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NJ Bill Would Prohibit Anonymous Posts on Forums

An anonymous reader writes "The New Jersey legislature is considering a bill that would require operators of public forums to collect users' legal names and addresses, and effectively disallow anonymous speech on online forums. This raises some serious issues, such as to what extent local and state governments can go in enacting and enforcing Internet legislation."

30 of 487 comments (clear)

  1. Frist post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    First post! (Soon to be illegal)

    1. Re:Frist post by SEWilco · · Score: 5, Funny

      Void where prohibited by law.

    2. Re:Frist post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      New Jersey is whack. Sewiouswy.

    3. Re:Frist post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      Anyone else think it would have been hilarious if we'd all posted anonymously to this story?

  2. With apologies to Douglas Adams by Tackhead · · Score: 4, Funny
    > This raises some serious issues, such as to what extent local and state governments can go in enacting and enforcing Internet legislation.

    Assemblyman Peter J. Biondi: Come off it, Mr. Coward! You can't stand in front of the tanks in Tienanmen Square indefinitely! This law for the information superhighway has got to be built, and it's going to be built!

    Anonymous Coward: Why's it got to be built?

    Biondi: What do you mean "why"? It's a law! You've got to pass laws! You were quite entitled to make any suggestions or protests at the appropriate time, you know.

    Anonymous Coward: Appropriate time?! The first I knew about it was when you pre-filed Assembly Bill No. 1327, the cops showed up and they said they were ready to come and take me away!

    Biondi: Have you any idea how much damage the government would suffer if we just let the law roll straight over you?

    Anonymous Coward: No, how much?

    Biondi: None at all.

    Vogon: Apathetic bloody citizenry. I've no sympathy at all.

  3. Predictable results by Rei · · Score: 5, Funny

    "In other news, roads became congested today as a wave of trucks was seen hauling piles of servers across the New Jersey state line..."

    --
    Beautiful Blueberries
    1. Re:Predictable results by StonedYoda47 · · Score: 5, Funny

      You've never driven in Jersey on a normal day, have you?

    2. Re:Predictable results by Snap+E+Tom · · Score: 4, Funny

      Meh. At least the state will collect a buttload of revenue from all the tolls.

    3. Re:Predictable results by Del+Vach · · Score: 4, Funny

      That's the funny thing about going between Pennsylvania and Jersey. It's free to get into Jersey, but you've gotta pay to get out.

    4. Re:Predictable results by squizzz · · Score: 5, Funny
  4. I can picture it already. by dc29A · · Score: 4, Funny

    Instead of anonymous users, you'll have:

    Name: Hugh Jass.
    Address: 123 Fake Street.
    Email: yourmomma@home.com

    Brilliant idea!

    1. Re:I can picture it already. by boldtbanan · · Score: 2, Funny

      Hey! Quit stealing my identity.

      - Hugh

    2. Re:I can picture it already. by Reziac · · Score: 5, Funny

      No, no, no. You'll have only ONE user, who makes ALL the posts:

      Name: Peter J. Biondi
      Address: 1 E. High St., Somerville NJ 08876
      email: AsmBiondi@njleg.org

      --
      ~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?
  5. I'm truly shocked... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    ...that more people aren't posting as Anonymous Cowards under this topic.

  6. First criminal! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    First criminal!

  7. Re:A law isn't a law... by advocate_one · · Score: 2, Funny

    kind of like the thin edge of the camel's nose... just waiting for all the campaign financing to get the rest of the camel through and into the tent...

    --
    Donald 'Duck' Dunn: We had a band powerful enough to turn goat piss into gasoline.
  8. fine by bitspotter · · Score: 2, Funny

    My Name is Al Gore, and I live at 1600 Pennsylvania avenue, Washington, DC. Happy now?

