6 ms·

The prosecution of Aaron Swartz, a farcical tragedy, has nothing to do with this story.

• vorpalhex 8y ago
  It has everything to do with the story because it shows that most copyright claims are done in absolute bad faith and consumers are given no real tools to defend themselves. Right now for the majority of people who get a DMCA, there is nothing they can do. There is no functional appeals process, there is no office in charge of handling bad DMCAs. Shy of actually going to court with a lawyer and attempting a suit, if a company files a bogus DMCA then you are boned. That is an abortion of free speech and property rights, and the Swartz case is a perfect example of that. Most of the papers Swartz obtained were supposed to belong to the public, and yet he was sued into oblivion for DOING NOTHING ILLEGAL. He had no counterclaim short of going to full court with lawyers, something entirely out of his grasp and reach, and because he felt he had no alternatives to having his life ruined, he committed suicide. It's not a farcical tragedy, it's a flipping shame for the human race. edit - language
  • dionidium 8y ago
    Whatever else we might disagree on, let's be clear that I agree with you about Swartz.
  • notyourday 8y ago
    Without defending AT&T: Schwartz was prosecuted by a US Attorney. If anything he is a poster boy of over reach of government.
    • rfrey 8y ago
      Government officials seemingly beholden to corporations.
      • kragen 8y ago
        The corporation in question (JSTOR, a nonprofit) indicated their desire to drop the case several months before Aaron's suicide.
• coldtea 8y ago
  At has at least 2 things to do: it involves copyrights, and it shows that copyright enforcement (and strict at that) is not just about "the latest hits" (like with movie/music piracy for example).