freeism.org

[geniusdreams]

This just reminds me of that asshole lying physiotherapist I had the misfortune to deal with...

That asshole actually liked the idea that Britain has the most ridiculous libel laws. Where a conversation between you and a friend can be seen as "libel", and the cost of defending yourself is the most ridiculous thing about it. Basically a system set up to protect the big guy, from the little guy speaking up about their malpractice. Even if its only to a friend of theirs.

...

http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/wealthofnations/archive/2010/04/16/should-libel-laws-apply-to-the-web.aspx


Should Libel Laws Apply To the Web?
Christopher Werth
London is the capital of many things--England, financial services. And slapping people with libel lawsuits. Plaintiffs from around the globe--or "libel tourists"--flock to Britain to take advantage of its pro-litigant libel laws that make suing for defamation nearly a guaranteed win. But now those laws--first laid out hundreds of years ago to protect the reputations of "respectable" English gentlemen--are on a collision course with 21st-century technology. With the proliferation of blogs and other social-networking Web sites that enable everyone to voice their opinions, a fight is brewing over online freedom of speech in Britain, with profound implications for the Internet's international free exchange of ideas.

At issue is whether the Web, particularly with the rise of Facebook and Twitter, should be legally regarded as a space where people engage in conversation (like a virtual version of the local pub), rather than merely being made up of pages of published words. The latter definition would leave a host of online applications open to charges of libel in Britain. Several important cases are currently heading to the courts. For instance, British blogger David Osler is being sued by a London activist for a comment another person allegedly made about her on Osler's blog.

To protect Internet speech, campaigners for libel reform want comments on blogs and other online services to be granted a legal exemption. However, although British Justice Secretary Jack Straw has promised to overhaul the defamation law in the next Parliament, reform advocates say his proposals ignore just how much those laws have been at odds with the explosive growth of the Internet over the past decade and a half. Indeed, the online availability in Britain of nearly any newspaper published anywhere in the world has sparked an uptick in the kind of libel tourism that allows non-British litigants to sue foreign news organizations in London. In fact, last year the risk of incurring costly damages and legal fees prompted several major U.S. newspapers to consider withdrawing their print and online editions from Britain, much as the National Enquirer did after it was forced to make a hefty libel payout in 2007. As long as the law lags behind the Internet's evolution, expect more foreign blogs and other Web sites outside Britain to begin to follow suit.

[Dragondragon]

Libel laws should barely exist!

The only time the system should interfere in these cases is when...I dunno! But not a lot, that's for sure.

I'm sure there's a place where its justified, but I can't think of an example right now...probably since it's rare and tiny.


.........


As if we don't have enough pussies who cry about every single thing, as if we need more idiots who try to get things out of nothing!

"ohh no he hurt my feelings!!!"

Fuck libel laws and fuck the morons who maintain them.