ONNURI - As of Saturday, John Edwards’s campaign to become the Democratic nominee for President of the United States of America has been underway for six days. In Second Life, anyway. Mark Warner was the first politician to make use of SL as a campaign stop, but Edwards is the first to launch a full-fledged presence inworld.

Jose Rote is the primary contact for the Edwards 2008 campaign inworld, and he is officially charged with running the SL campaign by Edwards’s real life campaign. He spoke at length regarding Edwards, the campaign, SL, and the future. The campaign headquarters in the Onnuri sim is a work in progress. Rote stressed the nature of this project, emphasizing that it is, and is meant to be, a grassroots effort, involving people from all over the world who are interested in Edward's ability to “bring people together that you would usually think of as being on opposing sides.”

The Presidential campaign has gotten off to an early start this cycle, and many Americans are looking for a clear front-runner in the race. So far, no one has taken a clear lead, but Edwards hopes that the presence he is creating in SL through Rote will help establish him as the leader of the pack among the residents of SL.

Net Neutrality is going to be at the forefront of Edwards’s SL campaign. Rote said, “Avatars don’t eat or sleep but they do lag.” If Net Neutrality laws flag, smaller companies like Linden Lab may be unable to pay the high fees associated with greater bandwidth and faster service, and users of SL will be the ones to pay the price. “While I can’t promise that Edwards could do away with lag, I can tell you that he would support Net Neutrality, and that would ensure that the problem wouldn’t worsen,” Rote added.

In addition to Net Neutrality, the issue of the so-called digital divide – the fact that, because of cost, access to technology and the internet is basically limited to the wealthier members of society – will be addressed in Edwards’s inworld campaign. “There are so many great services and opportunities that technology offers us today,” said Rote. “But, because of poverty and the digital divide, only those who are already at an advantage get to enjoy the advantages of these new worlds.” In RL, Edwards has campaigned strongly for the use of technology to better the world, and has championed causes that work to eliminate poverty.

There are other issues that Rote and the Edwards campaign staff believe will translate well to the virtual world of SL. “Homelessness is another big [issue],” Rote commented. “We can use SL to bring attention to the problem of homelessness in America, maybe by giving away virtual homes to residents. It’s a way to engage people and make them consider real problems in a fun way without making light of the