Xanax. Xanax side effects.

Then they came for the BDSMers,
and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t into letting women beat me.

Then they came for the furries,
and I didn’t speak up because I was helping.

Then they came for the goreans,
and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t gorean anymore.

Then they came for me…
lol, jk.

…you’re mistaken…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashcroft_v._Free_Speech_Coalition

It is against the law for good reason. Pedophiles have a disease, that disease is increased and encouraged by the continuous use of materials that depict child rape. If you don’t think child rape is a problem, spend a couple of hours with Chris Hanson and MSNBC watching “to catch a predator”. Or go to a library and read up on the psychology literature. Child rape is disturbingly common and incredibly damaging to children.

The fact that the Lindens let simulated child rape go on in SL for this long is a real stain on them. It was their fear of the NO RULES fanatics that kept them from taking action. They knew it was wrong and illegal a LONG time ago. But there’s a percentage of their customer base that will call them Nazis any time they institute a rule, so they waited for a public excuse. Pathetic really.

If you find you can’t stop engaging in or watching simulated child porn, GET PSYCHOLOGICAL HELP IMMEDIATELY. You CAN deal with it, there are mental tools and medical treatments you can use to change the way you react to things. You are not doomed to ruin your life. You can get a handle on it. But you need to reach out and get help immediately. Don’t wait to get help until you are in prison. You CAN avoid ruining your life. You can visit a psychologist anonymously. Do it today.

Tom, common sentiments. My response to this:

1. Second Life is Linden Lab property, yes. But the content is the property of the users, by Linden Lab’s own admission. We have to ask the quesiton: at what point do the clients who are financially supporting the system have some right to object to sweeping decisions that might negatively impact all their work and investment? It may be LL “property” and they do have the “right” to make decisions regarding that property, but as those decisions affect the activity of hundreds of thousands of people, it is conceivable that they do have some responsibility to their customers. Although a landlord “owns” a house, he does not have the right to bulldoze it while the renters are eating dinner.

I have to wonder why it is that there are no “moderators” on Second Life. What… they decided to create a virtual world with no police force? No one to instantly take out a griefer if the need arises? That’s just one item that the LL decision machine made that is not in the best interest of their customers. LL “property” or not, there are some serious problems and at the rates they’re charging, they do owe something to the users of this system.

2. People DO invest on SL, both in time and money. And yes, while they CAN leave if they get tired of it, that leaving usually means totally abandoning something they’ve spent a great deal of time developing, abandoning friends they have made here, and in many cases, losing significant financial investment.

So while I respect what you say, I don’t believe it is a realistic viewpoint. Saying that people can “just go home” if they don’t like it is like saying “If you don’t like the United States, move elsewhere”. It’s a stance that is unsympathetic, condescending and abusive to those who have legitimate complaints.

The alternative: when someone doesn’t like something, they do have the right to speak up. And they have the right to do so without some troll telling them “love it or leave it”. LOL

Absolutely not calling you a troll. Your post was thoughtful and respectful. Unfortunately I all too often hear that sentiment used as a direct attack against someone who is doing nothing more than voicing legitimate concerns.

The U.S. was built on the backs of people who didn’t like something and who had the guts to protest for active change. Leaving SL is an option, and a quite valid one if someone decides to do so. But it is not in every case always the best one. I would myself love to see an SL “Supreme Court” in which users could challenge decisions made by LL and have the overturned. That would be interesting. Or a “vote” system where every paying member has one vote per IP address to decide on a major policy change… and that vote could be triggered by a petition containing 50 signatures. Basically, considering the structure of SL, there is need for LL to be accountable to the community. Because as it is now, they have way too much power over the lives of way too many people, and that power seems to often be used indiscriminately and against the majority wishes.

The word for that is hypocrisy!

For example, exactly WHAT *IS* the “simulated age” of an avatar?

When this whole fuss started I discussed this with a 50 year old woman who is 4ft tall in real life.

She claimed that the real discrimination was not age but height! If you are 4ft tall you *MUST* be a child – no debate allowed!

I have had the privilege of knowing this woman for over 20 years now and have had the opportunity to witness this discrimination first hand.

At her suggestion (insistence?) I adopted her “persona” as my Second life Persona – Karen Palen.

I can now personally bear witness to the pain she faces every day!

Dumb things like having her 25 year old daughter told to “make your child behave”! Serious things like not being believed when she reports an attempted rape.

The fact is that “freedom of thought” means nothing unless the most extreme and upsetting thoughts are protected!

I have nowhere the contribution to Second Life that Myrrh does, but I too and leaving until such time as things change.

However as a Venture Capitalist by trade I can do something to see that an alternative is created!

This won’t happen overnight, but it IS in progress!

See http://www.ourstage.com/ for an example of one such project we are already finding. A truly “ungameable” music and video rating system!

Just imagine if Second Life was truly controlled by the users in this way and not controlled by a few loudmouthed pressure groups!

