The concept of an "avatar's bill of rights" is laughable and from what I've seen only people with "separation of RL and SL" issues even seriously entertain such a notion.

The issue isn't a matter of an avatar and what it can be defined as. It's a matter of the space it inhabits and the terms of service that the user has agreed to follow while in that area.

It's just like a mall. You're allowed to ride a bike or skate, but not in the mall. You're allowed to sit on the ground all day without doing anything, but not at the mall. You're allowed to take your clothes off or have sex...but not in a mall.

Why? The mall isn't public property. It's private property that is open to the public IF the public follows a certain set of rules.

You're on another company's time and dime when you're in SL or any other "virtual world". It's not oppression when you're not allowed to build or upload textures like in WoW. It's not oppression when you have to get to a certain point in order to be allowed to get new gear. It's all part of the layout of the virtual world you chose to enter and that is usually spelled out for you in the terms of service which you have to agree to in order to continue playing.

The argument given in this article is one of those restrictive traps set so that the author can be right whenever you veer outside of the narrow confines of it. It bases the whole argument on the premise that the avatar is a tool and separate from the user which is irrelevant.

WORD