The Hunger Games

I have read the books, watched the first movie -truly cannot wait to make time and watch the second one- and only until recently I was forced to question the fact of our attraction to the storyline and misadventures of poor Katniss, on a recent post at Upworthy -page and facebook group worth following-; is it the hot guys, the gratituos violence these kids have to endure for the "greater good" by their government to keep the peace or is it maybe the scary fact that the story is a factual reflection of our society and where it's headed?

When you really sit and think about it, the model of society depicted in the story already exists nowadays: a working class that barely gets by, while the money and power our governments claim to lack, while they raise our taxes and keep us entertained with either the shiniest gadgets or the media remains in the hands of a chosen few. We have come to accept this as normal while children worldwide die of hunger in third world countries or worse, work for the top brands to manufacture the clothes and products we are told to buy; we have grown indiferent to this reality, even coming to accept it as normal.

I am not suggesting a revolution and my words should not be taken as an encouragement to do so, but we surely need to stop pretending we cannot make a difference, or that it is simply beyond our power or reach; imagine if every single person in the world stopped for a second and decided to get involved in changing the quality of life of those less favored -the scary concept lies in the fact that possibly we may be inside the group and not even be aware of it-, or maybe actively volunteer with a support group that is trying to make a change, this being in  SL or RL.

The world we save and change will not only be enjoyed by us, but for generations to come we may never meet, because when you really think about it, some of the rights and benefits we enjoy today, were started and made a fact by those who never even met us -like the 40 hour week law we all take for granted-.

https://m.facebook.com/spikecls

I got the POWER

What is power? what gives or takes power and why do people in Second life thirst and look for it as if their lives depended on it?; power can be defined as the ability to shape, form and decide on people's lives and their future.

With so many responsibility implied on such task, one wonders why is it so alluring, I guess it could be the fact that most people use second life to compensate on those things they lack, and power does have some erotica involved on it.

Over the last 24 hours, I have been exposed to all sorts of funny power trips coming at me from the strangest sources -and even some very predictable ones- but I think the one worth highlighting would be a guy who recently hosted for me and god knows why, decided to take upon himself the pro-bono duties of staff management -I already have people doing that but oh well-, so I get to the club, notices are not being sent, contest board has not been set-up and to top it all he's verbally abusing people on staff chat.

What got into him I'll always ask myself, but I did the reasonable thing, apologized on staff chat, and did the hosting until I could get a replacement while he was at the club. Fine line here, focus on the job you have been hired to do and WHEN you have spare time and feel that you have valuable input that could make staff management work better, address the appropriate people in private.

Then there are the club owners who have a few "special" people that have achieved the status of untouchable and feel it is their call to get involved in staff romance-drama, while sacrificing good valuable staff that will not come back to your club for the afore mentioned issues. One thing I have never done -and have been accused of being heartless and impassive- is getting involved in drama among staff, that does not DIRECTLY involved work as a whole.

I guess some people just have the need of showing how big their muscle is, but personally, I'll stick to what I'm doing and how I'm doing it, seems to be going well so far.

https://www.facebook.com/spikecls

Friends in the right places

Having the right friends in the right places works wonders, no matter on which reality or part of the world you are situated; the appropriate muscle can make a huge difference on the final outcome of whatever it is you are trying to achieve.

Some people are born with this social muscle, but in second life, is all about proper networking and meeting the right people; depending on how successfully you manage to make the right friends on the specific area you work at -this being art, fashion or clubbing- the better results you'll get on any project you decide to start at any given time.

There are areas in the world however, when you will get no results, unless you have that social muscle -a powerful friend in that very specific area- or it will take you twice as long to get what you want; this is true for small cities and towns, where everyone is someone's cousin, High-school friend or friend of a friend; so for a person new to the area, it can feel like your first week in second life, when no one knows who you are and you barely have a grasp on where everything is and let alone how it works.

