Slashdot Mirror
US ISP Terminates Iranian News Website
grcumb writes "BBC News Online is reporting that the 'semi-official' Iranian Student News Agency has had its contract arbitrarily terminated by the US hosting service The Planet. Quoted in the Central Asian & Southern Caucasian Freedom of Expression Network, an ISNA spokesman said, "Eliminating the site of ISNA, a media outlet widely accessed around the world, is against informatics laws and runs counter to the rhetoric about the free flow of information and the principle of freedom to access information and news,". The BBC Reports that Iranian government officials were quick to accuse the US administration of pressuring The Planet to terminate the contract. So what should we make of this? Government conspiracy, corporate arrogance, or the proper sanctioning of the mouthpiece of an oppressive regime? " As the submittor says, details are virtually unknown about this - my research shows some calling the ISNA a 'bastion of freedom' to other saying it's run by flunkies of the old men of Iran; definitely not cut and dried one way or another.
For what it's worth, I've been using The Planet based hosting for a good while now with many servers there. Every aspect of their service and support is the most top of notches, and I truly don't believe they'd take such action lightly.
Link to actual story from the BBC
Another one bites the dust
The planet is one of the largest hosting providers in the country. In fact if you check netcraft's Sites on the Move you'll see they rank #5 in terms of the number of websites added in the last 24 hours. They've added over 400 in the last day. Ahead of Yahoo, Register.com, Verio and others.
I think you may be confusing them for some small shared hosting provider.
StrategyTalk.com, PC Game Forums
You say you are Arab American. This web site is in Persian, as you can see from Archive.org . So how come you know all this about them?
You seem to be confusing ISNA (Iranian Students News Agency, the subject of this Slashdot article) with ISNA (Islamic Society of North America)?
The latter ISNA is a well reputed Muslim organization in America and not related to promoting terrorism nor fake charities.
An Arab American would most likely spelled it as Quran and not Koran too.
You being an Anonymous Coward tells me that are trolling, and not just confused.
2bits.com, Inc: Drupal, WordPress, and LAMP performance tuning.
I think you mean "Farsi" instead of "Persian", and yes Farsi is not the same language as Arabic. Knowing one does not help you understand the other.
The US Government requires a specific license to provide any goods or services to anyone in iran.
It's probably the case that the ISP realized they should have asked for this permit first, but to cover their asses they pulled the site asap.
I'm sure the newspaper can host their site in a country with less restrictive export controls - i'm sure they can find somewhere in europe.
Your wrote this. "As any Muslim knows, our faith and the Koran does
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NOT espouse violence against innocents"
How do your then explain the following verses from the Koran ?
There is 3 translations (YUSUFALI, PICKTHAL and SHAKIR).
http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/008.qmt.html#0 08
008.012
YUSUFALI: Remember thy Lord inspired the angels (with the message): "I am with you: give firmness to the Believers: I will instil terror into the hearts of the Unbelievers: smite ye above their necks and smite all their finger-tips off them."
PICKTHAL: When thy Lord inspired the angels, (saying): I am with you. So make those who believe stand firm. I will throw fear into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Then smite the necks and smite of them each finger.
SHAKIR: When your Lord revealed to the angels: I am with you, therefore make firm those who believe. I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Therefore strike off their heads and strike off every fingertip of them.
http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/009.qmt.html#0 09
009.029
YUSUFALI: Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.
PICKTHAL: Fight against such of those who have been given the Scripture as believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, and forbid not that which Allah hath forbidden by His messenger, and follow not the Religion of Truth, until they pay the tribute readily, being brought low.
SHAKIR: Fight those who do not believe in Allah, nor in the latter day, nor do they prohibit what Allah and His Messenger have prohibited, nor follow the religion of truth, out of those who have been given the Book, until they pay the tax in acknowledgment of superiority and they are in a state of subjection.
http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/008.qmt.html#0 08
008.065
YUSUFALI: O Prophet! rouse the Believers to the fight. If there are twenty amongst you, patient and persevering, they will vanquish two hundred: if a hundred, they will vanquish a thousand of the Unbelievers: for these are a people without understanding.
PICKTHAL: O Prophet! Exhort the believers to fight. If there be of you twenty steadfast they shall overcome two hundred, and if there be of you a hundred (steadfast) they shall overcome a thousand of those who disbelieve, because they (the disbelievers) are a folk without intelligence.
SHAKIR: O Prophet! urge the believers to war; if there are twenty patient ones of you they shall overcome two hundred, and if there are a hundred of you they shall overcome a thousand of those who disbelieve, because they are a people who do not understand.
http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/009.qmt.html#0 09
009.123
YUSUFALI: O ye who believe! fight the unbelievers who gird you about, and let them find firmness in you: and know that Allah is with those who fear Him.
