More Reasons Why Homeland Security Seizing Domain Names Is Unconstitutional

techdirt.com

57 points·twodayslate··8 comments

Techdirt's Mike Masnick has been all over this issue for a while now. He's featured at least two legal analyses of the issue, both of them seem to show that ICE is way, way on the wrong side of the US constitution.

Also note that Masnick has some very persistent detractors, that he allows to post anonymously. Those detractors are vociferous on this issue, but have basically resorted to weird ad hominum arguments, only occasionally coming up for air to cite some weird legal arcana that don't seem to apply, at least to the more logical among us.

The number and persistence of Techdirt Trolls is quite remarkable. Why do the trolls have so much time an energy to devote to particular issues? It's beyond the ken of mortal man.

I get the feeling that trolls alienate most of their IRL friends and thus have lots of time to spend trolling which would otherwise be spent socializing.

The trolls may also be paid agents. An acquaintance of mine runs a company that assists in astroturfing.

Yeah? There a lot of money in astroturfing these days? What's the client list look like? They hiring?

Well, he's not a friend so I wouldn't know the details. Last I heard, he had some political clients.

Fancy becoming an undercover reporter?

That sounds kinda cool actually.

Stuff like this makes me feel ill. The notion that the domain was used as property to commit the crime is absurd. He was linking, not manufacturing/producing/etc.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com