Blast from the Past--prosecutorial misconduct in the Aaron Swartz case

Blast from the Past--prosecutorial misconduct in the Aaron Swartz case--story from September 18, 2012:

US Government Ups Felony Count In JSTOR/Aaron Swartz Case From Four To Thirteen | Techdirt: "Not much has been said about the Aaron Swartz case over the past year as the wheels of "justice" slowly grind their way to an eventual court date. Swartz, the executive director of Demand Progress, was charged with violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, a catch-all designation for "computer activity the US government doesn't like." Swartz had accessed MIT's computer network to download a large number of files from JSTOR, a non-profit that hosts academic journal articles. US prosecutors claimed he "stole" several thousand files, but considering MIT offered this access for free on campus (and the files being digital), it's pretty tough to square his massive downloading with any idea of "theft.". . . "

The prosecutors were squeezing Aaron hard--so hard that he committed suicide.  Isn't that a Department of Justice YOU are proud of! Read the full article here if you want a clue as to the misconduct of the US prosecution.  But Anonymous says they don't forget, and they don't forgive. So I expect the final chapters have yet to be written.

The Aaron Swartz case is just one of many disasters of the US Department of Justice under Eric Holder and Barack Obama--Fast and Furious, DEA murder and obstruction of justice, Kim Dotcom case . . . .

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Will Internet Freedom Be Preserved And Expanded In 2013?

Will Internet Freedom Be Preserved And Expanded In 2013?
WebProNews
CES 2012 was overshadowed by the looming threat of SOPA. At the time, Congressmen Ron Wyden and Darrell Issa met with the tech industry to drum up support for their SOPA alternative – OPEN. SOPA eventually was declared officially dead late last year, ...

Hopefully, Yes.

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Ortiz and Heymann--quite a "pair"

Federal prosecutor Carmen Ortiz, who threatened Aaron Swartz with decades in prison.(Credit: U.S. Department of Justice via cnet.com)

Swartz didn't face prison until feds took over case, report says | Politics and Law - CNET News "State prosecutors who investigated the late Aaron Swartz had planned to let him off with a stern warning, but federal prosecutor Carmen Ortiz took over and chose to make an example of the Internet activist, according to a report in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. Middlesex County's district attorney had planned no jail time, "with Swartz duly admonished and then returned to civil society to continue his pioneering electronic work in a less legally questionable manner," the report (alternate link) said. "Tragedy intervened when Ortiz's office took over the case to send 'a message.'" The report is likely to fuel an online campaign against Ortiz, who has been criticized for threatening the 26-year-old with decades in prison for allegedly downloading a large quantity of academic papers. An online petition asking President Obama to remove from office Ortiz -- a politically ambitious prosecutor . . . .  the sweeping nature of federal computer crime laws allowed Ortiz and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Heymann, who wanted a high-profile computer crime conviction, to pursue felony charges. Heymann threatened the free-culture activist with over 30 years in prison as recently as the week before he killed himself. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a Democrat whose district includes the heart of Silicon Valley, has proposed rewriting those laws. The Boston U.S. Attorney's office was looking for "some juicy looking computer crime cases and Aaron's case, sadly for Aaron, fit the bill," Elliot Peters, Swartz's attorney at the Keker & Van Nest law firm, told the Huffington Post. Heymann, Peters says, thought the Swartz case "was going to receive press and he was going to be a tough guy and read his name in the newspaper."

Well, Ortiz and Heymann will be reading their names alright--although probably not in the context they planned.  Apparently, in their arrogance or ignorance, they thought they were above accountability, all-powerful, "untouchable," and could destroy a life without consequences.

We'll see.

And by the way, the Swartz case was not an anomaly in the way this US Attorney office operated--just read the CNET article for more info.

In the meantime, now we've heard from Anonymous.

