[governance] Regarding Rights: Virginia Supreme Court Strikes Down Anti-Spam Law

[Jeffrey A. Williams]

All,

  Personally only, I found this ruling both odd and extraordinary!

  As food for thought, see:

"The Washington Post is reporting that the Virginia Supreme
Court has
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/12/AR2008091201211.html?hpid=topnews

struck down the anti-spam law that was used to convict
spammer Jeremy James, on the grounds that the ability to be anonymous
was
more important than the problem of spam. Strangely, the same court only
a
few months ago upheld the law. 'The court noted that "were the
'Federalist Papers' just being published today via e-mail, that
transmission by Publius would violate the [current Virginia] statute."
The court suggested that the law does not limit its restrictions on spam

to commercial or fraudulent e-mail, or to unprotected speech such as
pornography or defamation. And when the state suggested that the court
merely tailor a restriction to the law within its opinion, the court
declined.'"

Regards,

Spokesman for INEGroup LLA. - (Over 281k members/stakeholders strong!)
"Obedience of the law is the greatest freedom" -
   Abraham Lincoln

"Credit should go with the performance of duty and not with what is
very often the accident of glory" - Theodore Roosevelt

"If the probability be called P; the injury, L; and the burden, B;
liability depends upon whether B is less than L multiplied by
P: i.e., whether B is less than PL."
United States v. Carroll Towing  (159 F.2d 169 [2d Cir. 1947]
===============================================================
Updated 1/26/04
CSO/DIR. Internet Network Eng. SR. Eng. Network data security IDNS.
div. of Information Network Eng.  INEG. INC.
ABA member in good standing member ID 01257402 E-Mail
jwkckid1 at ix.netcom.com
My Phone: 214-244-4827

____________________________________________________________
You received this message as a subscriber on the list:
     governance at lists.cpsr.org
To be removed from the list, send any message to:
     governance-unsubscribe at lists.cpsr.org

For all list information and functions, see:
     http://lists.cpsr.org/lists/info/governance