I think this needs to be addressed, but not in a way that suggests there's anything credible about his position.
I would suggest a parody response along the lines of a need to clamp down on Petrol Cars(idea from Facebook - not sure if author wants credit or not), that facilitate getaway transport for bank robbers.
We should also prosecute mechanics, since by servicing cars, they facilitate their future use as bank robbery getaway cars.
Rory http://www.finegael.ie/latest-news/2013/odonovan-calls-for-crackd/index.xml
Malcolm
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Good lord.
I've typed up a potential response, but I'm pretty new to this. Anyone care to offer their thoughts? Anything usable here?
Also, looks like the database is down. Glenn, is there anything we can do about this?
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We are gravely concerned about the mixed messages arising in Fine Gael TD Patrick O'Donovan's recent appeal to the the Oireachtas Communications Committee.
In an article from Fine Gael, the Limerick TD expresses concern about a “An online black market is operating which protects the users’ anonymity and operates across borders through the use of open source internet browsers and payments systems which allow users to remain anonymous."
O'Donovan could not be more mistaken about his characterisation of the problem, or about the response by US authorities.
Tor is a peer-to-peer network originally written and designed by the US Naval Research Laboratory. To this day, Tor is used by governments, activists, and reporters to ensure safe and protected communications, and is financed by numerous US governmental agencies, including the US State Department and the National Science Foundation.
The Tor network is an unquestionably important communal good, not just for US citizens, but for the entire world. Tor is written under the open-source BSD license, and this very fact is what helps to ensure that Tor remains free from the influence of any single government, individual, or corporation.
Like any communal good, the Tor network can be used for unsavoury purposes. Certain black markets have appeared on the network, such as the Silk Road, the website recently shut down by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation. The identity of people accessing the Silk Road was revealed through the use of a security hole in older versions of the Tor Browser Bundle. O'Donovan seems to think that the open-source nature of Tor has prevented law enforcement from using the same security hole to identify more users, but in doing so he thoroughly misunderstands both software licensing and human nature. If a person were to have the key to their house stolen, they would replace the locks, regardless of whether they had access to the blueprints of the house. Whether the Tor Browser Bundle was proprietary or Open Source software, a new version of the Tor Browser Bundle would most certainly be released to patch up the hole. To fail to do so would leave its users - governments, activists, and reporters - vulnerable to malicious attack.
Free, Libre, and Open Source Software is a vital component to a healthy business community and to modern society. The clear misunderstanding by TD O'Donovan of the technological and social issues presented leaves the Irish Free Software Organisation with serious questions about the ability of the Oireachtas Communications Committee to make informed decisions about this important public resource.
Law enforcement in the digital age presents undeniably new challenges, but those challenges will only be compounded if we fail to fully understand the consequences of our actions in the technological realm. The Irish Free Software Organisation encourages the Oireachtas Communications Committee and the Ministers for Justice and Communications to consult with experts from the Free Software community to develop realistic assessment and effective solutions to the technological challenges we face.
On 15/01/14 09:46, Malcolm Tyrrell wrote:
http://www.finegael.ie/latest-news/2013/odonovan-calls-for-crackd/index.xml
Malcolm
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Hi,
@Jen perhaps the best thing to do is to not vote
http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/bright/reclus/dontvote.html
In this case the news section provides no direct means to comment on the article. It could be argued that it is the role of journalists and activists to check the facts: but then isn't that only playing along with the game?
It seems that in news and current affairs programs, the interviewer / host rarely seems to question any statement. Maybe most of us are used to this, as we spend our childhood years force-ably encouraged not to question those in power. We seem to happily keep it going for the next generation too.
a.