warner-brothers-doesnt-love-japan

The Metaverse Mod Squad is a virtual-world company whose employees work from home from many different locations. They are not limited to the LA market, or even the US market, for hiring.

I believe the poster who commented that it is a moderation issue is correct. Although their staff includes people who speak languages other than English, any specific language is probably not covered all the time, which would lead to a situation where speaking language X might be permitted at some times (when a mod is available who understands it) and not at others. Such an inconsistent rule would be even worse than simply requiring English all the time.

That said, I still think it's a poor move on WB's part. But I can understand why they might have chosen to do it.

Chris, this is one of those times where I wholeheartedly agree with you. Here in So Cal, every government document has to be available in English and Spanish. Takes a lot of work and extra paper to do so. You'd think the environmentalists would be all over them to stop this absurdity.

Btw, I consider myself an environmentalist, but some are way to radical to me.

No, because whether or not they're same in the sense you mean isn't relevant to the legal issue, which is judged based on the particular context of the case. Nor is the intellectual quality of the legal professionals relevant. Language happens. It doesn't matter whether the evolution of language is from judges or juniors.


No, I wasn't. I was merely reminding readers that the British and American meanings for "public school" are different, and saying that I was using the American meaning.


It wasn't my intent to raise or debate this complex issue. I was merely pointing out that because of the way this issue is discussed, criticizing the use of "racism" from a language perspective is blind pedantry. Debate the substance, not the word choice.

But you'd be surprised at the number of illegal immigrants who make a very good faith effort to pay their income taxes, with success once they figure out how. The problem is figuring out how to get their various W-2s, under questionable SSNs, to be applied to their account under the one ITIN that may actually be legal for them to use with the IRS.



I'm inclined to agree that it has nothing to do with racism, etc, though I won't speculate on the true motivation. But that's the correct argument to make. Arguing that it's not racism because the correct term would be "discrimination based on language" is arguing semantics, not substance.

interior china and russia are just as bad, but I laughed (but then I I try to learn a little... ASL, French German, Russian, Italian, Spanish, Latin, Japanese, Tagalog, but mostly I suck at all of them because I have no practise/immersion... thried to pick up what some of the local czech's were speaking, but I got lost fast even with simple stuff...)

Amy Pritchard, is an attorney and CEO of Metaverse Mod Squad, the company that Warner Bros contracted out to provide moderation services to the now defunct Gossip Girl sims. She responds to the English only controversy:

http://www.metaversemodsquad.com/blog/index.php/2009/06/29/language-policies-in-online-communities/

If you don't want to read it, it essentially says, we don't make the rules, we just enforce them. While the WB/CW marketing campaign is officially over, the GG community is being transitioned to a new home by the Mod Squad team.

Personally, I have no love lost for the closing of the sims because those gossip girl fans were incredibly annoying from my experience. Seeing the GossipGirl last name makes me throw up in my mouth a little, but I must say that it was quite the successful marketing campaign given the track record of many other companies that have tried to create an in-world presence.

WB is in L.A. though and thus likely the person who oversees the other aspects such as overseeing the reports, purchase, fees, etc. concerning the sim. It would be their job on the line were the sim sued or if the sim got into big trouble with SL for some reason.



Thanks.

Kidd: Congrats on misunderstanding/twisting my entire post. Bleagh. Oh and for patronising me with that 'you're only using semantics' bollocks. They're called words, and mine were perfectly legitimate. *I NEVER SAID IT WAS WRONG JUST BECAUSE OF A DICTIONARY DEFINITION* grrr...

cooling off now cos it's a PG forum.

I see it this way:

If I go to China, Japan, France, Russia, Spain, or any other country, the people living there would expect me to at least know some words or sentences in their language.

WB is an American company, so it wouldnt surprise me that they expect people to speak some english (or spanish).

that's fine and dandy, but lets say you're traveling with others from the same place... should you be kicked out of the country for talking to them in your native language!? (never mind that MOST business try to go the extra mile when they have foriegn visitors and even attempt to greet them in their own terms)

not that american tourists live up to that example (a large part of the reason english is such a "universal" language, is because everyone else has already figured out that english speakers are too stupid to learn their language ... just ask them)

True. Partly due to the "American's have $$$" myth and the fact that most American Tourists will probably buy any piece o' junk trinket as a souvenir.