US Rep. Joe Barton Has a Plan To Stop Terrorists: Shut Down Websites (arstechnica.com)

Earthquake Retrofit writes: In an FCC oversight hearing, U.S. Representative Joe Barton (R-TX) asked Chairman Tom Wheeler if it's possible to shut down websites used by ISIS and other terrorist groups. He said, "Isn't there something we can do under existing law to shut those Internet sites down, and I know they pop up like weeds, but once they do pop up, shut them down and then turn those Internet addresses over to the appropriate law enforcement agencies to try to track them down? I would think that even in an open society, when there is a clear threat, they've declared war against us, our way of life, they've threatened to attack this very city our capital is in, that we could do something about the Internet and social media side of the equation." Wheeler pointed out that the legal definition of "lawful intercept" did not support such actions, but added that Congress could expand the law to validate the concept. Meanwhile, the Senate Intelligence Committee is exploring the idea of using the recent terror attacks in France as ammunition to force tech companies away from end-to-end encryption. "Lawmakers said it was time to intensify discussions over what technology companies such as Apple and Google could do to help unscramble key information on devices such as iPhones and apps like WhatsApp, where suspected terrorists have communicated."

Comments

Joe Barton?

[Ultra64]

Oh yes, I remember. He's the one that thinks that wind turbines will use up the wind and cause Earth to warm up.

https://www.facebook.com/reale...

Re:Joe Barton?

[OzPeter]

You would need ridiculous numbers of turbines just to slow down the breeze in a general area a little bit, so that area might be a little warmer locally because cooler air isn't pushing through, or warmer air, or something.

Do you mean like this? NASA Satellite Measurements Imply Texas Wind Farm Impact on Surface Temperature

Re:Joe Barton?

[Dunbal]

Where do these people get their science?

The Bible.

Re:Joe Barton?

[MightyMartian]

A scientific hypothesis is no more a wild-ass guess than a theory. If I say "I think you're controlled by miniature robots from Pluto that hang out in your cerebral cortex", that may be a hypothesis, but it is not a scientific hypothesis.

Re:Joe Barton?

[cdrudge]

Where do these people get their science?

The Bible.

A friend shared a page from AnswersInGenesis.com about how carbon dating isn't necessarily accurate. I stopped reading when I got to this passage:

When a scientist's interpretation of data does not match the clear meaning of the text in the Bible, we should never reinterpret the Bible. God knows just what He meant to say, and His understanding of science is infallible, whereas ours is fallible.

So yes, you are absolutely right. People do get their science from The Bible. Because it's the absolute word of God. As heard by man. And told to other men. And eventually written down by man as best as they could remember. And translated by man. And reinterpreted by man to fit their various beliefs even if they are self contradictory. But exactly verbatim what God said.

Well, if we could do that...

[pr0t0]

If the question is, can't we just identify which web sites or social media services terrorists are using and shut them down, regardless of borders? My reply would be, can't you just identify which people are terrorists and kill them regardless of borders?