OT: Scary new internet law in U.S. you need to read

trekgeezer · January 09, 2006, 12:34:11 PM

Boy, they'd put Menard under the jail for annoying people and I don't know what they'd do to ASHTHECAT. But, seriously this is some scary s**t.

Make sure you read the entire article.

Ash · January 09, 2006, 12:52:53 PM

Some people find me annoying...others have hailed me as a genius.

LOL!

odinn7 · January 09, 2006, 01:02:23 PM

Holy sh...uh...doo-doo (so sorry, hope I didn't annoy anyone with that). I will be so fu...uh...screw...uh, hmm...in trouble (whew!) if they decide to actually enforce this dam...uh...darn...law.
That really is bad news but I can't imagine it being upheld under too many cases. If it is, though, I will need to cancel my internet lest I wind up behind bars.

Maybe I should move to Canada. Oh heck, who wants to live there anyway? Ooops, forgive me AndyC, I truly hope I didn't annoy you with that!
Maybe Australia is the place to be. Nah, why would I want...perhaps I should quit now.

odinn7 · January 09, 2006, 01:04:12 PM

ASHTHECAT Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Some people find me annoying...

No way, you mean it? Seriously?

> others have hailed me as a genius.

Ok, this I find really hard to believe.

AndyC · January 09, 2006, 03:23:47 PM

I believe the distinction here is the intent to annoy. You must be setting out to deliberately bother someone, not just naturally annoying (you're safe, Odinn), although it seems really vague.

I could almost see something like this for dealing with the most persistent of trolls and stalkers, but it would require some fairly specific terms and definitions.

It probably won't make any huge difference, because it seems like it would be a nightmare for anyone to actually enforce. It's probably just going to be a handy charge to slap on troublemakers who can't be pinned down to any other specific crime.

dean · January 09, 2006, 03:39:23 PM

Hahahaha, you all suck! I hate you all!!! I find all of you absolutely lacking in any personal hygiene!

Oh wait, I use my real identity, so it doesn't matter anyway, darn, now I can be annoying as much as I like and not have any trouble anyways...

odinn7 · January 09, 2006, 03:40:27 PM

Yeah Dean...that and...YOU'RE IN AUSTRALIA!!!!!!!!!!!!

nobody · January 09, 2006, 08:16:19 PM

I'm not one to troll/flame, and I find trolls/flamers as annoying as most everyone else does, but I wouldn't legally restrict anyone from acting out in such a trival manner.

President Bush sure does hate our freedoms, doesn't he? ...Should I expect to be going to prison now for typing that?

Rombles · January 09, 2006, 09:13:38 PM

Also, if you annoy someone and don't use your real name, how do they know who to prosecute?

Scott · January 09, 2006, 09:50:41 PM

The Amazing Criswell may have said it best................................

Criswell: Greetings, my friend. We are all interested in the future, for that is where you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives. And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future. You are interested in the unknown... the mysterious. The unexplainable. That is why you are here. And now, for the first time, we are bringing to you, the full story of what happened on that fateful day. We are bringing you all the evidence, based only on the secret testimony, of the miserable souls, who survived this terrifying ordeal. The incidents, the places. My friend, we cannot keep this a secret any longer. Let us punish the guilty. Let us reward the innocent. My friend, can your heart stand the shocking facts of grave robbers from outer space?

Criswell: [narrating] ... All of us on this earth know that there is a time to live, and that there is a time to die. Yet death is always a shock to those left behind. It is even more of a shock when Death, the Proud Brother, comes suddenly without warning. Just at sundown, a small group gathered in silent prayer, around the newly-opened grave of the beloved wife of an elderly man. Sundown of the day; yet also the sundown of the old man's heart, for the shadows of grief clouded his very reason... The funeral over, the saddened group left the graveside. It was when the gravediggers started their task that strange things began to take place.

Scottie · January 10, 2006, 12:00:48 AM

I'm going to file the first case under this new law against someone from this board... and I'm not telling who. You'll just have to wait until the court summons arrives for "Mr. X" and his 'annoying' mentality.

Some people find Woody Allen annoying. Is there a case against him if he decides to publish a work under an annonymous pen name?

Seriously, is there even a small faction of our lives that doesn't have a maze of laws to navigate through in order to do it legally? Sheesh.

peter johnson · January 10, 2006, 12:47:52 AM

Man, . . . that . . . that beautiful Criswell bit. Oh, man . . . I"m in tears . . .
thankyou
peter johnson/denny crane

trekgeezer · January 10, 2006, 09:50:21 AM

On some of the blogs I read they are saying that this law only pertains to telephone calls and was updated to include VOIP. But the way it is written is very ambiguous. I'll wait to see who in government attempts to use it against their political enemies.

"Whoever...utilizes any device or software that can be used to originate telecommunications or other types of communications that are transmitted, in whole or in part, by the Internet... without disclosing his identity and with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass any person...who receives the communications...shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than two years, or both."

Neville · January 10, 2006, 09:59:13 AM

It doesn't apply to me either, but I feel bad for US Internet users. This law is so stupid, poorly argumented and hastily designed that it could be used virtually against anybody and for anything.

Amazing.

AndyC · January 10, 2006, 10:06:04 AM

Some would view the thickening web of laws as a natural consequence of individuals refusing to govern themselves. Many of us will be considerate of one another because it's the right thing to do. But more and more people are doing whatever the hell they want, regardless of how it affects others, as long as it has no personal or legal consequences for them(sometimes even when it does). And the internet is very much free of real consequences.

It's like Edmund Burke said:
"Men are qualified for civil liberty in direct proportion to their disposition to put moral chains upon their own appetites."

One of the many problems with this kind of law is that I can see someone who is a real nuisance using it against people justifiably attacking him. Where these laws do the real damage is when they interfere with a society's natural enforcement of its unwritten rules. That just makes the problem worse.

Of course, the internet also circumvents much of this. If we were all living in a physical community, I would have to get along with all of you. Here, I could well p**s all of you off, get kicked off the board, and just find another one. I'd never have to face any of you. Or I could just get on a different computer, take a different name, and come back to work more mischief. This is where more control is needed, and if it doesn't come from within, it's going to come from without.

I can see this law being an attempt to deter people. There is now an answer if a troll asks "what are you going to do about it?" It's there to hang over people's heads, or an excuse to grab troublemakers who have managed to skirt other laws, but as I've said before, it's virtually unenforceable on a large scale.