    1. Re:fine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Al, you wish.

      George

  9. Re:Brrrrrrr by lgw · · Score: 5, Funny

    I can scream defamation/libel at the top of my lungs

    Actually, you can't scream libel no matter how hard you try, you can only scream slander. You have to write libel. Of course, you can scream "libel", but that not quite the same thing.

    --
    Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
  10. But, but, but... by aphoenix · · Score: 4, Funny

    It just doesn't seem fair to make people actually admit that they're from New Jersey. Isn't this persection? I mean, think of some poor guy, sitting there of an evening, trying to pick up online, maybe a little bit of troll-on-orc action, when *bam*, the person on the other end figures out that he's from Newark. That guy's just never going to get cyber-ass again.

  11. Re:Also a way to shut people up by Pharmboy · · Score: 2, Funny

    I somehow doubt you can run a CC for $0.00 for validation, considering per-transaction fees, so getting yourself validated would mean handing out your CC info to -someone-, though it could be a trusted third party, and having it billed for a minimum amount to cover the cost of the transaction. Pay-to-play?

    So I guess "free, as in speech" really ISN'T "free, as in beer".

    Now New Jersey just needs a poll tax and literacy tests.

    --
    Tequila: It's not just for breakfast anymore!
  12. Re:Brrrrrrr by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    >I can scream defamation/libel at the top of my lungs and it doesn't matter for shit until a Judge says "yea, that was libel."

    Lemme help you out here! I, Anonymous Coward, hereby solemnly affirm before all witnesses in the Slashdot community that one Mr. Tube Steak, aka TubeSteak (669689), turned me into a newt on March 6, 2006 at approximately 3:42PM Eastern Time.

    p.s. He also smells of Elderberries.

  13. Re:Drive people out of the state... by jferris · · Score: 3, Funny
    No! We want all the people in New Jersey to stay in New Jersey. We put all of the remedial level drivers there so that they aren't on our roads.

    Think of the children!

    --
    You are in a maze of little twisting passages, all different.
  14. I have nothing to hide by Cro+Magnon · · Score: 2, Funny

    To prove it, I'll post my real name & address on Slashdot:

    First Name: Cro
    Last Name: Magnon
    Address: 1234 Inna Cave Dr.

    --
    Slow down, cowboy! It has been 4 hours since you last posted. You must wait another few hours.
  15. Re:Brrrrrrr by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny
    Actually, you can't scream libel no matter how hard you try

    DON'T PAY ATTENTION TO HIM, HE'S A NAZI AND A CHILD MOLESTER!

    (lameness filter, lameness filter, lameness filter...)

  16. Re:Brrrrrrr by Rorschach1 · · Score: 1, Funny
    And "false" information is not necessarily defamatory

    Thank God... otherwise Chuck Norris would have killed us all by now with roundhouse kicks to the head.

  17. Re:Brrrrrrr by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Reminds me of my teen age years, a group of us driving around in the car shouting "OBCENITIES!!!" at random people to see their reaction. The things the bunch of us geeks did for amusement......

  18. Wrong time of year, anyway by Captain+Tripps · · Score: 2, Funny

    Guy Fawkes day isn't until November.

  19. Re:Brrrrrrr by freedom_india · · Score: 2, Funny
    BAH ! They will just outsource the IP Address to Name & Address mapping to RIAA.

    Not only your dynamic address be detected, subpoenaed and you would be sent a legal notice, your neighbours in next state or the single-mom having NO computer would also be sent the same.

    In addition troopers from RIAA would come knocking down your doors at midnight dragging you off, searching your house for illegal CD's, records, MP3s (disguised as Tapes), etc.

    You would be renditioned for further "processing" and conditioning.

    And you were thinking that dynamic addresses can save your as$ ???? LOL !!!

    --
    "Doing what i can, with what i have." ~ Burt Gummer
  20. Re:I've said it before... by Council · · Score: 3, Funny

    Fucking Jersey.

    Which is like New Jersey, only a little farther west and markedly more liberal.

    --
    xkcd.com - a webcomic of mathematics, love, and language.