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Remembering 9/11 on Second Life
By
John Del Signore
Published Sep 11, 2008
Modified Sep 11, 2008
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By
John Del Signore
Published Sep 11, 2008
Modified Sep 11, 2008
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Don't assume that people who prefer simulated reality to the vulgar, gravity-bound "real" thing forgot all about 9/11. There happened to be a soulful gathering at Ground Zero on Second Life this morning, and Rikomatic was "at" the, um, "scene" to report: "There were 70-80 other avatars present, beaming in from who knows where... Most folks sat on the grass in respectful silence, restricting communication to instant messages. A couple of avatars in soldier's uniforms stood at attention. Believe it or not, it means a lot for a bunch of avatars to sit in silence. It just never happens, unless they are camping." Stop snickering! Oh, actually, that was us. To be fair, there was an affecting audio stream of real voices reading the names of the victims, while a haunting replica of the towers rose in the "sky." We're just jealous because we've never gone on any of these silent camping trips; virtual smores are the best!
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9/11
memorial
second life
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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