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A Cat’s 200-Mile Trek Alone to Return Home

Felines Rock! - A Cat’s 200-Mile Trek Home Leaves Scientists Guessing (New York Times - A version of this article appeared in print on 01/20/2013, on page A19 of the NewYork edition with the headline: A Cat’s 200-Mile Trek Home Leaves Scientists Guessing.) -

"Nobody knows how it happened: an indoor house cat who got lost on a family excursion managing, after two months and about 200 miles, to return to her hometown. Even scientists are baffled by how Holly, a 4-year-old tortoiseshell who in early November became separated from Jacob and Bonnie Richter at an R.V. rally in Daytona Beach, Fla., appeared on New Year’s Eve — staggering, weak and emaciated — in a backyard about a mile from the Richters’ house in West Palm Beach.  . . . . . Barb Mazzola, a 52-year-old university executive assistant, noticed a cat “barely standing” in her backyard in West Palm Beach, struggling even to meow. Over six days, Ms. Mazzola and her children cared for the cat, putting out food, including special milk for cats, and eventually the cat came inside. They named her Cosette after the orphan in Les Misérables, and took her to a veterinarian, Dr. Sara Beg at Paws2Help. Dr. Beg said the cat was underweight and dehydrated, had “back claws and nail beds worn down, probably from all that walking on pavement,” but was “bright and alert” and had no parasites, heartworm or viruses. “She was hesitant and scared around people she didn’t know, so I don’t think she went up to people and got a lift,” Dr. Beg said. “I think she made the journey on her own.” At Paws2Help, Ms. Mazzola said, “I almost didn’t want to ask, because I wanted to keep her, but I said, ‘Just check and make sure she doesn’t have a microchip.’” When told the cat did, “I just cried.” The Richters cried, too upon seeing Holly, who instantly relaxed when placed on Mr. Richter’s shoulder. Re-entry is proceeding well, but the mystery persists. “We haven’t the slightest idea how they do this,” Mr. Galaxy said. “Anybody who says they do is lying, and, if you find it, please God, tell me what it is.”"

I know--but I'm not telling!

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Early Man Shared Florida With Mammoths

Early Man Shared Florida With Mammoths : Discovery News: "“We found that humans came into Florida before the extinction of megafauna -- they were in Florida by 10,000 years ago,” said Bruce MacFadden, a paleontologist at the University of Florida, Gainesville. This is “clearly documenting that humans were widespread in North America.” . . . The new findings echo what other studies have shown in Montana, New Mexico, Arizona, Ohio and elsewhere – that people lived alongside mastodons, mammoths and other massive mammals more than 10 millennia ago, said Kenneth Tankersley, an archaeological geologist at the University of Cincinnati. Scientists still don’t know whether people thought of the giant animals that shared their territory as friends, enemies or food. In some places, evidence suggests that ancient people hunted giant beavers, bear-sized peccaries and mastodons, though the Florida bones offer no clues. Also unanswered is why all of those enormous animals went extinct. . . . "


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Cuban Biscet calls for public defiance of illegitimate Cuban government

Cuban Biscet calls for public defiance of ‘illegitimate’ Cuban government - Cuba - MiamiHerald.com: "“But the fundamental work is here in Cuba, to try to create a grand civic mass movement” that will push for democracy and human rights “in public places, in a non-violent political defiance of the government,” he told El Nuevo Herald by telephone from Havana. Eventually, the movement may become a political party, added Biscet, 51, a physician and founder of the Lawton Foundation for human rights and viewed as one of the most respected and conservative critics of the Fidel and Raúl Castro governments. Dissidents have launched several similar campaigns in recent decades. Some were crushed by the government and others simply faded away for lack of popular support. Biscet and his wife, Elsa Morejón, a nurse, were fired from their jobs in the public health system for their activism and he has served 11 years in prison — the first three for dishonoring a national symbol by flying the Cuban flag upside down, among other charges. He was freed in late 2002, was arrested again one month later and was tried as part of a 2003 crackdown on dissent, known as Cuba’s Black Spring, that sentenced 75 peaceful opposition activists to up to 28 years in prison for “counterrevolutionary activities.” Amnesty International declared him a “prisoner of conscience” in 1999 and President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2007. Biscet was freed in March of 2011 as part of talks between Raúl Castro and the Catholic Church that led to the release of the last of the 2003 prisoners still in jail. Most went directly into exile in Spain, but Biscet and about a dozen others stayed in Cuba. . . . " Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/01/10/3175081/cuban-biscet-calls-for-public.html#emlnl=Business#storylink=cp


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The forces of Internet darkness will strike again

The forces of Internet darkness will strike again | Fox News: "At the end of the conference, Ambassador Terry Kramer, head of the U.S. delegation, noted, “It is clear that the world community is a crossroads in its view of the Internet and its relationship to society in the coming century.” While the importance of global dialogue was made clear in Dubai, so was the fact that the ITU is not the appropriate place for Internet governance."