"Friends and good manners will carry you where money won't go." Margaret Walker


https://www.facebook.com/spikecls



Tener amigos en los lugares adecuados hace maravillas, sin importar en que relaidad te desenvuelves ó parte del mundo te encuentras; el "musculo" apropiado puede hacer la diferencia en el resultado final de lo que quiere que sea que tratas de conseguir.

Algunas personas nacen con este musculo, pero en el second life, todo se trata de la socialización apropiada y de conocer a las personas necesarias; dependiendo de cuan exitosa sea tu socialización y de que bien te las manejes en hacer amigos en tú area específica de trabajo -ya sea esta el arte, la moda ó los clubes- mejor será el resultado del proyecto que decides empezar en cualquier momento.

Hay areas del mundo sin embargo, en las que no conseguirás nada, a menos que tengas ese musculo social -un amigo poderoso en esa area de trabajo en la que te mueves- ó por lo menos te tomará el doble conseguir aquello que quieres; esto es especialmente para pequeñas ciudades y pueblos, en los que todos son primos, amigos del instituto ó bien amigos de un amigo; así que para una persona ajena al area, puede parecer como tu primera semana en el second life, cuando no conoces a nadie y apenas te enteras de donde está todo ó como funciona.

"Los amigos y los buenos modales te llevarán a sitios donde el dinero no puede" Margaret Walker


https://www.facebook.com/spikecls

Censor me, I don't know better

Censorship is by simple definition, the act of filtering information handed out to the public for a number of reasons, this being copyright infringement, adult content or simple protocol. Censorship is present everywhere and in every situation of our daily lives, we even censor ourselves and we call this being polite.

In second life you can be censored through various means, but it being a social platform built on text / voice communication, censoring someone can be complex. Most of the time it occurs in groups, which strive to keep SPAM notices to a minimum, or the public notices under a very specific topic; when you join a group -in theory- it comes with a very clear set of rules posted somewhere for everyone to read, or handed out on a note card, so in order for you to be a part of the long term community you have to adhere to this rules or be banned.

This is in theory how most groups work, unless the group owner wishes to bend the rules for his own convenience and play the diva role on everyone he has the misfortune of talking into joining the group -Make Him Over for example, but that's a subject for another article-, apparently once you hit the 800 members mark on your group and even people you don't know, know who you are, this entitles you to hold the absolute truth and never be wrong.

I was until very recently -i.e. last night- an active member of GayMeeting Point, a somewhat public group for club owners, hosts and the general public to join and announce various events happening in-world. I had since day one problems with the group owner: Joaopedro Oh, who was very nice when asking me and my business to join his group, but that's about the time it ended him being nice. I am the type of person that will DJ or work anywhere if I have fun and people want me there, but one of the first issues I encountered with this person was exactly him having an problem with me announcing a party at a straight / open to all club, to which he added "a party with a room full of sluts".

Then it continued on with group chat issues and so on, rules not openly stated anywhere but only mentioned when it was convenient for him or when something brushed him off the wrong way -which was me apparently-, then after seeing a few other non club venues being announced -shop freebies, art galleries and so on- I decided to send a notice about my family's shopping area, I mean they were announcing shop freebies -it being done by Joao himself-, so I figured people would like to be informed.

In a nutshell, I was threatened to be banned after him adding: "I am 5 years old in SL and you DJ for work, you should listen to people with more experience", pretty strong words for a person running a party group; so DJs and club owners don't know better than you. I don't go for how long you have been in second life, or what you do for a living while in-world, I rather pay attention to your talents, but hey that's just me.

I'll be partying on my own now, there are some things I rather do without and stroking someone's online ego is certainly one of those. I'm not being difficult or pretend that I hold the absolute truth, but double standards are always bad, no matter under what situation you use them.

https://www.facebook.com/spikecls

La censura es por simple definición, el acto de filtrar información que se ofrece al publico por un número de razones, ya sea violación del copyright, contenido adulto ó simple protocolo. La censura está presente en nuestro día a día, incluso nos auto censuramos y lo llamamos ser educados.


