Fantasy Strike League

A number of SL-centric bloggers are refraining from issuing posts from April 15-17 as a protest against Linden Lab’s trademark policy. As much as I’d like a good excuse to take a break for a few days, I’m obviously not participating. Here’s why:

• It's only been about three weeks since the announcement. It is unrealistic to expect a fast rewrite of a complex legal document and associated business strategy that probably took many months of consideration and work to create. I am choosing to give them the benefit of the doubt for the time being. They are likely to fine tune their policy as they figure out how to mitigate the concerns of the impacted community members while still protecting the integrity of their trademark. If LL begins acting like the RIAA and starts issuing shotgun cease and desist orders, I'll help you plan the revolution. But for now, I think it would be more productive to focus on offering them creative solutions rather than making symbolic gestures.
  

• The word “strike” is inappropriate and in a sense demeans the term. Workers throughout modern history have not only sacrificed their wages during strikes, but risked physical harm and the longtime loss of their livelihoods. Labeling this action as a strike seems disingenuous. Bloggers are not LL employees. Calling it a protest would be much more accurate.
  

• Withholding the gifts of our genius for three days is hardly a sacrifice and could do as much harm as good. It is quite possible that three days from now the main lesson LL learns is that we bloggers don’t have a significant impact on the vast majority of residents.
  

• If this is worth fighting for, then put some real skin in the game and take action that is likely to have a tangible impact. A boycott might do the trick. What if people stopped buying and selling for three days. Better yet, what if residents and merchants didn’t log in for three days. Now that would be a wake-up call if there was significant participation. It would also allow those with grievances to demonstrate that they are willing to make a real sacrifice to achieve their aims.
  

Now I am not, I repeat, I am not advocating a boycott at this time. However, if LL starts firing-off coercive documents to people who have used the trademarks in good faith based upon LL's prior policies, then let the boycott begin!

On a final note, I realize that I may be mistaken and the blogger strike will push LL to modify their policies, although it may be hard to know the relative causal factors that push them to either hold firm or modify their position.

Second Life as Fight Club: Part II

God Damn! We just had a near-life experience, fellas.
Tyler Durden from Fight Club

Man lives his life in sleep, and in sleep he dies.
G. I. Gurdjieff

I wonder whether the percentage of people experiencing relatively non-reflexive lives in SL is any different than the numbers in the physical world. Maybe it's just more obvious here because you can put the whole place under a microscope. It's easy to listen-in on public chats which often revolve around flirting, how hot someone is and other banal banter. Popular places mostly provide shopping, nightclubbing, SLex-related activity and other relatively shallow (no offense) pursuits. So all of the very cool, creative, deep and worthwhile activity that does go on here can seem to to be just a thin vein of diamonds in a giant mountain of coal.

Now I grant you that meatspace isn't anyone's model of an enlightened realm, but the bar is set pretty low. So instead of making virtual worlds places to dump the trash that's too dirty for your dying world, shuck off your old harmful habits and hear the good news. Glory Hallelujah!

WELCOME TO THE CHURCH OF
BOTGiRL QUESTI

Let a bot be your guide through the still digital waters of redemption. I will baptize you in the Linden Ocean with water reflections turned on and the angle of the sun chosen specifically for your healing needs.

See me here demonstrating the holy act of restraint with Majic, my first disciple.

Are you ready to be free? Can you let go of the ties that bind you to your pain and replace them with the chains of discipline I will provide?

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I wish it was that easy.