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Testing ISP Censorship
ryants writes "As part of a research project, Christian Ahlert ran an interesting experiment. He posted John Stuart Mill's On Liberty, which is clearly in the public domain, on different ISPs. He then sent the ISPs phony copyright violation notices. The results are troubling, with ISPs "acting as judge, jury and private investigator at the same time.""
FP censored by my ISP
My work even censors me from reading the results of the survey.
Evolution or ID?
This flagrant abuse of the "public domain" system has to stop. If people start reading and sharing intellectual property simply because it is no longer covered by any form of valid legal restrictions, how are people like myself supposed to continue to earn a living? Who's thinking about that?
Remember, EOB today! (Tick, tick, tick)
With stories like these, I don't see how slashdot can possibly justify its pyrric anti-troll pogrom.
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
two whole ISPs... by today's journalistic standards, the guy definitely did his research!
I have every right . . .
Not necessarily . . .
. . . to stand on my lawn . . .
Sure, assuming there aren't city ordinances about the percentage of your property that can have grass on it, regulations limiting watering, and covenants restricting the amount and kind of activity you perform publicly in your neighborhood.
. . . with my hair on fire . . .
Actually, it is most likely against several federal and local laws to light your own hair on fire.
. . . screaming about whatever it is I believe . . .
Creating a public disturbance is a misdemeanor in most justidictions . . .
This test is called the Pompous Bastard Test (PBT, for short) and it goes something like this:
First, count how many commas, semicolons or colons a writer uses in his sentences. Second, use the chart below to determine the writer's Pompous Bastard Quotient (PBQ):
x <= 1: Dubyass
1 < x <= 3: Normal
3 < x <= 6: Somewhat Cocky
6 < x: Pompous Bastard
Let's take a few examples from the above mentioned text:
"The struggle between Liberty and Authority is the most conspicuous feature in the portions of history with which we are earliest familiar, particularly in that of Greece, Rome, and England."
3 commas. Seems pretty Normal so far.
"THE subject of this Essay is not the so-called Liberty of the Will, so unfortunately opposed to the misnamed doctrine of Philosophical Necessity; but Civil, or Social Liberty: the nature and limits of the power which can be legitimately exercised by society over the individual."
Ooooh, 4 commas (2 commas, 1 semicolon, 1 colon). Getting a little cocky here.
"It is so far from being new, that, in a certain sense, it has divided mankind, almost from the remotest ages, but in the stage of progress into which the more civilized portions of the species have now entered, it presents itself under new conditions, and requires a different and more fundamental treatment."
7 commas. Pompous Bastard. Could be a fluke.
"First, by obtaining a recognition of certain immunities, called political liberties or rights, which it was to be regarded as a breach of duty in the ruler to infringe, and which, if he did infringe, specific resistance, or general rebellion, was held to be justifiable."
8 Freaking Commas. Wow, he really is a Pompous Bastard.
BTW, I'm not commenting on the content of the writer's work, just on his Pompousness; and whew, this guy, whether he knows it or not, is a real, God-damn, Pompous Bastard.
ooops.
+1 Insightful, -1 Troll. What can I say, I'm an Insightful Troll.
You could quite effectively put most web sites out of commission by using a method detailed here. Anecdotal evidence shows that an increase in traffic can effectivly deny viewing of content and, in fact, bring a monetary burden to the web host customer. The results are almost immediate compared to action from a DMCA letter.
Have you Meta Moderated t
Some Slashdotters want to have their cake and eat it, too... copyright control is okay when it means they get stuff free, not okay when it means they can't get stuff free.
What's wrong with that? I _love_ having my cake and eating it too. I'm all for whatever kinds of copyright get me the most stuff for free. What's wrong with you, you don't like getting stuff for free?
-- This and all my posts are in the public domain. I am a lawyer. I am not your lawyer, and this is not legal advice.