En el second life puedes ser censurado de varias formas, pero al ser esta una plataforma social basada en la comunicación de texto/voz, la censura puede ser compleja. La mayoría de las veces esta ocurre en grupos, los cuales se esfuerzan de mantener el exceso de notificaciones masivas al minimo, o por lo menos en el mismo tema del grupo; cuando te unes a un grupo -en teoría- este viene con un número de reglas bastante claras, en un sitio a la vista de todos o entregados a tí en una nota, para garantizar que tu permanencia en la comunidad a largo plazo, lo que requiere que te adhieras a las reglas ó que te echen.

Así es como funcionan en teoría la mayoría de los grupos, a menos que el dueño del mismo decida doblar las reglas para su propia conveniencia y haciendo el papel de diva, abuse de todos aquello que hayan tenido la desgracia de unirse -Make Him Over, para nombrar a uno pero eso es tema para otro articulo-, aparentemente una vez que tienes 800 miembros en tu grupo esto te da licencia a ser dueño de la verdad absoluta y nunca estar equivocado.

Formé parte, hasta recientemente -es decir anoche- un miembro activo de GayMeeting Point, un grupo más o menos público para dueños de clubes, anfitriones y personas en general para ser informados de los eventos que ocurren en la plataforma. Tuve desde el primer día problemas con el dueño del grupo: Joaopedro Oh, que fué muy amable al pedir que mi negocio se uniese al grupo, pero fué justo después de hacerlo cuando lo de ser bueno paró. Soy el tipo de persona que asistirá y hará de DJ en cualquier club o fiesta, pero uno de los primero problemas que encontré fué cuando al encontrarme en un club heterosexual y mandar una notificación de la fiesta, este se presentó teniendo problemas con el mismo y añadiendo que se trataba de "una fiesta llena de mujerzuelas".

Así que continué en mis andaduras y los problemas continuaron, chat grupal y así sucesivamente; al no haber reglas claras en ningún lado pero sólo siendo nombradas cuando algo le molestaba de manera personal -yo específicamente aparentemente- y al ver que varios negocios no centrados en las fiestas eran anunciados -regalos en tiendas, galerías de arte y así sucesivamente- decidí enviar una notificación sobre la zona de tiendas de mi familia, es decir ya que estaban anunciando regalos de una tienda específica -hecho esto por Joao en persona-, me imaginé que a la gente le gustaría ser informada sobre esto también.

Resumiendo, se me amenazó con ser expulsado del grupo después de añadir: "llevo 5 años en el second life y tú solo haces the DJ como profesión, deberías escuchar a alguien con experiencia", palabras con mucho peso para una persona que lleva un grupo de fiestas; parece que los DJs y dueños de clubes no sabes más que él. A mi me da igual cuanto tiempo llevas en el second life, ó a que te dedicas como profesión en la plataforma, prefiero poner atención a tus talentos.


Me voy a dedicar a mis fiestas de ahora en adelante, ya que hay cosas que no voy a hacer y una de ellas es la de acariciar el ego de nadie. No estoy siendo difícil, ni creo tener la verdad absoluta, pero la doble moral es mala, da igual en que situación se use.

https://www.facebook.com/spikecls

Powertrips & other evils

Whether we refer to RL or SL, depending on what stage your life is at and what position you're in, some people may feel the need to use who they are and what they can do to their advantage. This is more obvious while in second life, where people feel they need to compensate -or simply do without needing a real excuse- for all they lack; don't get me wrong this all good and valid, as long as compensating doesn't mean bullying others into submission.

I call this "the superiority complex powertrip horse" and like any other evils in the world, it only benefits one person and affects all those around you suffering it. Power is a curious thing, some look for it and crave it, others get it without even wanting it, but to pull from the easy movie quote "with great power comes great responsibility"; the person riding the powertrip horse feels superior and with license to judge, inspect and look down on people.

