Slashdot Mirror
15 Years In Jail For Clicking 'Like'
patiwat writes "Thailand has warned Facebook users that they could face 3 to 15 years in jail if they press 'share' or 'like' on images or articles considered unflattering to the Thai monarchy. And it doesn't just apply to Thai subjects: a U.S. citizen was arrested and convicted while visiting Thailand for posting a link to an unauthorized biography of King Bhumibol on his blog. Convictions for virtual lese majeste have sky-rocketed in recent years as efforts to defend the widely revered royal family from criticism have ramped up."
Fuck that greasy yellow slope
Why do people continue to go to countries that suck?
I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
as efforts to defend the widely reviled royal family from criticism have ramped up
FTFY
As an America, it angers me to see some from a country not their own get arrest for a bullshit law that serves no legitimate purpose.
Wait...are we talking about defamation of monarchy or copyrights?
efforts to defend the widely revered royal family from criticism have ramped up.
That, right there, is the critical point. From my visits to Thailand, I also got the impression that they really love their king.
As a democratic country, they can agree to not wanting to have criticism of the royal family, can they not? Remember that this is not the USA - there is no 1st amendment in Thailand. With that in mind - test yourself on how devoted you really are to the concept of democracy. If you think that there are limits to what a democracy can democratically decide to do - who gets to set those limits?
Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
Don't they know their laws don't apply to Americans!
My girth assures me that I am, indeed, an America.
Damn, this simply calls for bait and switch technique.
1. Post a video of a cat hugging a kitten
2. Collect a whole load of "likes"
3. Switch the video for something different entirely
4. Land a lot of people in jail for up to 15 years.
Just to expand on this slightly: The Napoleon in your link is Napoleon III, the bumbling fool who fancied himself a military genius but pretty much lost all his major war adventures. He was nothing like Napoleon I, who lived 50 years earlier, and brought the ideals of the French revolution to all of Europe.
Personally, I believe the King carrying such a long sword clearly is a futile attempt to compensate for other shortcomings.
Sorry, but gray text on gray background is making my eyes bleed.
The grossest example for copyright being the Russian who was arrested for a DMCA violation by breaking Adobe copy protection whilst in Russia. On security, a pilot was arrested in the UK on the orders of the US after 9/11. They wanted him deported without the required deportation hearing and without knowing what he was charged with. The UK ultimately refused, gave him an extradition hearing, and he proved his total innocence of the charge. Had the UK not done that, he'd be in Gitmo to this day with no rights and no knowledge of even the charges made.
This doesn't make the UK particularly heroic - obeying its own laws should not be considered exceptional, it should be considered the norm. The UK was also involved in a number of renditions that DID violate UK law, just not that one.
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
FYI, here's an informative/interesting article from Time magazine: What's Behind Thailand's Lèse Majesté Crackdown?
tl;dr: it's used as a political tool to silence/jail one's enemies--while the law has been around forever, prosecutions skyrocketed after the 2006 coup that ousted the prime minister as the different political parties fight for power. The king himself has publically stated that he doesn't support the lese majeste law, and no member of the royal family has ever filed a lese majeste charge.
Or the old joke about the American on holidays in Romania during the 80's - he was in a bar, chatting to a local, and asked him "what do you think about Ceausescu?"
The local frowned, pointed to all the people in the bar, put his finger to his lips, and motioned for the visitor to come outside.
Out in the street, the American asked again: "What do you think about Ceausescu?". The local shook his head, gestured to indicate all the people passing by on the street, and walked into a side alley.
The American followed him again, and half-way down the dark alley grabbed the local by the shoulder and hissed "Tell me what you think about Ceausescu?"
The local looked up and down the alley, and spied a shadowy figure in a long jacket standing on a balcony smoking. Shaking his head and pointing, he stepped back into a dark doorway, and gestured for the American to follow him.
The American stepped into the dark, and whispered "So, tell me what you really think about Ceausescu?"
The local took one last look around, stood up on tip-toe, and whispered into the American's ear "I like him!"
(Damned /. and its utter failure to handle extended Latin characters...)
What part of "a well regulated militia" do you not understand?
Starting with "If" generally invalidated everything said after it. To equate English libel laws with the Thai lese majeste laws you must do the research. It is not up to the reader to find out whether or not the "if" is true. Add "if" to "might" and the statement is without weight.
Precisely - he is, and knows he is, a figurehead, and he should not interfere in the democratic process. His only interventions have been calmly to ask the politicians to get their act together and stop behaving like spoiled children (free translation). It is one faction of politicians who build him up for their own purposes. He cannot interfere with the law without interfering with democracy. He can then pardon those convicted. It is one of the problems of a constitutional monarchy that things done in the monarch's name are actually totally, out of the control of the monarch. His function is roughly the same as the flag in the US - something to salute, and produce prominently on state occasions, but not as functional part of the legislations. These laws are roughly like the rules, which some consider laws, about respectful treatment of the Stars and Stripes.
Consciousness is an illusion caused by an excess of self consciousness.