Slashdot Mirror
Bittorrent Creator A Digital Pirate?
Alex_Ionescu writes "According to an article in Wired, the old webpage of Bram Cohen contained a manifesto stating that his goal for creating software was to 'Commit Digital Piracy'. Cohen argues that the quote is taken out of context and represents a parody. He argues having written it in 1999, 2 years before even coming up with Bittorrent. You can find the archived copy of his site at archive.org. From the article: "Cohen has never publicly encouraged piracy, and he has consistently maintained that he wrote BitTorrent as a legitimate file-distribution tool. That would seem to make him and his budding company, BitTorrent, safe under the Grokster ruling. But legal experts worry the newly discovered manifesto extolling 'digital piracy' could put him on less certain legal ground."
He should just say it was a typo and he meant digital privacy ;-)
hey I just thought something, if he is now at risk of arrest for saying something what happened to free speech (if it ever existed).
Bush and Blair ate my sig!
... despite it's a ridiculous claim, and obviously written with tongue-in-cheek. As Cohen has said in his defense -- does this mean that anything you say can be used against you years later regardless of what context it was said in now, and what context it's used in now? He wasn't even working on BitTorrent when he wrote that.
"I further my goals with technology. I build systems to disseminate information, commit digital piracy, synthesize drugs, maintain untrusted contacts, purchase anonymously, and secure machines and homes. I release my code and writings freely, and publish all of my ideas early to make them unpatentable."
If they're going to take his commitment to digital piracy as an indication of what he intended to do with BT, does that mean BT's purpose is also to synthesize drugs? Does it even mean he have plans to start a production plant to synthesize drugs?
Seriously, this case is so hollow that it stinks, but the scary part is that lawyers can make these claims and be taken seriously, and even that there's a real risk of him getting busted for it.
Bah...
Beware: In C++, your friends can see your privates!
On his revealed website: "Aargh, they be digging up me buried treasure."
For he today that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother.
Have you or have you not, ever been a pirate?
This was written in late 1999, and is a parody of a cypherpunk's manifesto, which struck me as very dishonest manifesto claiming to solely be concerned about privacy.
Hmm...
"It is wrong to accept terrorism." -- George W. Bush
Okay, now watch this.
"Accept terrorism." -- George W. Bush
Oh my God, George W. Bush supports terrorism!
Irritable, left-wing and possibly humorous bumper stickers and t-shirts
"I am... in favor of... intruders... to privacy."
"I... track users... not naive enough to think..."
"Despite my emphasis on... evil... my goals are... fundamentally... changing existing laws..."
Being funny is my sig nature.
That's what journalism is about!
No wait, did you say it was Wired?...
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
If the President of the United States, the Governor of California, and various other politicians can hold political office regardless of what they did in their past...
and later
I was in my early 20s, in college, and intoxicated (in some form) about 99% of the time.
Are you trying to say you are a good candidate for president?
Rumor has it that he originally wanted to call it Bitt-ARRRRRR-ent.
I will quote Bill Maher.
No one has their shit together at 22. Now, outside of the basic fairness of placing George Bush in with all the other young men of his era who found a way to avoid Vietnam, I don't really care if our president showed up for all his National Guard jumping jacks in 1973. I don't care that there's evidence that John Kerry once very nearly met Jane Fonda.
We've all made mistakes when young and chasing a buzz. Bush blew off his calisthenics. Saddam gassed his own people. I bought the John and Yoko album where they just farted for an hour into a tape recorder!
The phrase, "youthful indiscretions" is redundant, because how many discreet young people do you know? No, the people you need to worry about are not the one who sowed their wild oats, but the ones who didn't. Michael Jackson had to wait until he was an adult to have a childhood, and I think we see how well that turned out.
Go back far enough in any great man's life and you will eventually get to the stuff he did or said before he was great or even a man. Don King started out life in Cleveland as a corrupt, murderous thug, but then - okay, bad example.
But the point remains, trying to define a person's current self by their past self is the worst kind of "gotcha." Our mistakes from the past are just that: mistakes. And they were necessary to make in order to become the wiser person we became.
You never got drunk and pissed yourself? Or sold drugs to school children? Or panicked when you couldn't get it up at a bachelor party and killed a hooker?
Hey, if only hindsight could come without having to mess up first. And believe me, I have the platform shoes to prove that one. But to exploit youthful mistakes for political gain is, well, let's just say, when you get older, you might look back and regret it.
Free XBox, PS2
I admit it! There was a time in my life when I used to shit on myself.
Also, there was a time when I was illiterate!
I feel so much better that I got that off my chest. Feel free to prosecute me as you see fit!
Hmmm witty sig or funny sig? Maybe elitest techy sig!
I know, I can't believe some of the stuff I posted to Eniac while working on MK Ultra... I actually admitted that I wasn't going to vote for Eisenhower in 52! Can you believe that?!?
We play the game with the bravery of being out of range
From your comment:
;)
I admit it! There was a time in my life when I used to shit on myself.
From your sig:
If 4 out of 5 people suffer from diarrhea, then the other must enjoy it.
Nice
Karnal
Hear that knocking? It's the Thought Police at your door. You'd better be ready with $100,000 in the bank to pay lawyers to help you defend every statement you've ever made, anywhere, anytime in your life. It doesn't matter if you're guilty or not. They'll come after you anyway, and it's going to cost years of your life and more money than you have to defend yourself against their allegations. Remember McCarthy? He's baaaack!
BTW, everything I've ever said, in print, in daily speech, or on the Web, has been a 'parody' or 'satire' of some kind. I didn't really mean it. Honest. I love Big Brother.
Serving your airship needs since 1995.
slashdot will be reponsible if some lunatic goes and kills Billy G because many say that "bill gates must die" or something?
(legal notice: I'm _NOT_ endorsing this extremist action! It's just a HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLE. And no this isn't sarcasm either. I swear.)
Sheesh. The current legal system is screwed and must change (NO, i am _NOT_ endorsing terrorism against juries!
ARGH! This is insane. I'm outta here. (no, i'm _NOT_ committing nor endorsing suicide!
*head explodes* <- Legal note: This is a JOKE! I'm... ah whatever.
Will the court recorder please note that the defendant has answered "Garrr!", indicating the affirmative?
---GEC
I'm but the humble pupil, seeking to snatch the scratchbuilt pebble from the master's fully articulated hand
Yesterday, federal agencies arrested J. Postel, J. Reynolds, and other key members of the RFC 959 working group. Federal spokesmembers argue that past comments about "information wants to be free", "social internet", and the existance of "0-days", "warez dumps", and "pr0n" on FTP sites around the world are clear examples of the intent of the defendants to create software for piracy.
Senator Talking Head(R) or Alabama commented, "This is a great day for freedom loving Americans everywher. Take that you commies!".
perl -e '$_=":: Qjvtug ZpQbjryy
Indeed; if you were a child molester or axe murderer, you'd have all kinds of people coming to help you paint yourself the victim. If you're a terrorist, you can go to Club G'tmo and get square meals a day and get the state to help you practice your religious beliefs. Spammers -- well, I don't know about spammers, nobody seems to care, which blows my mind, because none of these penis enlargement things seem to work.
But make file-sharing software -- well, now you've crossed the line, buddy.