Fandom Scruples is now reporting fans to the Feds.

[tzikeh]

http://www.livejournal.com/users/fandom_scruples/1474.html

And no, I'm not joking. It's not funny.

I don't have an icon angry enough.

Please alert... well, everyone.

Comments

[madralaoi.livejournal.com]

Man, that's...I have no words for it. *stunned*

[yahtzee63.livejournal.com]

What I like is that these people list as one of their interests "courage" - -but none of them have the guts to use real e-mail addresses or names.

[sanj.livejournal.com]

The FUCK?

[stunned]

[elke-tanzer.livejournal.com]

Other than alerting, what the heck can we do about it? I mean, it seems like the LJ in question is harassing people, and that's against LJ's TOS, but I'm not sure there's enough evidence of that, and it still won't stop them from making some people's lives a living hell with the Feds.

Suggestions?

[nestra.livejournal.com]

I looked at LJ's ToS, but I worry about the fact that they won't protect content adjudged "indecent".

I think there are a lot of barriers that prevent fandom_dickheads from doing much in the way of real harm -- the fact that COPA is kind of flimsy, as I understand, the difficult of proving "commercial purposes", the fact that it doesn't apply to people outside the U.S., but I'm clutching the throbbing vein in my head. The fucking nerve of these people.

[dragovianknight.livejournal.com]

Fuck. The assholes behind that so need to get laid a life laid.

Responsibility my ass.

I linked it from my journal, for what it's worth.

[flambeau.livejournal.com]

grr. argh.

Wait, for commercial purposes? I give my porn away for free.

[dragovianknight.livejournal.com]

I give my porn away for free.

And we love you for it. Free porn is good.

But, it's for the childruuun. And we live in a puritanical theocracy now (screw separation of church and state; we's a Christian nation, I dun heard it on the teevee). Mere technicalities won't stop the feds from going after teh eval pr0n.

[laurashapiro.livejournal.com]

Oh, holy shit.

I'm with Elke, though. What can we do?

Also, I note the law specifies "for commercial purposes" -- is she targeting only fan sites that are selling something? Because if she's just going after fanfiction, it won't stick.

Not that it doesn't suck either way.

[mtgat]

http://www.livejournal.com/support/faqbrowse.bml?faqcat=abuse

If we all complain about harassment (or, reading through, the people named at fandom_dickheads do) they'll get banned.

[(Anonymous)]

Interesting theory. Shame it won't hold up. Livejournal abuse says they're not influenced by writeins... I ran into that problem a couple of months ago. They just got bitchy and told us they aren't influenced by writeins and that they weren't going to do anything. Lame.

[barbary-coast.livejournal.com]

Interesting. I wonder if this will have unintended consequences on Live Journal itself? I have no idea if the journals that FS is targeting are free or paid, but either way, the entity that is selling the services for 'commercial' purposes is LiveJournals itself.

[jackiekjono.livejournal.com]

If anything the "commercial purpose" thing would really only apply to LJ itself which is making money by providing our content to others. This is a more realistic danger as they may decide that it is safer to start limiting content. The feds have way better things they could be doing with their time. I certainly hope they don't waste it on this crap but I won't hold my breath.

[mandragora1.livejournal.com]

Followed a link from thermidor.

I don't think you US citizens need to worry. Can't say I'm qualified to comment about US law but I've seen how 'for commercial purposes' is defined under the Act and a fanfiction site (unless the person who owns it is idiotic enough to be selling their fanfiction, in which case they deserve anything they get) doesn't qualify as a commercial purpose.

Honestly, I doubt anyone can be that stupid and I'm now thinking 'deliberate troll', otherwise why post the bit about commercial purposes in the first place?

It also appears that:

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals has, for the second time, ruled that the Child Online Protection Act (COPA) is unconstitutional. In a decision issued on March 6, 2003, the court found that the law violates the First Amendment because it improperly restricts access to a substantial amount of online speech that is lawful for adults.

So there! *g*

Plus, it's pretty easy to move any sites governed by US law to those that aren't. That's the beauty of it being the world wide web. As others have ably pointed out. I just love it when lay people threaten legal action, 'cos so often they betray the fact that they've got no idea what they're talking about. Mind you, so do many lawyers. *g*

[imkalena.livejournal.com]

It's amazing how angry these people get when others refuse to take them seriously.

[tanacawyr.livejournal.com]

fandom_scruples can suck the business end of Horatio's coach pistol AFAIC.

This smells like a personal vendetta to me -- nothing else is psychotic and obsessive enough to explain what the hell is going on.

I wonder what VB is up to lately? Or whatever psycho-troll who went off her meds haunts the seedy underbelly of Potter fandom? They must have one -- every fandom does ... Wasn't there a spate of activity in the tinhat LOTR RPS fandom that basically consisted of one psycho who made up her own BB and posted anonymous replies to her own messages?

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

I wonder what VB is up to lately?

Well, she was arrested for false identity and fraud, so I doubt it's her. ;)

[jackiekjono.livejournal.com]

They decided not to prosecute on the identity theft and the definition of fraud was too specific to include the stuff she did. Apparently, the culprit has to make money for it to be considered fraud in that state. She is living in LA with Abby, last anyone heard.

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

Sigh. Mostly, this makes me end up with an earworm, singing "at the COPA, COPAcabana..." which I can't make rhyme with anything derogatory or hostile enough.

[jackiekjono.livejournal.com]

http://www.livejournal.com/users/perclexed/

there ya go.

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

Bwaaaahhhhhhhhaaaaaaa! Okay, I'm really glad to know there are people out there as demented as I am. Kinda comforting, really, considering there are probably more people like this fascist lunatic(s).