Free speech in America a thing of the past

Belfast

League of the South (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/League_of_the_South) web site is down again and has been most of the last year.
http:/www.dixienet.org/ still down
The reason it is down is this time is "denial of service" attack.
You tube video from last year.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZbXTKht79M
Looks like there is no freedom of speech for Confederates.

Thomas_S_Hunterson

Anyone could be perpetrating the DoS. It's hardly a great loss to the internet anyway.


While it's gone, you might find something to amuse yourself here: http://www.teagames.com:pac:

Belfast

Sean_K wrote: »

Anyone could be perpetrating the DoS. It's hardly a great loss to the internet anyway.


While it's gone, you might find something to amuse yourself here: http://www.teagames.com:pac:

One web site may not be much loss. There have been other attempts to shut the group down.

The real problem is how many other groups with unpopular views will be shut down

Who is next?

People down do not believe in evolution
People who question man made global warming
People who want to use Cannabis as a medicine
or general people who question whatever the accepted view of the day on any subject.
etc

It seems to be part of a dangerous trend toward censorship and away from freedom of speech.

Manic Moran

I don't think that's excactly indicative of any particular repression policies by anyone. They just need a better ISP to deal with attackers. It's no different to surrouding a group of protestors and yelling louder than them so nobody else can hear beyond immediate proximity.

NTM

serfboard

Can I ask the OP a question - why does it bother you that this crowd's website is down?

SeanW

Shouldn't a crime (dDOS) be of concern to everyone?

bobbyjoe

Depends who is shutting them down. If they are being censored by the government then yes it is an attack of free speech.
If its a bunch of hackers or people who dislike them then its just a crime. Don't think I'd be saying free speech is dead in America though.

lostexpectation

they say they are not racist

South Board of Directors in 2005 issued a "Statement on 'Racism'" stating in part: “We believe that Christianity and social order require that all people, regardless of race, must be equal before the law. We do not believe that the law should be used to persecute, oppress, or favour any race or class

.
but

We believe that the only harmony possible between the races, as between all natural differences among human beings, begins in submitting to Jesus Christ's commandment to 'love our neighbours as ourselves.' That is the world we envision and work for."

watch out for men in white hoods atheists...

ps seems they've getting on the bandwagon like the english racist and moved on to the unpopular muslims.

wes

Hyperbole by the OP. A criminal attack on there servers, while wrong hardly heralds the end of free speech. Sadly criminals like this exist on the Internet.

Having said that the organization are one hell of a dodgy bunch imho.

Also, wouldn't a secessionists movement like this not be illegal?

Belfast

wes wrote: »

Also, wouldn't a secessionists movement like this not be illegal?

Only if they advocate it with violence.

Ivan

WOW, am I the only one that thinks these guys are great?

I mean, imagine if they broke away from "Northern America". Think of the countless advantages it would give.

There would be a massive border between the "lazy" mexican's border and the great, free loving Northern America.

America would have someone to go to war with (and eventually nuke) very close-by, thus removing the need for deploying a massive naval and aerial force. The resulting invasion of Southern America to ensure democracy finally reaches the poor people living there would once and for all prove that America is not the war hungry country the rest of us believe she is.
And they would be almost guranteed to find WMDs there! Its a win-win situation.

Finally, the average education of American children would sky-rocket not to mention the average IQ of American citizens. Truly this would be the greatest thing to happen to America since its initial constitution was signed.

I'm truly amazed more people arent on board with this.

Of course the rest of the world might not be quite as happy about it... since there would then be two of them...

djpbarry

Ivan wrote: »

America would have someone to go to war with (and eventually nuke) very close-by, thus removing the need for deploying a massive naval and aerial force. The resulting invasion of Southern America to ensure democracy finally reaches the poor people living there would once and for all prove that America is not the war hungry country the rest of us believe she is.
And they would be almost guranteed to find WMDs there! Its a win-win situation.

Your ideas intrigue me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter...

Belfast

this link to the site works
http://www.youhide.com//nph-info.pl/001110A/687474703a2f2f64697869656e65742e6f72672f4e6577253230536974652f696e74726f2e7368746d6c

Overheal

im inclined to agree with you Belfast but what would the situation be if this was a site for neo-nazis or facists? Americans For Communism?

BlaasForRafa

Just good ol boys.....never meaning no harm....

oh wait....thats the Dukes of Hazzard!

nah this sister-lovin-league-of-the-south are mentalists. I couldn't really muster much sympathy for them.

Belfast

Overheal wrote: »

im inclined to agree with you Belfast but what would the situation be if this was a site for neo-nazis or facists? Americans For Communism?

Free speech is free speech.

if you limit group like neo-nazis or facists? Americans For Communism then you have limited speech.

while neo-nazis or facists? Americans For Communism way be no great loss who decides who is not allowed to speak or what people cannot say ?

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

Kama

Um, it's a DDoS attack, it's not an infringement of their right to expression by the state, its a private affair. I don't agree with it, but I don't think it can be guaranteed not to happen, or has much to do with conventional censorship; the Scientologists got similar in from Anonymous, and iirc NUI Maynooth hit the Department of Finance once.

Now, I don't think its a good thing, but I don't think it justifies the thread title. If there was NSA/DoD involvement in shutting them down as secessionists thats something different, but I haven't seen any evidence on these lines. So I don't see it as a free speech issue in the way thats conventionally understood.

Btw, just to be clear, I'm very much for free speech. I thought David Irvine not being allowed speak years back as crazy, I was relishing the chance to jump on him...Imo, censoring implies that your position is weak and can't stand up to public argument, and so is counterproductive.

stovelid

Kama wrote: »

Btw, just to be clear, I'm very much for free speech. I thought David Irvine not being allowed speak years back as crazy, I was relishing the chance to jump on him...Imo, censoring implies that your position is weak and can't stand up to public argument, and so is counterproductive.

LOL. I remember the protests against the 'Irving platform' in TCD years ago, and I regret it now. In hindsight, he should have been allowed to speak.

They were more ideological times, i guess.

Kama

Dunno about them being more ideological; people can still be relied upon to act pretty stupid once you say 'Nazi' a few times...same thing for some people with 'Terraist' etc. People were looking for something to be outraged about as a stunt, cheap protest politics tbh. Not that a bit of outrage wasn't the aim in bringing him over heheh, but still...

gixerfixer

Dont like what they stand for but yeah shutting them down is denial of freedom of speech.

Kama

Yup, I shoulda made a placard saying:

'Free Speech for People I Agree With!'