From: Mike Duvos <enoch@zipcon.net>
Date: Wed, 20 Aug 1997 04:50:34 +0800
To: cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
Subject: CPAC Quotes Templeton
Message-ID: <19970819202714.28609.qmail@zipcon.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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Those of you who have been following the efforts of CPAC and their
associates to render homeless certain web sites which they feel might be
frequented by thought criminals might find the following an interesting
case of "strange bedfellows."

It is apparent that CPAC doesn't like opposing points of view,
particularly when they are seen in public forums hosted by CPAC on the
Web.  Messages which don't toe the CPAC party line mysteriously vanish and
forums are frequently erased in their entirety when anything resembling a
discussion appears.

Now CPAC has claimed some new territory in their war to silence their
critics.  They maintain that no one who does not agree with their agenda
may show a link to any of their publicly available resources on the Web,
and that doing so constitutes theft of their bandwidth. <giggle>

They quote as their cite for this concept a piece by Brad Templeton,
ClariNet owner, who apparently shares their view that links can constitute
copyright infringement under certain circumstances.  Fortunately, Brad 
does not restrict linking to the article in question, from which I offer
the following tiny snippet under the "Fair Use" doctrine. 

 > I, and many other people initially had the intuitive feeling that it
 > could never be a violation of copyright to make a link to a web page.
 > Of late, I've come to think that this might be wrong. 
   
Now what CPAC objects to is people who post messages saying, essentially, 

"Look at the silly CPAC people rant and froth.  <Click Here>"

I would suggest that CPAC is a political organization, with a very 
well-defined social agenda, which I have every right to comment on, 
and that illustrative hyperlinks in my commentary constitute "Fair Use"
of their content.

Am I on firm legal ground here?

--
     Mike Duvos         $    PGP 2.6 Public Key available     $
     enoch@zipcon.com   $    via Finger                       $
         {Free Cypherpunk Political Prisoner Jim Bell}