SLElections Postmortem

Well, now that that’s all over with, I thought I’d share a few little “behind the scenes” tidbits with you fine folks out there in Blog-land. Consider this kind of the “insider’s tell-all book” of the Evans for Governor campaign. Read on for more…

Reaction from the Evans Camp

The following is taken from a media statement made by Erbo Evans, Candidate for SL Governor, to Grid News Network (GNN) and other major media outlets, on this date:

My fellow Residents, it appears that this election process is not all that it was cracked up to be. However, let it not be said that we of the SLGOP are sore losers; we accept the verdict rendered by the citizenry, no matter our own personal feelings about it.  We congratulate Philip Linden on his re-election as SL Governor, and pledge our assistance to him in any way necessary to help preserve, protect, and defend Second Life.

It’s been a long, hard campaign, and all those of you listening know how much I have appreciated your support.  My thanks go out especially to Campaign Manager Danielle Ferguson, Party Spokeswoman Fiona Torricelli, and the tireless precinct workers of the Second Life Grand Old Party.  I send commendations to my opponents in the race; you are all truly an elite group, and it’s been my pleasure and privilege to work both with you and against you in this race.

Friends, the campaign ends, but the fight must continue.  The enemies of Second Life are still waiting in the wings, ready to swoop down on us and stifle the freedom of expression we hold so dear.  We must maintain constant vigilance against these dark forces, in order that our new world will survive and carry us forward into the future.  If Providence does not forbid, I shall not hold myself aloof from this struggle.  I trust you will all carry on the fight, each in your own fashion.

Thank you, good night, God bless you, and God bless Second Life!

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, it’s all satire, still.  And now’s the end of it…but I’ll likely make one more post where I “break the fourth wall” and let you in on how this all came together.

The Election Results

Dear Residents,

Thanks for participating in the 2007 SLelections for Governor. Before we announce the winner and the new Governor of Second Life, we would like to thank all the residents who participated in this SLelection. Your candidacies were strong, your platforms inspiring, and your campaign posters excellent! You have shown us many excellent paths for Second Life’s future.

However, we had some minor problems with returning the SLelections 2007 voting boxes into our inventory. They were, um, lost. Luckily upon contacting Live Help, the Lindens were able to tell us the following:

“We were pleased to see all the Residents participating in the democratization of Second Life. After discarding the votes of the residents that are not registered with our Identity Verification System, it is clear that the community wishes to re-elect Philip Linden Governor of Second Life. We are very happy with that, as this means we can keep our current jobs in the Linden Administration. Thank you for voting.”

Congratulation to Phil on his reelection. Please note that any protests of election results will be considered broadly offensive and offenders will be Abuse Reported. Despite any discrepancies you may think you see, we stress that this does not represent a change in our position, and we remain committed to the same democratic principles we have held from the start.

The Concerned Residents

A reaction from SLGOP Headquarters will follow shortly.

Election Day

My fellow Residents, today is SLelection Day.  On this day, you will decide who governs your Grid for the next four years.  Democracy is an awesome responsibility, and I urge you to choose wisely.

And we of the SLGOP believe that only one choice in these elections makes any sense: Erbo Evans for Governor.

Despite the many attacks we have endured in the press, despite the dirty tricks being played by certain skeletal candidates who shall remain nameless, the facts still remain:

• Only Erbo Evans has a comprehensive program for the defense, improvement,  and betterment of Second Life.
• Only Erbo Evans has the proven experience to execute on any plan for the improvement of Second Life.
• Only Erbo Evans recognizes the true enemies of Second Life…and will do the utmost to combat these enemies without restricting the freedoms that Residents hold dear.

Don’t waste your precious vote on wannabe-dictators, weak candidates who cannot stand up to the outside threat, or candidates that don’t even bother to show up!  Vote Erbo Evans for Governor!

I’m Erbo Evans, and I approve this message.

Our Most Persuasive Argument

With the SLelections coming very soon now, it’s time to bring out the really persuasive argument….

