Slashdot Mirror
Libya Takes Hard Line On Link Shortening Domains
Hugh Pickens writes "BBC reports that Libyan government has removed an adult-friendly link-shortening service from the web, saying that it fell afoul of local laws in a crackdown that could come as a blow to other url shortening services such as bit.ly, which is particularly popular on Twitter where all messages have to be limited to 140 characters. 'Other ly domains are being deregistered and removed without warning,' says Co-founder of vb.ly Ben Metcalfe. 'We eventually discovered that the domain has been seized because the content of our website, in their opinion, fell outside of Libyan Islamic/Sharia Law.' Alaeddin ElSharif from NIC.ly, the body that controls Libyan web addresses, told vb.ly co-founder Violet Blue that a picture of her on the website had sparked the removal. 'I think you'll agree that a picture of a scantily clad lady with some bottle in her hand isn't what most would consider decent or family friendly,' says ElSharif. 'While letters "vb" are quite generic and bear no offensive meaning in themselves, they're being used as a domain name for an openly admitted "adult-friendly url shortener." It is when you promote your site being solely for adult uses ... that we as a Libyan registry have an issue.'"
as far as I can tell SFW in even some of the more restrictive environs in the US.
Although, while not scantily clad, I think she is someone I'd still prefer to see in a Burqa.
Self proclaimed typo king, and inventor of the bear destroying coffee table (patent not pending).
http://5z8.info/refugee-murder_g6m3x_cockfights
Well, when you want short domain names you have to go to rather loony countries for them to not be taken yet.
dastard.ly
If Slashdot were chemistry it would look like this:Cadaverine
Somebody should set up a site there that sells used pinball machine parts.
Seems fine to me. You don't have to play on their turf
But but but it's short! And it's easier to make funny words in English with that TLD! Therefore, we as American Internetians should have full jurisdiction and sovereignty over it! It's in the constitution, people!
The offending image
Really, I think we can all agree Libya made the correct decision! =D
While letters 'vb' are quite generic and bear no offensive meaning in themselves
He's obviously not a software developer.
I wouldn't even call her 'scantily clad'
While not being an expert, Islam in general expects at least modest dress for women that includes not having bare arms. So the definition of scantily clad is region dependent.
Thank God for the USA, where the right to bare arms is enshrined in the Consitution.
A better question is why is this country even allowed to own a tld. Time to centralize control of DNS in a locale with better (nobody's perfect) free speech and neutrality laws. Libya can build their own internet if they want a sharia compliant experience.
That's damned funny. Though, some of the suggestions around "Bite.me" the parking page suggests are a little disturbing (AnimalBite.me).
Of course, I had to look to see what TLD .me was, and found this humorous bit:
I'm sure someone thought long and hard to come up with that bit of wit. :-P
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
> I wouldn't even call her 'scantily clad'
Her head isn't covered and her arms are bare.
The filthy harlot is tempting men with her nakedness. That's practically an invitation to repeatedly rape and sodomize her in Muslim countries. Of course, after first raping her for several hours, the throngs of men she has seduced to stray from the straight and narrow path of righteousness will come to their senses and ensure that the vile whore is stoned to death.