FC: Replies to SurfControl dubs libertarian site "hate speech"

From: Declan McCullagh (declanat_private)
Date: Tue Sep 24 2002 - 12:02:40 PDT

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    Overblocking is not a new concept. Brock Meeks (now at MSNBC.com) and I 
    wrote a piece together over six years ago on the topic, but new twists 
    continue to pop up:
    http://www.eff.org/Publications/Declan_McCullagh/cwd.keys.to.the.kingdom.0796.articl 
    e
    
    Previous Politech message:
    http://www.politechbot.com/p-04014.html
    
    -Declan
    
    ---
    
    Date: Tue, 24 Sep 2002 11:30:37 -0700
    Subject: Re: FC: SurfControl dubs libertarian discussion site "hate speech"
    From: Alan Cabal <a.cabalat_private>
    To: <declanat_private>, <politechat_private>
    
    on 9/23/02 11:43 PM, Declan McCullagh at declanat_private wrote:
    
     > CYBERSPACE - September 19, 2002: LibertyForum
     > (http://www.libertyforum.org), a libertarian web-based news and
     > political discussion site, has been listed as a "hate speech" site
     > shortly after its September 13, 2002 opening. This categorization
     > comes courtesy of SurfControl (http://www.surfcontrol.com), which
     > characterizes itself as "The World's Leading Web Filtering Software
     > Company."
    
    The same outfit has labeled www.whatreallyhappened.com as a "hate site."
    Clearly criticism of Eric Scheinermann (aka "Ariel Sharon") or the Israeli
    state constitutes "hate speech." Also check out this new
    www.campus-watch.org site, a blacklist of critics of Israel in Academia.
    
    This is getting very ugly. McCarthystein, anyone?
    
    Regards,
    
    Alan Cabal
    www.nypress.com
    
    ---
    
    Date: Tue, 24 Sep 2002 12:18:54 -0400
    From: "SIXIT Consulting" <no.spamat_private>
    To: stephen.purdhamat_private
    Cc: christina.freyat_private, pressreleasesat_private,
        Helmut.Forrenat_private, Advocates@self-gov.org, declanat_private
    Subject: Fwd: FC: SurfControl dubs libertarian discussion site "hate
       speech"
    
    [All parties are free to print/release this email.  However, please 
    suppress my email address.]
    
    Dear Mr. Purdham,
    
    As the CEO of SurfControl, you have the right to respond to the following 
    letter.
    
    I visited the SurfControl booth at Networld + Interop in Atlanta on Sept. 
    10th of this year and was impressed with your product.  When I asked the 
    rep who controlled the content of the filtering he replied that the client 
    had sole control, much like a firewall.  I pressed on and asked if 
    SurfControl had any influence on the filtering.  He again stressed that the 
    client had sole control over the filtering.  I was surprised when I read 
    the following letter.  I did go to 
    <http://mtas.surfcontrol.com/mtas/MTAS.asp> and test www.libertyforum.org 
    and it did come back as "Hate Speech".  Do you care to comment on the 
    letter and my results?
    
    Sincerely,
    Robert Reese~
    SIXIT Consulting
    63 Red Top Cir.
    Emerson GA 30137
    
    ---
    
    
    
    
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