Politically Opposed Second Life Neighbors Wage Left vs. Right War of Virtual Billboards Outside Their Virtual Homes

Second Life user and left wing activist Pussycat Catnap logged into SL one day to discover someone had moved into the virtual house next to hers, and had covered their new home with politically provocative billboards.

"Alt-right neighbor," as she reported on the Avatars Against Trump Flickr group. "New neighbor moved in, put up all kinds of Libertarian alt-right junk... So I put up some notes about his Nazi heroes Rand Paul and Ann Rand [sic]."

Above, Ms. Catnap's response can be seen at left (heh) - close-up below:

This billboard-based back and forth fills me with nostalgia, because 3D political conflicts like this have been happening in Second Life as far back as the US invasion of Iraq.

The inside of Pussycat Catnap's home, by the way, not to mention her very avatar, almost seems like a Platonic troll on FOX viewers:

See more "Avatars Against Trump" submissions here and feel free to submit your own.

Comments

[Pussycat Catnap]

Seriously... this is probably NOT the best place to be sharing up my drama...

[Pussycat Catnap]

To those reading this...

I put up my 4 signs there, they cycle a few of my points. I then de-rendered the neighbors signs - and we haven't spoken further on this.

I put my images only in a flickr group of people who I expect are of like mind to me... I kept my drama, as it is... mostly private to the 'of the same mindset' crowd this time...

So I'm not happy it's being blogged out to everybody out of the blue... If I hadn't checked my flickr this morning and noticed an odd spike of notices on some not new images... I might have missed the chance to comment on this before it gets out of control...

[Summer Haas]

I've learned a long time ago to just derender/ignore and move on. There's nothing to be gained by trying to fight back, particularly with people with strong views. It's not like you are going to change their minds, they will just double down and things will get out of hand fast.

Also, on a side note, why do so many lefties think Libertarian and alt-right are synonymous? They are not even remotely close on the political spectrum. Some of the most influential Libertarians are mortal enemies of the alt-right.

[Han Held]

There's a not-insignificant amount of fellow-travelers of the alt-right in the libertarian camp, and a lot of so-called libertarians carry water for the alt-right as well.

Enough so that it's pretty common for middle-of-the-road folks and liberals to think 'alt right' when they hear the phrase 'libertarian'.

Maybe the 'libertarians' could do a better job of distancing themselves from the alt-righties in their midst?

[Pussycat Catnap]

I've gone as far as deleting these images from my flickr and blocking Hamlet - but the image content remains here somehow, even though flickr tells me he should be blocked from blogging my content.

My understanding of the moderated group that I am in over in flickr is that it is not the 'plucking grounds' for bloggers to bring drama upon people for what they share between each other in internal communities, but if I am wrong in that, I'll remove myself from that group as well.

[Pussycat Catnap]

Had I posted that content in a public shoutout, that would be one thing. But I didn't, unless I am radically wrong about just why that group is moderated...

[Hamlet Au]

We (Strawberry Singh and I, possibly others) have been blogging about and posting images from that Flickr group for over a year now:

http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/avatars-against-trump/

The Flickr group was even featured in Rolling Stone:

https://www.rollingstone.com/glixel/news/lists/meet-the-avatars-against-trump-in-second-life-w465658

[Pussycat Catnap]

What you have here is personal drama between me and one single other SL user that I posted on my own flickr, and shared to a moderated group.

That's personal drama, not news.

I've removed myself and all my content from that group now. How the drama between myself and another single SL eventually resolves itself is not a public matter. I will consider it my mistake to have ever joined that fickr group and secondly to have posted my mess to it...

[Hamlet Au]

Sorry for the misunderstanding! For the record, appearances of real world politics in the virtual space are very much a news item, especially when they intersect with virtual social conflicts. It's why many news outlets have featured similar stories over the years. Here's The Post on an SL protest against Front National, for instance:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902540.html

PARIS, March 29 -- In a battle between push guns and pig grenades, the exploding pigs won.

The clash started on a January morning when protesters attacked the cyberspace headquarters of extremist French presidential candidate Jean-Marie Le Pen in the popular 3-D Internet fantasy world Second Life.

Le Pen security forces responded with push guns, whimsical digital weapons that tossed bodies through the air "like rag dolls," according to one witness. Protesters fought back with pig grenades, firing fat pink porkers that exploded in neon pink splatters. When the shooting ended, Le Pen's headquarters lay in ruins, deserted by staff and guards.

The confrontation in Second Life -- the parallel online universe where players cloak their alter egos in cartoonlike bodies -- demonstrated the rising impact of the newest cyber-venue for politicians trying to promote real-world campaigns...

[madeline blackbart]

Sorry Hamlet but I'm gonna agree with Pussycat here. This isn't really news worthy. This is two users which don't compare to what the Washington Post wrote about which involved multiple people. To add to that it's brought the unneeded drama on Pussycat's doorstep. I think she's been fairly reasonable and polite in pointing out that she does not want this put on a large platform like your blog. You have to keep in mind that the people your report on ESPECIALLY when it comes to political things will direct nasty comments and drama to the person your writing about. Unfortunately, as it is people see each other now as physical embodiments of political ideals rather than other human beings with feelings and emotions like there own and attack them.
I do really hope you consider what Pussycat is saying to you. I'm sure you (and probably her as well) know I don't always agree with Pussycat but I understand where she's coming from here.

[Clara Seller]

Avoiding drama is definitely not what any of this is about. We're all pawns with little causes and beliefs that we will fight to the death to defend. We do exactly what we've been programmed to do. God bless our little hearts.

Most of us want the same simple things and it's very possible to have them, but it would call for the relinquish of control from a handful of global overlords and a more equitable division of our world assets. It would call for the privileged to be ordinary and that won't happen. So we squabble over feckless puppet leaders who mouth empty platitudes to divide us and who always accomplish the same goal... keep us fighting in the dirt. God bless our little hearts.

[Dartagan Shepherd]

What's even more funny is that the "alt-right" isn't actually a group of any substance. It was some tiny group that political rhetoric ballooned to include any conservative viewpoint.

I always get a kick out of that term, simply because people accept the fiction over reality.

[roon avro]

girl is pissed hahaha

[Nodoka Hanamura (@Rathgrith027_SL)]

I have been politically active outside of SL for quite some time, and have noticed how the left and right have been active in SL - which I would find to be a good thing - if there was ever a good, civil discussion to occur. Also, Pussycat - I have to declare this much - Even though I don't side with your politics - It's best to keep politics betwixt friends and not make a ruckus like this or enable the opponent to irritate you more. It never ends well, as seen here.