is proposing to walk away from what little responsibility they have taken thus far for administering ‘law and order’ in world and place responsibility for administering it with ‘the residents’.(Ah, WHAT a surprise, it’s too difficult and not fun, so let’s wash our hands of it – as usual)
Much of the TOS – AKA ‘the thousand and one commandments’, or that ‘unenforceable piece of BS’, relates to precisely the sort of issues that it’s being mooted residents should take care of.
This is going to make the TOS, if and when Dictator Linden gets around to amend it, look seriously one sided isn’t it?
Paragraph after paragraph of ‘cover LL’s corporate ass at all costs’ and maybe a couple of paragraphs of ‘cover the residents ass’s’
Just a thought here. How can this POSSIBLY work without some equivalent of a ‘Bill of Rights’ for residents?
Or do we simply accept a world like Prok so skillfully parodied to Uri? One where Dictator Linden is replaced by a ‘Great Dictator’ for every sim, maybe every parcel?
Oh, and, regardless of the penalties which I my be subject to in future should I dare venture into the territory of the Beloved, Great and Omnipotent Benevolent Ruler – may the sun never set on his virtuous countenance – Prokofy Neva; I just have to ask…
Russian ELF???? Ye Gods! What does a Russian undead look like then?
Bob the Tomato
Dec 9th, 2006
I wonder if this will mean a complete resetting of all previously issued bans and warnings, enabling full access to the grid, forums, blog and anything else, with a clean slate?
After all, most of the disciplinary action given out is given to the wrong people in the first place, so if they really want to abandon their own system and let residents decide – everyone should be given a fair chance.
Given the fact that 95% of the disciplinary action was given out to disposable unverified alts, they won’t know or care… and the remaining 5% of regular players that were wrongly hit with the banhammer get a chance to prove themselves again.
Bob
Prokofy Neva
Dec 9th, 2006
My Russian elf look has been admired by even important people. Russian Elf Speaks–People Listen.
Seriously, this AR thing of theirs seriously bites. I mean, big-time. It’s a host of little mini-me dictatorships. I’ve always called it the Archipelago of Egos. They can’t be serious. They have NO idea. It will be awful to watch. Balkanization. Chechenization. Warlordization. It will be a good bad advertisement for secular humanist and tekkie-wikinista dreams, though, so it may be good in that respect.
There’s a reason why religions, countries, things like AA, have this notion of the Higher Power. It’s because, the Lower Power of man’s ego is really a horrible thing.