These rovers were designed to last 90 days. The most broad plans extended to about a year if they were lucky. So no plans were made for every thing that could go wrong 5 to 10 years down the road.
This is the main answer to many of the questions beginning with "Why didn't they..."
This concept is pervasive across the net. Each site represents a namespace that could potentially have value. So squatting seems like a reasonable thing to do, like it or not.
I even toyed with the idea of creating a marketplace to trade these items. Then I quickly realized that would probably be violating the terms of service of most of these sites.
Actually, if he puts his outfit on and signs while he does his presentation, that makes it a performance. Does he gain any protection from the first amendment. Perhaps if he changed his presentation into an interpretive dance....
Reading briefly through the replies to this comment shows that a few people have picked up on the points I'd like to address. First the quote from Benjamin Franklin: "They that can
give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
Despite this quote, some think a temporary loss of liberty is not much of a loss since it can always be regained. This is pure speculation. I am not a historian or a constitutional lawyer but there have been instances in the past where knee-jerk legislation had been passed and then not rescinded. For example legislation passed immediately after the Flight 800 crash. This granted expanded ability for officials to expel aliens from the country. This was during the period where it was thought that a bomb caused the crash. It wasn't a bomb, the law, however, still stands.
Knee-jerk reactions to this event (and others like it) are not likely to 1) prevent these types of activities 2) be fully thought out to maintain our liberties. I can't, for the life of me, understand how making plastic knives illegal in airports will really help prevent a catastrophy like this.
Government Officials are already calling for restrictions on cryptography (prohibiting export, key escrow, etc). Sigh. I direct those interested to a review on key escrow here.
Our liberties are constantly under siege. From overzealous profit motivated sources to foreign (or even domestic) aggressors our freedom is slowly being eroded away. Without the federal government helping us protect our rights there is no hope. Misguided legislation could push us drastically in the wrong direction. Giving up rights is remarkably easy (and in some cases the loss may go unrecognized), getting them back (or obtaining them at all) can be at a tremendous cost.
For those eager, or at least not reluctant, to temporarily give up your liberties I suggest the following links and their references (note: I have drawn from these sources to some degree).
I never SIGNED a contract (has anyone ever had to sign a DSL contract?) And what obligation do I have to a company that I had a year contract with which they in turn canceled. If I had ever seen a contract perhaps I would read it and see what it said about their ability to cancel service at will. I am not terribly inclined to adhere to a contract that was canceled.
Well, I can't even actually remember if I ever got a modem from Telocity, I'd have to look through my DSL modem pile.
Slashdot Mirror
These rovers were designed to last 90 days. The most broad plans extended to about a year if they were lucky. So no plans were made for every thing that could go wrong 5 to 10 years down the road.
This is the main answer to many of the questions beginning with "Why didn't they..."
- Austin
This concept is pervasive across the net. Each site represents a namespace that could potentially have value. So squatting seems like a reasonable thing to do, like it or not.
I even toyed with the idea of creating a marketplace to trade these items. Then I quickly realized that would probably be violating the terms of service of most of these sites.
Actually, if he puts his outfit on and signs while he does his presentation, that makes it a performance. Does he gain any protection from the first amendment. Perhaps if he changed his presentation into an interpretive dance ....
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
Despite this quote, some think a temporary loss of liberty is not much of a loss since it can always be regained. This is pure speculation. I am not a historian or a constitutional lawyer but there have been instances in the past where knee-jerk legislation had been passed and then not rescinded. For example legislation passed immediately after the Flight 800 crash. This granted expanded ability for officials to expel aliens from the country. This was during the period where it was thought that a bomb caused the crash. It wasn't a bomb, the law, however, still stands.
Knee-jerk reactions to this event (and others like it) are not likely to 1) prevent these types of activities 2) be fully thought out to maintain our liberties. I can't, for the life of me, understand how making plastic knives illegal in airports will really help prevent a catastrophy like this.
Government Officials are already calling for restrictions on cryptography (prohibiting export, key escrow, etc). Sigh. I direct those interested to a review on key escrow here.
Our liberties are constantly under siege. From overzealous profit motivated sources to foreign (or even domestic) aggressors our freedom is slowly being eroded away. Without the federal government helping us protect our rights there is no hope. Misguided legislation could push us drastically in the wrong direction. Giving up rights is remarkably easy (and in some cases the loss may go unrecognized), getting them back (or obtaining them at all) can be at a tremendous cost.
For those eager, or at least not reluctant, to temporarily give up your liberties I suggest the following links and their references (note: I have drawn from these sources to some degree).
This Month's Cryptogram
Activists Defend Civil Liberties in Wake of Attack at privacy.org.
Well, I can't even actually remember if I ever got a modem from Telocity, I'd have to look through my DSL modem pile.