Thanks to Danielle Ferguson, Campaign Manager, for the pose. Guns by Desert Eagle. Car by Dominus. Attitude is 100% Danielle.

UPDATE: Danielle clarifies that this message is no idle threat…while Tyffany Flintoff accuses us of stealing her ideas.  Hogwash!  We had no a priori knowledge of her poster design prior to releasing ours.

A Clear Indication

Since there has already been some confusion on this issue, we at SLGOP thought we would remind everyone:

Disclaimer: Yeah, the standard stuff at this point. And I had to “borrow” a few snipped images for this one…

Radio, Radio

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: SLGOP/Erbo Evans for Governor 2007 Campaign, Aphrodisia, Fantasyland, Second Life

June 16, 2007

EVANS CAMPAIGN RELEASES SECOND RADIO SPOT, PLEDGING “CLEAR, EASY-TO-FOLLOW CONTENT GUIDELINES”

The Evans for Governor 2007 campaign today released its second radio spot of the campaign, following up on the message conveyed by its recent “Is She, Or Isn’t She?” poster.  The spot also uses the Evans campaign’s second major tagline: “It’s time for clarity.”

“Are you being ‘broadly offensive’?” asks the narrator, after a short introduction in which a proposition is heard in a club.  “How do you know?  The Lindens won’t tell you…until it’s too late.”

“Under an Evans Administration,” the spot continues, “you’ll have clear, easy-to-follow content guidelines–so you won’t need to worry about breaking rules you don’t know about.”

Rebroadcast rights for the radio spot may be secured by contacting the SLGOP, which also advises that the download link for the spot above may be slightly unstable, due to a DNS issue with the service provider, so please try again later if you can’t download it right away.

- 30 -

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, satire, yeah yeah.  And that DNS error doesn’t make me real happy either.

Fresh Face

The latest advertisement from SLGOP headquarters…

Thanks to Fiona Torricelli, SLGOP Spokeswoman (and, apparently, now, spokesmodel), for her appearance in this ad.

Campaign Stop

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: SLGOP/Erbo Evans for Governor 2007 Campaign, Aphrodisia, Fantasyland, Second Life

June 11, 2007

CANDIDATE EVANS VISITS CLOSED-DOWN CLUB, CITES “DELIBERATE AMBIGUITY” IN CLOSING

The Evans campaign today visited the site of the now-closed Desire Gentlemen’s Club in Dryas on the mainland. The club, once home to some of Second Life’s top dancers and escorts, now stands, a hollow shell, walled up by plywood prims.

“This club once provided employment to three dozen young ladies, struggling to make a better future for themselves,” said Erbo Evans, Candidate for SL Governor, in a speech delivered onsite. “And now these poor young women have been thrown out of work. And why is that? We of the SLGOP believe that it was due to the deliberate ambiguity fostered by the statements made a week and a half ago by Administration spokesman Daniel Linden.”

“This Administration does not realize, in the making of its ivory-tower pronouncements, that it is toying with the very livelihoods of Residents,” continued Evans. “An arbitrary and capricious policy on the part of the government does not make for a stable business environment! We of the SLGOP are committed to open government, open justice, and open rules that are clear and easy to follow for everyone!”

In response to a shouted question from a reporter in the audience about whether he had patronized this establishment, Evans referred the question to his campaign manager, Danielle Ferguson. The reporter quickly muttered “never mind” and teleported away.

Persons interested in joining the SLGOP and the Evans campaign are invited to search for the in-world group “Second Life Grand Old Party,” which is free to join.

- 30 -

Staying On Message

In response to Vint Falken playing the “family-values” card, we’d just like to remind her that it takes more than “family values” to govern:

Thank you, God bless you, and God bless Second Life.

Disclaimer: This is all a bunch of SATIRE.  As my campaign manager Danielle put it, “Two words: ‘me’ and ‘bite’.  Arrange them in any order you like.”