PICKTHAL: O ye who believe! Fight those of the disbelievers who are near to you, and let them find harshness in you, and know that Allah is with those who keep their duty (unto Him).
SHAKIR: O you who believe! fight those of the unbelievers who are near to you and let them find in you hardness; and know that Allah is with those who guard (against evil).
http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/009.qmt.html#0 09
009.005
YUSUFALI: But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the Pagans wherever ye find them, an seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem (of war); but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and practise regular charity, then open the wa
"how is the rest of the non-muslim world supposed to co-exist with a religion that commands the destruction of non-beleivers (infidels)."
Please get your facts straight before posting here...
What you and the other bro said is false. Islam does NOT what so ever command the destruction of human beings no matter what religion, race or sex they are. Show me a quote in the Quran which implies what you are saying, then I will believe you.
The word Islam comes from Salam, which means peace. That is pretty self explanatory I think.
But since you do bring up Bush and the US let's remember that there are lots of examples of very un-free places in the world that are left well enough alone by the US because of any number of reasons - not the least of which is that the regime in power are friends of the US government. And just for FULL disclosure here let me say that I am NOT any US. I love the US, it's quite frankly an amazing, beautiful, wonderful place filled with many fantastic people. I hate to trot out the old 'some of my best friends are..." cliché but well it's true. I AM absolutely, positively, categorically ANTI-BUSH. I think that he and his cronies have done more damage to the country than we have even begun to realise. When we're all dust and our great-great-grandkids are paying off debts that this 'fiscal conservative' ran up history will judge him.
But back to my original point. you can't 'enforce' freedom. you protect it, nurture it, and sometimes, yes, impose it by removing corrupt regimes. But you can't force a people to behave a certain way forever, because when you try, you're enforcing your view of how freedom should be enjoyed, and you are at that point as corrupt as the regime you replaced.
The reason that France and Germany are now free, is because the Allies kicked a little Nazi ass, provided the seeds of democracy and the money to set it up, and then got the hell out.
...ignorant assholes...
... Islam.
It's like saying Muslims are terrorists, just because 99% of the active terrorists in the world espouse
Terrorists come in all shapes a colours, some of them support Islam after a fashion, many do not. The 99% figure is quite wrong, dare I say it, ignorant.
(That is unless by "terrorist" you limit the definition to the one used by certain news agencies in the US which is largely synonymous with irregular islamic army/resistance. But there are huge problems with that definition anyway, and the ignorance implicit in its use.)
The USA has an Equal Time rule when it comes to TV broadcasters. It came into being because the Gov recognized that the power of TV could be abused to promote only one side and is used to help counter it. Essentially, in some cases they "can" be required to broadcast it.
m eru/equaltimeru.htm
http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/E/htmlE/equalti
Fly me to the moon Let me sing among those stars Let me see what spring is like On jupiter and mars
In the US and most (all?) other areas, ISPs are not Common Carriers although they retain certain aspects Common Carriers. ISPs are quite free to "protect" their networks or "customize" their services as they see fit. ISPs have to walk a fine line with this, if an ISP can be shown to have too much control over the CONTENT of what is passed over their network, they may cause themselves to be liable for illegal acts that occur on their network. Terminating a user's service is not normally considered to be censorship. Any halfway clued ISP's contract will say that the ISP can terminate service for any reason, or for no reason at all.
99% of the active terrorists in the world espouse [a bastardized version of] Islam?
Hmm, I better inform the 3rd October Organization (ASALA), the 17 November Revolutionary Organization, the Albanian National Arma, the Alex Boncayao Brigade, the Alliance of Eritrean National Force, the Algeti Wolves, the Alliance pour la resistance democratique (ARD) (Mayi-Mayi), the National Army for the Liberation of Uganda (NALU), AMAL, Japanese Red Army (JRA) Anti-Imperialist International Brigade (AIIB), the Anti-Imperialist Territorial Nuclei (NTA), the Arewa People's Congress, Fuerzas Armadas Liberacion Nacional Puertoriquena (FALN) (the "Armed Forces of Puerto Rican National Liberation", aka Popular Boricua Army, Ejercito Popular Boricua, Macheteros), the Armed Nuclei for Proletarian Autonomy, Armed Revolutionary Nuclei (ARN) (Ordine Nuovo), and Aum Shinrikyo (the folks responsible for the Tokyo Sarin gas attack, of which a few are still at large). And those are just the "A"'s and earlier. By the way, all of our local terroristic militias like McVeigh's gang, and the appallingly ignored May 2003 plot by white supremacists in Texas (led by Krar) who had enough weaponry and cyanide to take out an arms depot or small city, are not included in the list.
People said I was dumb, but I proved them.
Oh???