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Comment Re:Freedom of Speech? (Score 2) 328

You're confusing libel with defamation. Libel must be false, or believed by the person spreading it to be false. You can defame someone's character by making public some private piece of information about them, which is 100% completely factually accurate, which the general population of people who know that person would find to be out of character for them.

Character is how people perceive you, it is not fact. If your "good" character is based on lies and a negative truth comes out and destroys that perception of you, your character has been defamed.

Comment Re:Freedom of Speech? (Score 1) 328

It is not reasonable to expect everyone around you to be decent human beings. It should be, and ideally it would be, I know that's a world I'd like to live in. But that's not the world you and I live in; we live in reality, where we know there are people out there, a large number of them, who are not, and are probably not capable of being, decent human beings; therefore, it is not reasonable to expect that of them.

Comment Re:Freedom of Speech? (Score 1) 328

You misunderstand the mechanics of the situation. By consenting to being photographed or recorded, you've already given the copyright owner (the photographer or videographer) the right to distribute their work, which is theirs; they own it, the law is clear on this point. In this case, a release form serves only as proof of your consent. Incidentally, release forms weren't initially used for this purpose (until people started claiming they had never consented to things they most certainly had), but were (and still are) used to secure that consent after a recording (for example, a news crew may interview several dozen people on the street and record each interview -- usually they state that the interview will not be aired without your consent, which puts that ball squarely in your court --, but only have the 3 or 4 people whose interviews they want to put on the air actually bother signing a release, and they would do so after the fact).

That's why it's called a release; you're releasing your consent after the fact. It's still called a release when it's done in advance, because it's the same form, but the simple act of consenting to the recording is enough, under the law; a release at that point is just ass-covering.

Comment Re:Freedom of Speech? (Score 1) 328

There are so many shades of gray here, there isn't enough time before the heat death of the universe to explain them all. Images of actual rape and actual murder actually as they're actually happening actually are illegal. The one exception, at least for rape (who's gonna charge the guy who was just unwittingly starred in a snuff file, anyway), is for the victim; he or she can and should do everything possible to record the act in order to use it as evidence after the fact.

Once you start talking about stealing, it can break down two ways; robbery, or burglary. Let's talk about robbery, because it involves physical interaction between the perpetrator and the victim; now you're filming an assault. That's also illegal.

Of course, with the recording of these acts, the law actually considers intent. That's why you don't get nailed for security camera footage, or for recording an event for evidence or to report it in the news.

There's a bit more nuance to it than I've described in this post, but I'm sure you can start developing the rest on your own.

Comment Re:Freedom of Speech? (Score 1) 328

That's reporting that it happened, not making it happen for the purpose of recording it. That's where the difference comes in. Find a way to graphically depict the sexual abuse of a child without filming or photographing the act in progress and I'll support your argument; until then, perhaps you need to learn to see shades of gray, there are more than 2.

Comment Re:Freedom of Speech? (Score 1) 328

If it's in your character and that character is generally known by those who know you, then your character is being upheld, not defamed, when porn of you is released. I never said it was alright for it to be released, just that it's not defamation of character. Furthermore, it is extremely irresponsible to expect any level of privacy when doing *anything* in front of a camera.

And who brought number of partners into this? 1, 2, 3, 20, the entire state of Rhode Island, it doesn't really matter; porn of you doing it being released without your permission is only defamation of your character if it's not generally known that it is in your character to do those kinds of things.

Your 3rd remark doesn't even make sense in the context of this discussion.

When you make up your own arguments to argue against, though, it's pretty hard to lose, isn't it?

Comment Re:Freedom of Speech? (Score 1) 328

Most similar cases I'm aware of (just a handful, though there are many more out there) have been pretty cut and dry. The few instances where it's gone the other way were situations where the plaintiff's own friends were called as character witnesses and straight up called out the plaintiff as exactly the kind of person they'd expect to see in porn; in that case, posting porn would be supporting, rather than defaming, one's character, but those cases are, by far, the minority.

That is to say, unless you're such a slut or manwhore that your own friends will attest to that fact under oath, you have a pretty solid case for defamation of character when someone posts porn of you without your consent.

Comment Re:Freedom of Speech? (Score 1) 328

Lewd acts with a minor are illegal in most places in the world. As a result, photographs and videos of such acts are also illegal; it's got nothing to do with the recording medium and everything to do with the acts being recorded. I have a whole different set of issues with simple possession being a major crime, since there are any number of ways you can innocently come into possession of such materials without knowing it, and simply possessing the material does not mean you're creating a market for it (thereby encouraging its production and contributing to child sexual abuse); creating it or seeking it out, however, should be a crime.

Comment Re:Freedom of Speech? (Score 2) 328

And if I post revenge porn of an ex and he or she should choose not to pursue it, that should be the end of it. They can sue for defamation of character under current laws and they'd have a bullet-proof case, assuming they could prove it was me who posted it. Perhaps my ex knew I was going to post it and he or she is fine with it? Under the proposed new law, that doesn't matter; by posting it after the end of the relationship, I've committed a crime.

Nope, not okay.

Comment Spacedocking? (Score 1) 392

Luckily, tens of thousands of pioneers wouldn't have to be housed all in one starship. Spreading people out among multiple ships also spreads out the risk. Modular ships could dock together for trade and social gatherings

Hrmm.

http://www.urbandictionary.com...

I don't think this will contribute to genetic diversity....

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