Keeping SL Free Together

Jazhara Keon is the creator of the text below, which is a notecard in a vendor/poster in the Midian City TP Portal (pictured above). The poster is for sale for $0L for people to take and post in their own sims. Read the full, unedited notecard below.




So you want to keep Second Life FREE as well? AWESOME!!

This poster is a protest to Linden Labs blogpost on May 31, that can
be found here:
http://blog.secondlife.com/2007/05/31/keeping-second-life-safe-together/
<<<
(the text of this post is also included at the bottom of this note)

Already know what this is about? Scroll down to see what you can do to
join the PEACEFUL protest.

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Don't know what this is all about? Read on:

Linden Labs seems to be forced in one or more ways to censor the
residents of Second Life. Censorship is for many people a reason to
try to escape Real Life, and live their fantasies in Second Life. And
now Second Life seems to become more than an extension of Real Life.
It's becoming the same as Real Life through censorship, and thus
remains no reason for MANY residents to log on anymore, since they
can't do what they want anymore.

Linden Labs has put the "BAD" label on ageplay, bestiality, violence,
explicit sex and other "broadly offensive content", and is asking it's
residents to Abuse Report anything that could be perceived as being
"offensive".
Since we all have different morals, values and standards, this means
eventually ANYONE is subject to investigation, censorship and possible
removal from Second Life. By asking it's residents to file Abuse
Reports on "offensive" content, Linden Labs is turning into Big
Brother. Remember the book/movie 1984? Remember Germany between 1939
and 1945? Residents with values and morals that differ from a
so-called "majority" are getting labelled by moralknights that find
that /their/ values and morals should count for the whole world.

RESPECT, TOLERANCE AND FREEDOM are key to a happy life, be it Real
Life or Second Life. Real Life, for many of Second Life's residents,
doesn't offer that and is for them a reason to be in Second Life. And
now Second life seems to turn into an even worse environment. When
will it stop? When can you and I live the life we want to without
being judged, critisized and expelled?

But that's not all...
Not only will this affect YOU, it will also effect SL as a whole. Many
contentcreators already stopped building content for Second Life. Not
only are creators of explicit content that is "potentially offensive"
threatened with a ban, ALL contentcreators are endangered with loss of
income because Second Life's popularity will drop drastically as soon
as "explicit content" will be censored. Eventually, this can and will
lead to poor content in Second Life, islands will be closed off or
cancelled, and it wouldn't be strange if the mainland would decrease
in size as well, since people don't feel free to act like they want,
do as they want, think like they want, make what they want and BE who
they want!

You may not approve of ageplay, rape, bestiality, explicit violence
and other 'offensive' fantasies that one can live here in Second Life.
And that's fine, we all have our likes and dislikes. You won't see me
playing with a child avatar, or roleplaying a dog pleasuring me, nor
will I shoot one through the head for fun. That doesn't mean others
can't in this VIRTUAL world. How long will it take before censorship
effects YOU? This protest is not to stand up for Real Life pedophiles,
rapists, violent abusers and serial killers. In Real Life those are
all actions that happen NON-CONSENSUALLY. In Second Life, these acts
happen between responsible, CONSENTING adults, and 90% of the time
even in complete privacy, and the other 10% in regions that are
designed to live those fantasies CONSENSUALLY. (How the hell can one
actually rape someone in SL anyway? lmfao!)

Linden Labs wants Second Life to be Safe. Well...
Dear Linden Labs, Second Life is as safe as it gets. One has to be an
adult to be a resident here, and be responsible as one. It is not your
job to take on responsibility for our actions. We all have the power
to choose and we can very much decide to consent or not. We don't need
you to babysit us like children. We need you to provide a free world
where we can all be who and whatever we want to be and do what we like
to do, just like you promised us with your slogans and commercials. We
love the world you provide, please, dear Linden Labs, keep it like
that.

To quote Benjamin Franklin: "one who sacrifices freedom for security
deserves neither"

You get the point, and this rant has been long enough...

================
Here's what YOU can do:
================

# copy this poster (buy it for 0L - r-click & buy; you may not get a
blue screenie saying you got it, but you got it, look in your
inventory), and put it out at a place that you would call home, your
club, your shop, your place, a place where people can see and become
aware, and join the protest, like you.
MAKE IT SEEN!

# Join the group "I am for a FREE Second Life" (click 'search', click
on the tab 'groups' and search for the group as mentioned). This is to
show Linden Labs a list of names of people that want a FREE Second
Life, and to keep you updated on information that matters. (Spamming
in the groupchannel will result in an immediate ban)

# Put a line on the first page of your profile saying "I am for a FREE
Second Life!" (and add Franklin's quote if you wish). If you like to,
make a pick to state your thoughts.

Keep in mind that this is a PEACEFUL protest. In NO way this poster,
note, and group are to be connected to ANY aggressive, harmful, or
offensive measures against Linden Labs, it's employees, grid and
regions, and affiliates, be it in Second Life or Real Life. You are
responsible for your OWN actions, and this protest is meant to ASSURE
and ENCOURAGE Linden Labs in the fact that you and I are responsible,
consenting adults, so they may keep up a world of freedom, and keep it
safe from censorship.

Thank you for reading, and voicing yourself for respect, tolerance and
freedom should you decide to join this protest.

==================================================

For reference, this is what Linden Labs posted recently on their blog:

Keeping Second Life Safe, Together

The diversity of things to see and do within Second Life is almost
unimaginable, but our community has made it clear to us that certain
types of content and activity are simply not acceptable in any form.
Real-life images, avatar portrayals, and other depiction of sexual or
lewd acts involving or appearing to involve children or minors;
real-life images, avatar portrayals, and other depictions of sexual
violence including rape, real-life images, avatar portrayals, and
other depictions of extreme or graphic violence, and other broadly
offensive content are never allowed or tolerated within Second Life.

Please help us to keep Second Life a safe and welcoming space by
continuing to notify Linden Lab about locations in-world that are
violating our Community Standards regarding broadly offensive and
potentially illegal content. Our team monitors such notification
24-hours a day, seven-days a week. Individuals and groups promoting
or providing such content and activities will be swiftly met with a
variety of sanctions, including termination of accounts, closure of
groups, removal of content, and loss of land. It's up to all of us to
make sure Second Life remains a safe and welcoming haven of creativity
and social vision.

===================================================

Disclaimer
In no way will the writer and creator of this note, the object/poster
it was initially distributed by and with, and the group affiliated to
this peaceful protest, take responsibility, nor liability for damage
done in any way by the group's members to Linden Labs, Second Life,
the grid, and all it's connected companies, equipment or economical
value thereof. Should Linden Labs wish to take action against this
peaceful protest and the avatar of the creator of said items, and
with that, or any other reason, deny access to Second Life, said
creator will be glad to comply, since said creator does not wish to be
in a virtual world that doesn't have anything over the real world.