Socially|Mundane

Okay - smear campaign revisited. It's been five days since this sad, pitiful scenarios was started. and I have time to look at the products in question and really evaluate a few things. And these are my thoughts on the whole subject matter.

Warning: This blog is registered with WordPress.com as an "R"-rated blog. There is some language in this post that some may find offensive.

The headline on another blog goes something this this: "When is it really theft?"

If I scribble on the piece of paper something that looks like a woman, sitting, slight smile with long, straight hair parted in the middle... am I plagiarizing DaVinci? Am I stealing his 'creative idea' just because my creation might slightly resemble Mona Lisa?

Hmmm... I create a fountain in Second Life. Let's see... it has a round base, a centered, tiered pillar, some prim water flowing from the top of the tiered pillar into the 'pool' of the base and a little particle water to give the look of splash.

OUCH. I guess I should expect every other fountain maker in Second Life to notify me that I am stealing their creative design and demand I take my fountain vendors down and stop selling it!

I have that Louis Armstrong song bouncing in my head. I love that song. But as the "Bon Marché" totally F'd-up the "Day-o" song a couple years ago by adapting it to their advertising, the beautiful and uplifting, full of hope song "What a Wonderful World" is now trashed in my mind.

Instead of trees of green and clouds of white, i am 'seeing' the following:

"I see envy of green and angst of Red"
" I see something terribly wrong in someone's head!"

So, what does it mean when one hair creator in SL accuses another hair creator in SL of Intellectual Property theft, even though the styles are barely alike, much less any kind of plausible copy?

Party A is demanding Party B take down their creations because it is theft. And Party A openly states they have no intention of filing a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) complaint against Party B and also has not filed an abuse report with the "appropriate authorities" against Party B.

That, instead of contacting Party B directly to speak and negotiate in private (to my understanding) but rather write-up a vitriolic and chastising notecard, and begin spreading it like wildfire, dropping it to anyone and every one, outrightly accusing Party B of I.P. Theft and to boycott Party B's store and not to support Party B by purchasing anything created by Party B. In addition, many in Party A's camp visit Party B's store in world and camp - casually bring up to anyone who will listen that the hair on sale are stolen copies, prim-for-prim.

Wow.

Obviously a flat-out smear campaign that is all but outright admitted to by those very words, by Party A. Could it be that Party B's creations are considerably better quality, far better-looking and less expensive than Party A's creations?

FULL DISCLOSURE: I know Delora Starbrook (Party B) very well in Second Life and we actually <gasp!> spend time together in SL. Thus, at first blush, I may appear to be biased.

However, I beseech you to read-on and decide for yourself.

Before I go on, it would be a good idea to get the original story if you are not already privy to what's going on.

Now, if you are up-to date, you know Tekelili (last name omitted because he is not worthy and I don't give a shit) is obviously fearful that a newcomer in the SL hair business has come along and created better product for less money.

However, instead of an adult and professional reaction of creating new product and working to fairly defend against the competition, he decides to libel himself with a nasty smear campaign.

Tekelili said in his forum post that he is fearful of a future accusation of IP theft. Ummm, anyone remember the movie "Minority Report"? How the feck can you predict the future? This is supposed to be a preemptive strike against a future accusation against you?

You know damned well that everything and anything created in SL is time-stamped. Pah-leese. Grow the fuck up.

So, Delora is being accused of stealing Tekelili's 'creative design. The worst thing anyone can be accused of in this specific case is inspiration. When asked why he shouldn't be accused of the same thing and who his inspiration was for his creations, Tekelili said in his post:

"Out of my own head- I’m a 2d artist, with lots of crazy ideas in my skull. And this is why I’m upset. I’m not in SL design for the profit- merely to be able to share the crazy notions that appear in my head."

First of all, dude: you lie. On your own sales boxes you mention (with regard to the styles in question) that your inspiration is from a movie.

Wow.

The producers should sue your ass off for the exact same thing you accuse Delora of doing. Second, based on this part of your post:

"There’s few things more surreal than waking up to seeing precise -elements-, not the full hairstyle, being appropriated into a piece of work by someone else. It’s like Frankenstein having a go at your children, leaving one feeling unsettled and creeped out"

Tekelili: you seriously need a shrink in my opinion. This statement indicates to me that you are psychotic at worst, delusional at best. And anyone who blindly jumps to your camp in defense of you, offense of Delora is really not your friend. They will fuck you over when the time comes.

A good friend runs to you in time of need, not away from you. This is a time when Delora will learn one of life's hardest lessons: who your true friends really are. Now, if the tables were turned, and it were Delora smearing Tekelili, I would quickly pull her aside and speak to her in confidence as gravely serious as I am able to convey:

'Girl, you'd better stop now. Don't be a fool, it's not worth it. Apologize and recant any and every possible public way you can. Say it was a mistake, because in the long run, you will burn for it.'

Well, it's been an entire weekend now.
To twist a chinese parable, I would send Tekelili to see the wise guru at the top of the mountain to ask how he can apologize.

The guru will tell Tekelili to go to the top of the hills over a large city, cut open a feather pillow and toss the feathers into the wind and allow them to spread, then return.

Upon completing this and returning to the guru, the guru will instruct Tekelili to return to the mountain where he dumped the feathers into the wind, and then commence to collect every single feather that was originally inside the pillow.

Tekelili will balk at this, proclaiming "that's impossible, it cannot be done!"

And the guru will smile and say "exactly."

So, Tekelili, you are so conceited that you you think your stuff is actually worth "stealing". Okay. Prove it. Even if you could. Intellectual property rights extend to works. Not style. And even if Delora was inspired by your creations (oh, doesn't that happen between competing companies every single day in Real Life?) - prove it.

It just so happens all these others need to be smeared for the same reason you give for smearing Delora:

OH! And my favorite example of your own "ornamental hair-style plagiarism":