4 ms·

Words are protected by the law all the time, especially as it relates to copyright/trademarks, commerce, certain professions and consumer protection.

valuearb 9y ago
Name one thing an individual citizen can't utter because it's protected by "copyright/trademarks, commerce, professions or consumer protection".
- slantyyz 9y ago
  You're missing my original point, which is to say the guy can't legally call himself an engineer in Oregon, at least in a professional capacity, which would be related to a profession/consumer protection. If you actually followed the thread, my point was a response to a response about changing the title to not call the person an engineer in the headline. It had nothing to do with him being sanctioned for expressing his opinions about the red light cameras, which itself is a free speech issue. If words are used to misrepresent, incite, defraud or defame, there can be legal consequences. If you had a slab of horse meat you were selling and someone asked you what it was, and you said only the word "beef", do you think there would be no legal recourse of action against you if the buyer found out it wasn't true?
  - valuearb 9y ago
    If the guild of professional Kobe beef ranchers were given government authority to fine anyone who referred to non-kobe cow meat as “beef”, would it be right?
    - slantyyz 9y ago
      Don't confuse legality with morality. They may be related but they are not always in sync. In the real world the law will often prevail. Context is important. You can call non-kobe beef "kobe beef" in casual conversation, but IIRC you cannot in a conversation where you are selling said meat. IIRC "Kobe" is protected by treaty. If you are selling meat from a wagyu cow not originating from and raised in Kobe, you have to use the word "Wagyu" or another word instead of "Kobe".
      - valuearb 9y ago
        This is a man who makes a living by performing engineering work, just like me. We are both “Professional Engineers” and no state certified labor monopoly can change that. It’s neither moral nor legal to try, given both the US and Oregon constitutions(1). Which is why the “Professional Engineer” scammers are trying to avoid legal rulings. They should really only call themselves “State Certified Engineers” (1) The right to self expression is so well protected in the Oregon Constitution that strippers have a right to perform with full nudity.
        slantyyz 9y ago
        Well let me give you a better example. Because of the professional standards held by certain professions (medical doctors, lawyers, accountants, engineers, etc) - until they recently relaxed the rules, Canada required passport applications to have an occupational guarantor (of a certified profession) who knew the applicant for a minimum amount of time to sign a passport application. The average person doesn't know the difference between a "Professional Engineer" with a PEng and a "professional engineer". If someone like you were to say "I'm a professional engineer" and sign the passport application and it was caught, the person's passport would be invalidated and the signing small-e engineer would likely be fined for misrepresenting him/herself. You could actually say that in Canada at least, PEng engineers actually have an elevated status in society like doctors and lawyers.
        valuearb 9y ago
        You could also say that Canada doesn't respect freedom of speech. But apparently even they don't fine people for calling themselves "engineers". Again, if someone wants to be a "Government certified professional engineer", that's fine. But taking claim over the entire english language to fine people for using the perfectly clear description "professional engineer" is a violation of US constitutional rights.

valuearb 9y ago

Name one thing an individual citizen can't utter because it's protected by "copyright/trademarks, commerce, professions or consumer protection".

slantyyz 9y ago
You're missing my original point, which is to say the guy can't legally call himself an engineer in Oregon, at least in a professional capacity, which would be related to a profession/consumer protection. If you actually followed the thread, my point was a response to a response about changing the title to not call the person an engineer in the headline. It had nothing to do with him being sanctioned for expressing his opinions about the red light cameras, which itself is a free speech issue. If words are used to misrepresent, incite, defraud or defame, there can be legal consequences. If you had a slab of horse meat you were selling and someone asked you what it was, and you said only the word "beef", do you think there would be no legal recourse of action against you if the buyer found out it wasn't true?
- valuearb 9y ago
  If the guild of professional Kobe beef ranchers were given government authority to fine anyone who referred to non-kobe cow meat as “beef”, would it be right?
  - slantyyz 9y ago
    Don't confuse legality with morality. They may be related but they are not always in sync. In the real world the law will often prevail. Context is important. You can call non-kobe beef "kobe beef" in casual conversation, but IIRC you cannot in a conversation where you are selling said meat. IIRC "Kobe" is protected by treaty. If you are selling meat from a wagyu cow not originating from and raised in Kobe, you have to use the word "Wagyu" or another word instead of "Kobe".
    - valuearb 9y ago
      This is a man who makes a living by performing engineering work, just like me. We are both “Professional Engineers” and no state certified labor monopoly can change that. It’s neither moral nor legal to try, given both the US and Oregon constitutions(1). Which is why the “Professional Engineer” scammers are trying to avoid legal rulings. They should really only call themselves “State Certified Engineers” (1) The right to self expression is so well protected in the Oregon Constitution that strippers have a right to perform with full nudity.
      - slantyyz 9y ago
        Well let me give you a better example. Because of the professional standards held by certain professions (medical doctors, lawyers, accountants, engineers, etc) - until they recently relaxed the rules, Canada required passport applications to have an occupational guarantor (of a certified profession) who knew the applicant for a minimum amount of time to sign a passport application. The average person doesn't know the difference between a "Professional Engineer" with a PEng and a "professional engineer". If someone like you were to say "I'm a professional engineer" and sign the passport application and it was caught, the person's passport would be invalidated and the signing small-e engineer would likely be fined for misrepresenting him/herself. You could actually say that in Canada at least, PEng engineers actually have an elevated status in society like doctors and lawyers.
        valuearb 9y ago
        You could also say that Canada doesn't respect freedom of speech. But apparently even they don't fine people for calling themselves "engineers". Again, if someone wants to be a "Government certified professional engineer", that's fine. But taking claim over the entire english language to fine people for using the perfectly clear description "professional engineer" is a violation of US constitutional rights.