Interesting People mailing list archives
more on Gerard Van der Leun on traitors, free speech, and Ashcroftitus
From: Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Wed, 02 Jul 2003 06:36:11 -0400
------ Forwarded Message From: "John S. Quarterman" <jsq () quarterman com> Date: Wed, 02 Jul 2003 04:00:20 -0500 To: dave () farber net Cc: "John S. Quarterman" <jsq () quarterman com> Subject: Re: [IP] Gerard Van der Leun on traitors, free speech, and Ashcroftitus
Date: Tue, 01 Jul 2003 18:15:08 -0700 Subject: Re: FC: Jamie McCarthy on "treason" claims from the right and the left From: Gerard Van der Leun <gvdl () cox net> To: <declan () well com> Message-ID: <BB27802C.1F69%gvdl () cox net> In-Reply-To: <5.2.1.1.0.20030701162607.0445c1d8 () mail well com>
...
Hence I don't see from what source all the anxiety arises about charges of treason and suppression of speech as long as it arises from an individual or an organization with no formal ties to the government. Should the government actively see to put someone on trial for treason, I think they would probably need more than Anne Coulter's observations and assertions. Indeed, the requirements for such a charge are spelled out in some detail in the Constitution as I recall, but I won't rehearse them here.
The argument seems to be that someone has to have formal ties to the government to influence the government. I wonder how that explains William Randolph Hearst and the Spanish-American War? Remember the Maine? Or Walter Winchell, who was a supporter of Senator McCarthy in the 1950s, providing leverage through his radio and television shows and columns. Winchell also carried on longterm correspondence with J. Edgar Hoover at the FBI: http://foia.fbi.gov/winchell.htm It's not clear to me that having no formal ties to the government stopped Winchell from having quite a bit of influence inside and outside the government. Also, Senator McCarthy didn't use formal charges of treason; he didn't need to.
Likewise, should the government attempt to formally shut down Politechbot in response to something transmitted on it, it had better be something akin to childporn or a secret terrorist message embedded deep within that jpeg of Phil Zimmermann (very clever that) to avoid a firestorm of protest and the launching of 30 Habeas Corpus packing ACLU lawyers from their underground silos in San Francisco.
If copyright violation is alleged, the DMCA requires no judge, jury, or trial. And I wonder how habeas corpus is relevant if nobody is locked up. John S. Quarterman <jsq () quarterman com> ------ End of Forwarded Message ------------------------------------- You are subscribed as interesting-people () lists elistx com To manage your subscription, go to http://v2.listbox.com/member/?listname=ip Archives at: http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/
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- more on Gerard Van der Leun on traitors, free speech, and Ashcroftitus Dave Farber (Jul 02)