New Law Makes Online Annoyance Under a Pseudoname Illegal
While I can appreciate how difficult it is, firsthand, to be flamed from someone who hides behind the cloak of online invisibility, I have a hard time taking that annoyance from an irritating event in my life to a crime punishable by jail time. But, now that is exactly what has become the case.
The President’s signature put into effect a law that made it illegal to email or post messages that are seen as annoying if you don’t disclose your real name. From CNet:
To grease the rails for this idea, Sen. Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, and the section’s other sponsors slipped it into an unrelated, must-pass bill to fund the Department of Justice. The plan: to make it politically infeasible for politicians to oppose the measure.
The tactic worked. The bill cleared the House of Representatives by voice vote, and the Senate unanimously approved it Dec. 16.
I’m uncomfortable with this because the implications for bloggers are frightening. Even though putting your identity online is deemed unsafe by many experts, without taking that step, you won’t be allowed to post ‘annoying’ speech. And, who gets to decide what level of annoyance is enough to warrant arrest?
We’ll continue to follow this story as more news comes available.
Tags: bloggers, business-blogging, email-law, free-speech