Linden Labs crushing ageplay isn’t necessarily a social issue or decision. They let it run amok for many years because, legally in the US where Linden Labs is based, they were not breaking any laws. No, the Lindens’ decision to ban ageplay is a simple business one.

With Second Life ever-expanding, it is growing in the world-wide marketplace, mainly Europe. Linden is probably now thinking of expanding its horizons, and servers, overseas. But to do so, brings them some legal problems. Many European nations do not distinguish between actual child pornography where a real child is being abused and virtual ageplay between consenting adults above the age of majority. If Linden Labs sets up servers in Europe, they would then be held accountable for what appears on said servers. So, in an effort to appease their new European overloards (j/k), they have to conform to the European laws. Business decision, pure and simple.

Second Life is Linden Labs’ property, and as such they can do whatever they want with it. I totally support their right to run their business how they see fit. It is also perfectly alright for people to leave their accounts behind because they don’t like the decision. That’s their right also. Our personal opinions don’t matter in this instance because the Lindens want to expand their business using property they own. If we don’t like we can either suck it up or leave.

A lot of people argue that particular types of behavior or beliefs are part of our rights as adults and that no one should be allowed to interfere with them. Other people argue that certain types of behavior and beliefs are bad for soceity as a whole and should be banned regardless of venue or actual criminal behavior.

Take me for example. There are two things that come to mind that I hate. I hate rap music and I hate the “white power” movement (KKK, neo-nazis, skinheads, call them what you will). My hatred of rap is vast. I find the music as a whole offensive to the ears, degrading to women, and at best, a bunch of self-indulgent chest beating on the part of the artist in question. If you play rap in your commercial, I won’t buy your product. If you play rap in your store, I’ll shop elsewhere. As far as the “white power” movement goes, I intensely disagree with their message. Again, I find it offensive, small-minded, and dangerous. If you are a racist, I will cease to hang out with you.

Now, I am old enough to remember back when music albums didn’t have warning labels about content. Old enough to remember when the US government thought about sticking its incredibly big nose into the issue of free speech and try to censor the rap industry. Despite the fact that I hate rap, I would have stood beside them, marched with them to Washington, to protect their right to their freedom of expression. Despite the fact that I hate the “white power” movement, I would also stand with them for their right to express their beliefs, no matter how offensive those beliefs are to me. THAT is what it means to be an American. I would stand by people I detest to ensure freedom of expression for all. The Constitution doesn’t just cover the things you agree with and not the things you dislike. It has to cover everyone, equally, or we all lose a little freedom.

Now we get into a shadier issue. What about criminal activity? Well, I don’t support that because it’s against the law, and often just plain human decency. Everyone thinks this whole Linden Labs ban is about ageplay, and to some degree it is. I am definately against actual child pornography where real children are involved. Degenrates who actually prey on children in such a manner should be prosecuted. No argument from me there. But two adults with no child being harmed? No. Their rights as adults should be observed and people should butt out of their business, no matter how much their behavior offends your own personal sensibilities.

Freedom isn’t free. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made. In times of war, it usually means lives. In times of social crisis, like this, it often means sucking it up and supporting people you would otherwise detest because their rights are being infringed upon. Treat others as you yourself would like to be treated. It’s a simple philosophy.

First, the tendency to act out behaviors in an virtual setting has not been shown to lead to the duplication of said activities in RL, that being said, it is not the activity itself that worries me but rather the reinforcement of erotic feelings associated with child abuse.

I recently discovered that several of my friends and acquaintances were abused as children and the raw anger, shame and pain that was evident as they told their stories has lead me to believe that it would be kinder if their abuser had ended their lives instead of leaving them to slowly die internally, isolated by fear from normal human contact for the rest of their lives.

Anything that promotes child abuse and the pain it causes should be stripped from civilized society with extreme prejudice. Justifying it’s protection as the first step onto a slippery slope is essentially the same as equating the prosecution of murder with the first step on the inevitable road to a police state. I’m sorry that Myrrh chose this as her hill to die on, there are much more worthy causes.

Second, violence is not banned in SL for the simple reason that it is impossible to damage an Avatar in any meaningful or lasting manner. Those who use scripts to cause violence in the sense that they cause extreme lag or other annoyances are dealt with by the Lindens on a regular basis – go read the police blotter if you don’t believe me.

Third, the inclusion of Furries in a list including Goreans, Ageplayers, and etc would indicate a lack of time spend in SL and a fundamental ignorance of one of it’s more visible groups. Though not a furry myself, I have been a part of SecondLife since 2005 I have had ample opportunity to interact with the Furry community and have found them to be an almost universally life affirming and genteel group who both respect and wish to be respected. Their inclusion in the blasphemous version of Pastor Niemoller’s quote both saddens and sickens me.

PS. MillyToast, it is very similar to racism and it is very sad.