Hostile bloggers facing fines, jail?

[Desertdog]

This would not apply to Dems snd other protected classes.  Only to Right Wing Extremist.

Hostile bloggers facing fines, jail?
Proposal 'comes close to making it federal offense to log onto Internet'
By Bob Unruh
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=97257


A new proposal in Congress is threatening fines and jail time for what it calls "cyberbullying" – communications that include e-mails and text messages that "cause substantial emotional distress."

The vague generalities are included in H.R. 1966 by California Democrat Linda Sanchez and about a dozen co-sponsors.

But it already is being condemned as unconstitutional, unrealistic and probably ineffectual.

At Wired.com, in a report labeled "Threat Level," writer David Kravets criticized the plan to demand "up to two years in prison for those whose electronic speech is meant to 'coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress.'"

"Instead of prison, perhaps we should say gulag," he wrote.

Such limits never would pass First Amendment muster, "unless the U.S. Constitution was altered without us knowing," he wrote. "So Sanchez, and the 14 other lawmakers who signed on to the proposal are grandstanding to show the public they care about children and are opposed to cyberbullying."

The plan is labeled the Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act, after the 13-year-old Meier, whose suicide last year reportedly was prompted by a woman who utilized the MySpace social networking site to send the teen critical messages.

Speak out now against limits on your speech!

The defendant in the case, Lori Drew, was accused under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

"Sanchez's bill goes way beyond cyberbullying and comes close to making it a federal offense to log onto the Internet or use the telephone," Kravets wrote. "The methods of communication where hostile speech is banned include e-mail, instant messaging, blogs, websites, telephones and text messages."

"We can't say what we think of Sanchez's proposal," he said. "Doing so would clearly get us two years in solitary confinement."

Wrote a contributor to the Wired forum page, "If passed, this legislation could be easily abused with the effect of criminalizing all criticism. You probably [couldn't] even criticize the legislation itself because it would cause Sen. Sanchez emotional distress or possibly be considered a form of intimidation."

The bill, which has been referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary, states, "Whoever transmits in interstate or foreign commerce any communication, with the intent to coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress to a person, using electronic means to support severe, repeated, and hostile behavior, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both."

It states: "Cyberbullying can cause psychological harm, including depression; negatively impact academic performance, safety, and the well-being of children in school; force children to change schools; and in some cases lead to extreme violent behavior, including murder and suicide."

[digitalandanalog]

Whatever happened to the good old days of one person threatening another and being invited to find out what will happen if they are stupid enough to try it?

Ask my ex's "other" boy friend (that I didn't know existed) about making threats through electronic mediums.

Hell. I even told him where to find me. So, about this cyber bully crap...?

[HankB]

This whole "cyberbullying" thing sounds like a crock.

If someone is sending you nastygrams, why not just set up your email to route everything from them to the killfile? Or block their 'phone number?

[Jamisjockey]

This whole "cyberbullying" thing sounds like a crock.

If someone is sending you nastygrams, why not just set up your email to route everything from them to the killfile? Or block their 'phone number?

Whatever happened to sticks and stones?
Cyberbullying is a crock.

[Desertdog]

This whole "cyberbullying" thing sounds like a crock.

If someone is sending you nastygrams, why not just set up your email to route everything from them to the killfile? Or block their 'phone number?

I believe this crap started when a 13 yo girl got a bunch of harrasing emails from some kids mother and she ended up killing herself.  Of course, as written, it can be applied to anything that is not PC by an unprotected class; ie, Republican/Conservative.

[Stand_watie]

full text and link
****

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:H.R.1966:

Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act (Introduced in House)

HR 1966 IH


111th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 1966
To amend title 18, United States Code, with respect to cyberbullying.


IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

April 2, 2009
Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California (for herself, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. YARMUTH, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mrs. CAPPS, Mr. BISHOP of New York, Mr. BRALEY of Iowa, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. HARE, Mr. HIGGINS, Mr. CLAY, Mr. SARBANES, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. COURTNEY, and Mr. KIRK) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


A BILL
To amend title 18, United States Code, with respect to cyberbullying.


Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:

(1) Four out of five of United States children aged 2 to 17 live in a home where either they or their parents access the Internet.

(2) Youth who create Internet content and use social networking sites are more likely to be targets of cyberbullying.

