Freedom is on the march ...

posted by The Vidiot @ 6:33 PM Permalink

... away from US:

20 middle school students in Costa Mesa were suspended for looking at a website, from home, on their own computers.

A middle school student faces expulsion for allegedly posting graphic threats against a classmate on the popular MySpace.com Web site, and 20 of his classmates were suspended for viewing the posting, school officials said.

Note that the 20 students suspended didn't say anything, didn't write anything, didn't wear anything, they just looked, after school, at home, on their own computers!

But wait, There's More!

A federal jury in NJ convicted animal rights activists on terrorism charges.
[...]
The jury in Trenton, New Jersey, found the defendants and their organization guilty of violating the Animal Enterprise Protection Act, a federal law that was amended in 2002 to equate its offenses with terrorism. This marked the first trial and conviction under that law, federal officials said.
[...]
The defendants were not accused of directly making threats or carrying out vandalism. Instead, they were charged with inciting the harassment with their Internet postings.

So all they did was publish names and addresses and advocate contacting those folks. Since most activist sites do that daily where does it end?

And how is it different from this ruling by the Supremes:

NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware Co., 458 U.S. 886 (1982).
At one public rally, Charles Evers, a boycott organizer, threatened that boycott breakers would be "disciplined" and warned that the sheriff could not protect them at night. See id. at 902. At another rally, Evers stated, "If we catch any of you going in any of them racist stores, we're gonna break your damn neck." See id. The Mississippi courts held the boycott orga- nizers liable based on Evers's statements and the activities of the black-hatted activists.

The Supreme Court acknowledged that Evers's statements could be interpreted as inviting violent retaliation, "or at least as intending to create a fear of violence whether or not improper discipline was specifically intended." Id. at 927 (emphasis added). Nevertheless, it held that the statements were protected because there was insufficient evidence that Evers had "authorized, ratified, or directly threatened acts of violence."

And now we come to the Anti-Constitution Patriot Act. What can you say about a 'compromise' that changes nothing except you can publicly challenge your secret subpoena ... a year after you receive it:

The measure passed Thursday adds judicial oversight, giving recipients of subpoenas the right to challenge an accompanying judicial order not to discuss the case publicly, although they would have to wait one year while complying with the subpoena in the meantime.

Justice delayed is justice denied.


Bonus iniquity: California Sen. Dianne Feinstein voted for it because it earmarked her cause celebre:

... the bill includes provisions, co-authored by California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, that will put certain cold medications behind the drugstore counter.
[...]
"This is a major victory. It is the biggest breakthrough in combating the nationwide spread of methamphetamines in over a decade."

Speed kills! We've known that since the 60's. It is a self-limiting addiction. You get better or you die. It is a bad thing. But it has nothing to do with the purported WOT!
At this point I'm afraid that if I give voice to my honest opinion on these matters I might violate the law ... and certainly the site would no longer be SFW.