Uncomfortable news this morning:
[14:50] Aevalle Galicia: Not sure if it's made the rounds yet but it appears that LL is closing the Teen Grid and allowing 16 year olds on the Main.
[14:52] SpinWeaver Radmussen: Yes, that was announced this morning, the 16 & 17s will be accepted as adults, but Phili Linden indicated that the younger teen grid's closing will be temporary.
[14:52] Emilly Orr knew this was going to happen.
[14:52] Aevalle Galicia: The educators were all in a tizzy, though. Some had just paid on their sims on the TG.
I am so glad I'm not dating any more. The last thing I need is to wonder if I'm having even virtual relations with a sixteen-year-old. No. Just no.
[14:54] Ordinal Malaprop: Pretty much every Linden responsible for the Teen Grid stopped being so some months or years ago anyway.
See, that doesn't help matters.
[15:01] Audrey Fotherington: think about it... it is sad that we inhabit a bit of the world [where] teenagers arent welcome and the behavior cant be trusted?
[15:02] Ordinal Malaprop: There may be an issue there.
And I'm not convinced it's not largely on the part of the "adults" for not being discerning enough, or foolish enough to accept that pixel cleavage actually means RL adult.
But more than that, the Lindens, yet again, really haven't thought this through. Eighteen is a low standard, fine, but it's a legal standard. I may feel squeamish, but I can flirt, cuddle, and actually, should we both choose, have sex with an eighteen year old male or female.
Seventeen? Sixteen?!? No, thank you! I see jail down that road, virtual or not. That is a bad, bad road.
And how are we to tell the sixteen-year-old residents from the rest? They're not likely to come out and tell us, now are they? And what happens if the unfortunate does occur, and someone has a relationship, gets married, hires as an escort, whatever, one of these sixteen year old people, and their parents find out, and go ballistic? Can suit be brought? Do virtual actions count?
(Before the debate in comment starts over that one, as I'm sure it will, I'm one of those who say that yes, yes they do, emotionally, psychologically; I'm just not sure they do legally. So I want that clear from the outset.)
Essentially, this entire move scares the hell out of me. If I am in an Adult--as defined by the rules on the grid--space, I want to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that everyone I look at is also an Adult, in those defined terms. And between the utter hash Linden Labs made of age verification (Look, Mom, I'm Elvis!), and this new move, now I'm never going to be sure unless I know the other person very, very well.
I suppose it's going to speak to not blithely falling into bed with everyone one meets, though for me personally, I stopped that around the time I stopped escorting, frankly. Longer-term relationships (in any world) are more appealing, anyway. But still, it's an unnerving decision which personally makes my skin crawl, and I feel creeped out by the Lindens as a ruling body for even considering it, much less implementing it.
B'sides, I thought they were against ageplay. What changed?
As long as we're on sex, Allie Brosh takes on adding spice back to the sex life in five horrifying and mental ways. (Scroll down to the comments after reading, though; some of them are PRICELESS.)
And as long as we're on love, I don't think there's a single person, RL or SL, who can't benefit from watching through a few of the videos on the Man's Guide to Love page. Some surprising advice there, a few surprising people--but it's all honest, heartfelt, and rings true.
On happiness in general, I know he's something of a big scary talking head in this video, but at the least start it playing and go wander while he talks on love, sustaining relationships, and true happiness. You'll be glad you did, believe me.
[17:32] Sexy Larsen: I know this is really off topic and everything, but I have had the overwhelming desire lately to shout from the roof tops so I'm just gonna tell y'all since y'all are within ear shot.......But I have the most amazing Dom ever and I love him to death. Now hopefully this will satisfy my urges
[17:32] Belladonna Mureaux: O.o....
[17:32] Erinyse Planer: errrrrrr
[17:32] Fallon Gothly: grins
[17:32] Emilly Orr did notice earlier you had three tags proclaiming the same thing.
Weirdly, I had just looked her up because of the tag thing. Her actual tag related to her Master, Kain Kenny; but she had those wearable tags in teal, pink and I think bright green also saying she was owned by him.
There's such a thing as saying it too often, I'm thinking. Or maybe saying it too much all at once?
Line from her bio states "I like collars better than wedding rings.....They let me know that more than my finger is wanted!" I suppose, but isn't the wedding ring saying the same thing?
And a little farther in, there's a comment under her picks: "The true meaning of being a sub is true love meaning loving someone enough to give them the ability to destroy you and trusting them not to." That's a lot of trust for most people.
[17:32] Erinyse Planer: okay
[17:33] Emilly Orr: I suppose a full-body tattoo is next. :P
[17:33] Violet Visage: pmsl
[17:33] Sexy Larsen: lol Thank you all
You're more than welcome. This, by the way, crawled across the Thrifty Goth group, not a BDSM group or a Gorean group.