(3) Electronic communications provide anonymity to the perpetrator and the potential for widespread public distribution, potentially making them severely dangerous and cruel to youth.

(4) Online victimizations are associated with emotional distress and other psychological problems, including depression.

(5) Cyberbullying can cause psychological harm, including depression; negatively impact academic performance, safety, and the well-being of children in school; force children to change schools; and in some cases lead to extreme violent behavior, including murder and suicide.

(6) Sixty percent of mental health professionals who responded to the Survey of Internet Mental Health Issues report having treated at least one patient with a problematic Internet experience in the previous five years; 54 percent of these clients were 18 years of age or younger.

SEC. 3. CYBERBULLYING.

(a) In General- Chapter 41 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

`Sec. 881. Cyberbullying

`(a) Whoever transmits in interstate or foreign commerce any communication, with the intent to coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress to a person, using electronic means to support severe, repeated, and hostile behavior, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.

`(b) As used in this section--

`(1) the term `communication' means the electronic transmission, between or among points specified by the user, of information of the user's choosing, without change in the form or content of the information as sent and received; and

`(2) the term `electronic means' means any equipment dependent on electrical power to access an information service, including email, instant messaging, blogs, websites, telephones, and text messages.'.

(b) Clerical Amendment- The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 41 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new item:

`881. Cyberbullying.'.

[AZRedhawk44]

The plan is labeled the Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act, after the 13-year-old Meier, whose suicide last year reportedly was prompted by a woman who utilized the MySpace social networking site to send the teen critical messages.

I remember this story.

Megan Meier was not killed by anyone.  Megan Meier did not HAVE to read the internet ramblings of incensed strangers.

Megan Meier was a weak link, and chose to kill herself.

Why do we as normal society always have to carry the cost and burden of the slowest wildebeest?  I'm so tired of it...

[Jocassee]

I remember this story.

Megan Meier was not killed by anyone.  Megan Meier did not HAVE to read the internet ramblings of incensed strangers.

Megan Meier was a weak link, and chose to kill herself.

Seems cold to me but that's probably the truth. Of course if her parents had taken it upon themselves to know what was going on on her computer (which, IMHO, all parents should until their kids reach majority) they could have helped her.

[longeyes]

The sponsors of this bill are deliberately exploiting Megan Meier, which I find utterly detestable, for their own fell ends.  Their intent is not to stop "cyber-bullying" but to muzzle anyone who ruffles the feelings of those in power or who belongs to a governmment-denominated "protected class," a seemingly ever-expanding roster.  What happened in the Meier case was far more than just bullying, which is bad enough, it was fraud and impersonation with hostile intent.  There is no analogy to ordinary communication, however rough.

[digitalandanalog]

Maybe this is their answer to the idea of Fairness getting shot down all over the place.

If they won't share...well, then they must be bullies and they must be stopped.

[longeyes]

The question that more and more needs to be asked is...who are the real bullies?  The more power the Left gets the more they claim to be injured, pushed around, disrespected.  And the more they demand.

There's a term for this in the therapeutic canon: passive aggression.

[coppertales]

Might be a good thing.  Reading the MSM web sites and how they editorialize the news caused me emotional distress.  Double that when the MSM smoozes up to a dimokrat......chris3

[sanglant]

perez hilton is going it jail



 

[buzz_knox]

Seems cold to me but that's probably the truth. Of course if her parents had taken it upon themselves to know what was going on on her computer (which, IMHO, all parents should until their kids reach majority) they could have helped her.

If I recall the story correctly, they did know what was going on.  They were good parents and told her to ignore the crap, etc.  She disobeyed, read the last e-mail in the sequence, and killed herself, all within a matter of minutes. 

[Jamisjockey]

perez hilton is going it jail



 

For what?

[Jocassee]

If I recall the story correctly, they did know what was going on.  They were good parents and told her to ignore the crap, etc.  She disobeyed, read the last e-mail in the sequence, and killed herself, all within a matter of minutes. 

+1 for her parents then...

[sanglant]

For what?

you asked for it

http://video.yahoo.com/watch/4903268/13061773
http://www.iviewtube.com/videos/39264/perez-hilton-why-miss-california-did-not-win-miss-usa-pageant

basically he needs some preparation h