Most of the time these people are so wrapped up in their so-called perfection, they do not seem to be aware of their own flaws or how addicted they are to being judgmental -I had a friend of a friend who I suffered for a while until she did me the GREAT favor of defriending me-. I don't claim to be perfect, I never have and most likely never will, I don't have any real power in SL, and when I have faced myself with situations where I was given some, I have happily relinquished it to the appropriate people; I don't need to overcompensate in second life, it's not why I use the platform but I certainly won't roll over and play dead, so any what's-its-name can get their fix of compensating, there's something fabulous in RL to take care of that... therapy. I don't need a King name tag, a fancy status nor a court to feel good about myself, if that's your kink good for you... but don't expect me to play along.

"Keep it real, keep it simple & keep it fun, if not what's the point?" Skylar Silent

https://www.facebook.com/spikecls


Ya sea refiriendonos a la vida real ó a el second life y dependiendo de el estado de tu vida en el que estás, algunas personas sienten la necesidad de usar lo que son ó los recursos de los que cuentan para su propio conveniencia. Esto es más obvio en el second life, donde las personas sienten la necesidad de sobre-compensar -o de hacerlo porque sí, sin necesitar una excusa real- por todo aquello de lo que carecen; no me mal-entiendan, todo esto es bueno y válido, siempre y cuando no signifique abusar de otros para que se sometan a tí.

A este proceso lo llamo "el complejo cabalgante de superioridad" y como otros males en el mundo, sólo beneficia a una persona mientras otros a su alrededor lo sufren. El poder es una cosa curiosa, algunos lo buscan y ansían, otros lo reciben sin buscarlo ni necesitarlo y recurriendo de una cita de película "un gran poder conlleva a una gran responsibilidad"; la persona a lomos del caballo de superioridad se siente el la libertad de juzgar, inspeccionar y mirar por encima del hombro a otros.

Muchas veces estas personas estan tan envueltas en su "perfección", que no parecen ser conscientes de sus propios fallos ó de cuan adictos estan a juzgar a otros -sufrí durante largo tiempo la amistad de una amiga de un amigo con este complejo, hasta que esta me hizo el GRAN favor de eliminarme de su lista-. Yo nunca he afirmado ser perfecto, nunca lo he hecho ni lo haré, no poseo ningún poder real en el second life, y cuando me he enfrentado a situaciones en la que me ha sido dado algo de este, lo he cedido a las personas apropiadas; No necesito sobre-compensar por nada en el second life, no es la razón por la que uso la plataforma pero no por eso voy a rodar y a hacerme el muerto, para que cualquier como-se-llame pueda sentirse mejor consigo mismo, hay algo fabuloso en la vida real... se llama terapia. No necesito ser llamdo Rey, un estatus ni una corte para sentirme bien conmigo mismo, si ese es tu rollo, allá tú pero no esperes que te siga el juego.

"Manténlo todo real, simple & divertido, si no ¿qué sentido tiene?" Skylar Silent

https://www.facebook.com/spikecls

POWER that SEXUAL APHRODISIAC

Power is something that is given to those who don't want it and most of the time refused to those who only look for it. In Plato's immortal words, "The measure of a man is what he does with power", there are many people in life who will go to any lengths in order to get some kind of power and second life is no different.

Sex play can be an exchange of power, the DOM top and the SUB bottom, giving and taking power principle but what happens when people use sex as a weapon to climb the social, laboral or any other type of power structure ladder? what to do when a person approaches you or anyone in your circle playing the innocent little creature and manages to climb its way up in a rather speedy fashion through orgasms?

There was a political figure and a very famous one for loving the ladies -I'll let you guess about that one- who said that he never slept with the same woman for too long as there was information that could be either: leaked, abused, mishandled or received when a man had just exited a powerful orgasm, as you do not think clearly, so it was best to save himself the grief of doing the clean up later.

I guess on some sense he was right, there are some things you simply do not mix; the responsibility of losing face to those who depend on you, due to having the wrong influence in the bedroom, being one of them.