Ignite Your Inner Alter Ego With Online Gaming | Freedom Wall ?

(NewsUSA) ? In the world of online gaming and interactive avatars, self-expression is limitless, providing people a new way to express themselves and escape the mundane. Regular people can abandon their daytime personas to don mohawks and spiked leather jackets as punk rockers. Dog walkers can be rock stars. Busy professionals can check responsibilities at the door and discover life from a different perspective.

The chance to redefine yourself is the allure of social gaming sites like Sims, Zynga or IMVU ? a three-dimensional platform that allows people to create an avatar, or a graphical representation of their alter ego, dress up, meet new people and play new games like ?Walk Off.? With 80 million registered users, fans around the world say IMVU is leading the pack. The only question left is: What?s your avatar style?

Punk: You know that hot pink, pixie haircut you always wanted? Your avatar can rock it without hesitation. What about tattoos and piercings? Your avatar is a blank slate ready to represent any piece of your personality, no matter how large or small. If you?re holding back from buying the studded punk boots you always wanted, your avatar can boldly strut your stuff.

Goth: Both male and female Goths have plenty of room for creative expression on IMVU. From their hair, makeup, clothing and environment to the kinds of pets they own (dragons, spiders, snakes ? oh my!), users can truly connect with their gothic roots. IMVU even allows users to design their own clothing or furniture to be sold in a virtual catalogue. Some users have profited so much from selling their virtual items that IMVU represents another source of income for them ? occasionally even primary.

?Since joining IMVU, I have met tons of new friends and every day look forward to the fun it brings me,? said IMVU user Shayne Shiells of San Francisco, Calif. ?I express myself through fashion, even designing some of my own clothes and accessories to sell on IMVU, and meet friends who have similar interests.?

Vintage: Vintage lovers probably listen to more vinyls than MP3s and prefer a drive-thru movie over an IMAX-3D blockbuster. Do you scour thrift stores and consignment shops to find the best vintage clothing? Meet fellow ?thrifters? online, challenge them to games and discover a new universe of vintage-fabulous accessories and apparel. Imagine yourself in 40?s and 50?s flapper dresses, polka-dot pumps, Burlesque skirts and gangster pinstripes. Build your avatar at www.imvu.com/catalog/web_landing.php?p=PRNewsUSA.

Social gaming offers endless opportunities for people around the world to connect, make new friends and express themselves, no matter the style of their alter ego.

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No, the Miiverse Will Not Coinside with Existing ... - Game Podunk

As most of us know by now, the new Nintendo Wii U will also be bringing a new social network to the gaming world of Nintendo called the Miiverse. But for anyone wondering, no, the Miiverse will not coinside with existing social networks. That means no Facebook, Twitter, or other social networks (is MySpace still a thing?) will be connectable with the new gaming social network.

Why not, though? Well, Laurent Fischer - Nintendo of Europe?s managing director of marketing and public relations - explained with another question, "I have three devices permanently doing that already; what is our benefit to do so also?" He continued by going more in-depth as to what the Miiverse actually is, stating that "The community will be the Wii U owners, who will have this common interest for video games and our expectation about that is it?s going to be a way to enhance the idea of sharing information on the video game."

So in other words, we won't have to worry about getting even more invites to games other people are playing on Facebook, even if they are much better than Farmville and the like. Unless they make a Farmville U. God help us if they do...

What are your thoughts on this matter? Do you like how individualistic Nintendo is being with their Miiverse? Or do you think restricting it from outside social networks might be a bad move from a marketing standpoint?

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Southern Baptists: Gay rights aren't civil rights

Gerald Herbert / AP file

Participants at the Southern Baptist Convention in New Orleans listen on Tuesday. A resolution adopted Wednesday differentiates gay rights from civil rights.

By msnbc.com staff and news services

NEW ORLEANS -- A day after electing their first African-American president, Southern Baptists on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed a resolution opposing the idea that gay rights are the same as civil rights.

