Interesting People mailing list archives
Re: VERY TRUE Can You Go to Prison for Lying to a Web Site?
From: David Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Thu, 10 Jan 2008 02:17:08 -0800
________________________________________ From: Brock N. Meeks [bmeeks () cox net] Sent: Thursday, January 10, 2008 1:04 AM To: David Farber; patrick () ianai net Subject: Re: [IP] Re: VERY TRUE Can You Go to Prison for Lying to a Web Site? Patrick writes: "There is also no law against yelling "fire" _outside_ a crowded place." Actually, there is no law stopping you from yelling "FIRE" in a crowded place either. During many panels on free speech, to make a point, I've suddenly jumped from my seat, pointed at the back of the room and yelled "Fire!!" at the top of my voice. And then I sat down without a word, the audience looked bewildered and probably a little embarrassed for me. I just waited for the audience to absorb the object lesson. The legal ramifications kick in only if a riot or stampede ensued after I shouted fire. And some have argued that yelling "fire" when the person knows there to be no fire with the sole intent to create a riot is an issue of fraud, not free speech. On 1/9/08 11:38 AM, "David Farber" <dave () farber net> wrote:
Begin forwarded message: From: "Patrick W. Gilmore" <patrick () ianai net> Date: January 9, 2008 11:04:49 AM EST To: dave () farber net Cc: "Patrick W. Gilmore" <patrick () ianai net>, Andrew Burnette <acb () acb net, Frode Hegland <frode () hyperwords net>Subject: Re: [IP] VERY TRUE Can You Go to Prison for Lying to a Web Site? On Jan 9, 2008, at 3:58 AM, David Farber wrote:________________________________________ From: Frode Hegland [frode () hyperwords net] Sent: Wednesday, January 09, 2008 3:45 AM To: David Farber; acb () acb net Subject: Re: [IP] Re: Can You Go to Prison for Lying to a Web Site? Yes. The sooner we realize that the internet is not some separate, parallel, 'second life' but a communications media part of our 'real' world, the better we will all be.One of us is confused. If I walked up to you and said "I'm a dog", no prosecutor in the country would dream of prosecuting me for fraud. It is not fraud "in real life", has never been fraud, and should not be fraud on the Internet. There is also no law against yelling "fire" _outside_ a crowded place. And last time I checked, my e-mail inbox was not crowded. (Well, not in that way. :) Yes, the Internet is just another means of communication. Different, not better or worse. Stop trying to make words somehow magically different just because they are in an e-mail. Putting this into perspective of the current thread, if I go to a bar and tell the lady on the next bar stool I am a CEO or Astronaut or whatever, and she finds out the next morning I lied, no prosecutor in the country would dream of prosecuting me for fraud. And if she asked to go home with me because I am an astronaut, but instead of accepting her offer I stood up on the bar and screamed to her entire collection of friends assembled: "The world would be a better place without you!", again, no one would dream of prosecuting me for fraud, harassment, or anything else. Even if she went into the toilet and hung herself. Nor should they.
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Current thread:
- Re: VERY TRUE Can You Go to Prison for Lying to a Web Site? David Farber (Jan 09)
- <Possible follow-ups>
- Re: VERY TRUE Can You Go to Prison for Lying to a Web Site? David Farber (Jan 09)
- Re: VERY TRUE Can You Go to Prison for Lying to a Web Site? David Farber (Jan 09)
- Re: VERY TRUE Can You Go to Prison for Lying to a Web Site? David Farber (Jan 09)
- Re: VERY TRUE Can You Go to Prison for Lying to a Web Site? David Farber (Jan 10)