It has been about six weeks since the last post to this blog. I had a major drama in my SLife, and I survived just fine, learned a lot. However, there was an action that I wanted to take, but my love for another made me reluctant to do it. As a result, I froze, unable to act at all. Finally, here is my action, my latest update on the adventures of Lorelei in the wonderland of Second Life.
I think in terms of Second Life age I am now fully a middle aged person, wizened and somewhat cynical from my experiences. What is striking to me, is the similarities to RL, but in slightly different manifestations. This world of SL is doing a lot of boundary crossing, on many different levels. It is making our world smaller allowing many who might never travel past their borders to meet and explore people on the other side of the globe. Most times, despite the differences in culture, language and economics, we find that we are all human, and when it comes down to the most basic natures and needs, very much the same.
While most people are good and kind, both in RL and in SL, there are also people who are dangerous and not what they appear to be. And even the good ones who would never intentionally cause pain to others, are weak, flawed humans. We all are. Sometimes even very kind people can hurt others very much.
One thing that bothers me about SL is the phenomena of men masquerading as women. This is rampant across SL. I worry about the psychological damage caused to young people who become emotionally attached to a person masquerading as a different gender than what they actually are. After emotional ties have been formed, THEN the truth is revealed. I know for a fact that this is happening over and over again in SL.
I personally am aware of a “woman”, initials V.C. who is, in fact, a man. This is just one example of the sort of devious and manipulative type that seem to have found a haven in SL. This person trolls sex holes looking for sexy but very young (in SL terms) people to prey on, and forms relationships with those people, lovingly creating a very manipulative environment. Only after the hooks are well set in the victim’s brain does the truth come out. This “woman” is actually a youngish Dutchman, so unsure of his sexuality that he can’t make his mind up between men and women, neither in the virtual world nor in the real one. But what he does do is manipulate and use people in SL, and I have seen it first hand. He may not know how to love, but he knows how to control, and that is where the thrill for him lies.
New people in SL need to be aware that there are predators trolling around, ready to insidiously worm their way into other peoples psyches, only to use and control them. There are many people in SL seeking the one thing that really gets them going, which is controlling others. The thing that puzzles me is why people willingly allow this to happen. Yet, I’ve seen how slow and subtle the process is, and most don’t realize what is going on until they are in too deep to see the situation objectively. So then, dear readers, guard your heart well on your journeys in Second Life. It may be a virtual world, but the emotional pain can be very real, and it cuts like a knife. More updates coming soon…
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