The resolution adopted at the denomination's annual meeting in New Orleans affirms Southern Baptists' beliefs that marriage is "the exclusive union of one man and one woman" and that "all sexual behavior outside of marriage is sinful."

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It acknowledges that gays and lesbians sometimes experience "unique struggles" but declares that they lack the "distinguishing features of classes entitled to special protections."

"We deny that the effort to legalize 'same-sex marriage' qualifies as a civil rights issue since homosexuality does not qualify as a class meriting special protections, like race and gender," the resolution says.?

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David W. Key Sr., director of Baptist Studies at Emory University's Candler School of Theology,?told The Associated Press?that as gays and lesbians become accepted in the larger American society, the Southern Baptist Convention is trying to separate itself from some of the more hateful rhetoric while still staying true to its beliefs.

The resolution on same-sex marriage and civil rights includes a statement that the SBC stands against "any form or gay-bashing, whether disrespectful attitudes, hateful rhetoric, or hate-incited actions."

But even with those disclaimers, statements such as this one could hurt evangelism efforts because they are likely to be objectionable to many people who are "not necessarily affirming, but also not rejecting" of gay rights issues, Key said.

Key said the Southern Baptists have continued to be outspoken on issues regarding gays and lesbians where other denominations with similar beliefs have not made the same type of public statements or taken the same types of actions, such as a boycott of The Walt Disney Co. for its gay-friendly policies.

The civil rights resolution comes at the same time the 16 million-strong Nashville-based denomination is taking stands in other areas that will help it reach out to new members and distance itself from its image as a denomination of Southern white conservatives.

The election of the Rev. Fred Luter Jr. on Tuesday as the first African American president of the nation's largest Protestant denomination was hailed as historic by denomination leaders who see it as a sign that Southern Baptists have truly moved beyond a divisive racial past.

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In a news conference after the vote, Luter said his appointment is more than a symbolic gesture.

"If we stop appointing African Americans or Asians or Hispanics to leadership roles in this convention after my term is over, we failed. We absolutely failed," Luter said. Instead, he said, "This was a genuine, authentic move by this convention that says our doors are open, and the only way they can see that is not just putting up an African American president, but seeing other ethnic groups in other areas of this convention. Time will tell and I'll be a cheerleader promoting that."

Delegates to the annual meeting also voted to let churches use an alternative name less connected to the South and the group's past ties to slavery.

The proposal to allow affiliated churches to refer to themselves as "Great Commission Baptists" won approval from 53 percent of the 4,800 ballots cast.

"If it helps us with our mission, I think it will be great," said Brad Howard, pastor of Barton Baptist Church in Lucedale, Miss., Reuters reported.?"I'm hoping it will benefit some of our congregations."

Attempts to change the name date back to 1903, and outgoing Southern Baptist Convention President Bryant Wright appointed a task force in September to study the question again. The convention's executive committee opted against a wholesale name change earlier this year, but favored giving churches the option of using the alternative moniker.?

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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Sony's Google TV-enabled NSZ-GS7 Network Media Player up for pre-order at J&R

We knew Sony's next batch of Google TV-enabled hardware was coming this summer, and now at least one device is up for pre-order at J&R. Folks who've been wanting the Android-based service without shelling out for a full TV set from the company will now only need to part with $200 for its NSZ-GS7 Network Media Player. The unit comes complete with an updated remote featuring a QWERTY keyboard, motion control, a microphone (for "voice commands") and a touchpad, and it's said to work with most of Sony's 2012 TV lineup. There still seems to be no word on this streaming box's exact specs, a ship date or when you'll be able to snag its Blu-Ray touting sibling, but you can hit the source link to secure one for yourself in the meantime. Here's to watching whether it'll muster up more gusto for the platform than Logitech's Revue, once it's planted consumers' AV racks.

Sony's Google TV-enabled NSZ-GS7 Network Media Player up for pre-order at J&R originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 17 Jun 2012 11:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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