Speaking of the Thrifty Goths, though...Shangreloo covers an absolutely stunning goth skin, one of the gifts on the Gother Than Thou hunt, a smallish grid-wide dedicated to purely goth items on the grid. One caveat: you must be a member of the Thrifty Goth in-world group to go on the hunt, and the group only remains open through this Sunday! If you want to hunt, go join the group NOW! It'll be closed by Monday!
Finally, in somber news...Lady Serra is having to close Winterfell Raven's Reach for financial reasons. I am saddened over the loss of Luctus Isle, but serendipity has moved me to an offshore parcel of Winterfell Laudanum, so I'll have to ponder over what to bring over.
But at some point, the isle will speak to me, trees will sprout, grass will grow, and it will be named. And I will hide there as easily as I hid in Ravens Reach. The determined hider knows no bounds.
where are you gonna go? there's nowhere to go now
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6 Comments:
I have been hearing discussion for close to a year now in Blue Mars about teens (13+ there) on their grid. The biggest concern I have heard is actually from residents of Germany where the laws are incredibly strict regarding exposure of minors to sex or violence. There are grave legal consequences for anyone who even inadvertently provides such to a minor. Since Blue Mars has decided to take the route of being a PG grid this is not as huge a concern as I imagine it will be in SL.
Interesting to see how they work that out.
I'm also pondering that. As said, I really don't think they've thought this through; I think (sooner rather than later) this is going to cause another PR nightmare.
Actually, in many places, 16 is legal adult age. I don't see the difference between the 16/17 crowd and the 18 crowd. They pretty much act the same, only difference is, in the States, the 18 crowd can vote.
According to an email I received from Terrance Linden, the policy (and he doesn't see this changing) is the under 18 crowd will only be allowed in general (or PG) areas, leaving the moderate (Mature) and adult areas to the over 18 crowd.
I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon.....unless they've already thought it through and gotten any potential issues resolved (yea, right). I've been suggesting doing what I'm going to do, play the wait and see game (although, I know that there are people, outside the Steamlands, who enjoy wearing the sandwich boards with "The End Is Nigh" written on them). I know they have a "wonderful" track record, but let's give them the benefit of the doubt....I dunno....for fun.
I'd rather see some of the other things Phillip mentioned first. Mesh, stable grid crossings, improved group chat, etc.
If they're actually going to be restricted to PG areas, by default of account type/age limitation, then I'm 90% good with that. (Save for the infamous rape rooms in PG areas post on Second Sex--are those sims still in operation, one wonders? And then there's search, where even if one determinedly holds only to PG rated ads, one still usually gets Adult content anyway.)
But push that to the side--seriously, if there's better mesh/mesh imports still on the table, stable grid crossings, group chat that actually works--yes, those are definitely things I'd be strongly in favor of seeing.
I'm not optimistic, but here's hoping they aren't shooting themselves in the feet--again.
Man, no offense to you Emi but this was just a awkward post for me. Not saying your writing is awkward, just everything going on is.
The thing with the lindens scares me as well, I really have no idea what they're thinking. Maybe they're assuming that if they outright close the teen grid, they'll all flood the adult? I don't see why they wouldn't anyway, but hard to tell besides just ughhh kaythnxno.
And just WOW to that was in Thrifty Goth!? I've never been part of the group but I KNOW for a fact they have said they hate supposed "nekos and furries" so I generally have a dislike for them, as for other dramatic reasons. And closing the group enrollment during the hunt? Seems a lil silly to me. I took this hunt as a way for them to advertise their group and what they offer in an interesting way. Maybe they're having some sort of 'this is just to appreciate our members and vendors' thing. Meh. e.e; Good post as always, you manage to keep me informed even when I think I already know stuff. XD
Yeah, who knew? Apparently BDSM is part of the goth movement.
The group isn't that bad, but yeah, they're very anti-neko, anti-fur, anti-mermaid...they don't want to hear about ANYTHING that is not full-on GOFFICK with the required pallor and amount of black. I will say I do take things called in that group, at times, and also toss them in to the Kitties, because y'all might want to know; and it's also happened the other way once or twice.
It's just...I can, reasonably speaking, call anything, or send you a notecard about anything, if it relates to lucky boards/MM prizes/freebies/sales. With Thrifty Goth I have to ask myself three questions every single time:
* Will this appeal to most goths in the group?
* Is it an item from a store I trust for quality work?
* Is it from a gothic store?
And toss off anything that features neko/fur/wings/fae/mermaid/cute/brightly colored...even if those bright colors might appeal to raver goths/perkygoffs, for the most part.
I'm settling in; I'll get a better feel for it, and in the meantime, if someone calls a chair at a goth store and I'm wearing pink, or fur, or wings, I by hell go anyway.
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