We will not forget: "the ITU is not the appropriate place for Internet governance."


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Vint Cerf: Internet competition has “evaporated” since dial-up

My buddy, Vint Cerf, was at CES recently--

Vint Cerf: Internet competition has “evaporated” since dial-up | Ars Technica: "Vint Cerf, co-creator of the Internet, said today he is troubled by the prospect of companies like AT&T avoiding government regulation after the transition from traditional phone technology to all-IP networks. Already, he said, competition was decimated when the Internet moved from dial-up providers to cable companies and telcos. Cerf—who made the Internet possible by co-developing the Internet protocol and Transmission Control Protocol technology 40 years ago—was speaking at the Consumer Electronics Show's "Silvers Summit" on technology geared toward the older population. "Some people think silver surfers don't know how to use technology. I have news for you: some of us invented this stuff," the 69-year-old Cerf noted. This happened to be just one day after AT&T described its plans to retire the traditional Public Switched Telephone Network and become an all-IP telco. As we reported, AT&T wants to make this transition without being subject to what it calls "monopoly-era regulatory obligations," which AT&T thinks are unjustified in the Internet age. . ."

Silver surfers? My fur is gray--I guess I qualify!


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Anonymous hacks MIT after Aaron Swartz's death

Anonymous hacks MIT after Aaron Swartz's suicide | Internet & Media - CNET News: " . . . Anonymous targeted at least two MIT Web sites. Lacking the loose-knit group's usual feisty language, the message posted on the Web site was a call for reform in the memory of the late Internet activist. After calling the prosecution of Swartz "a grotesque miscarriage of justice" and "a distorted and perverse shadow of the justice that Aaron died fighting for," Anonymous outlined its list of goals under a section reservedly labeled "Our wishes:"

We call for this tragedy to be a basis for reform of computer crime laws, and the overzealous prosecutors who use them.
We call for this tragedy to be a basis for reform of copyright and intellectual property law, returning it to the proper principles of common good to the many, rather than private gain to the few.
We call for this tragedy to be a basis for greater recognition of the oppression and injustices heaped daily by certain persons and institutions of authority upon anyone who dares to stand up and be counted for their beliefs, and for greater solidarity and mutual aid in response.
We call for this tragedy to be a basis for a renewed and unwavering commitment to a free and unfettered internet, spared from censorship with equality of access and franchise for all.

 MIT Responds to Death of Activist Aaron Swartz, Begins Investigation - Mike Isaac - News - AllThingsD: " . . . . MIT is considered to have tacitly supported the decision by U.S. attorneys Carmen Ortiz and Steve Heymann to continue pursuing Swartz’s criminal prosecution, which left him facing penalties of upwards of 30 years in prison and $1 million in fines. Swartz’s family issued a statement on Saturday, placing some of the blame for Swartz’s death on both MIT and the U.S. Attorney’s office. “Aaron’s death is not simply a personal tragedy. It is the product of a criminal justice system rife with intimidation and prosecutorial overreach,” the statement read. “Decisions made by officials in the U.S. Attorney’s office and at MIT contributed to his death.” The university will conduct a self-audit of its role in the events of the past two years, according to president Reif. “I have asked Professor Hal Abelson to lead a thorough analysis of MIT’s involvement from the time that we first perceived unusual activity on our network in fall 2010 up to the present,” he wrote. “I have asked that this analysis describe the options MIT had and the decisions MIT made, in order to understand and to learn from the actions MIT took. I will share the report with the MIT community when I receive it.” Abelson is a professor of electrical engineering and computer science at MIT, and one of the founding members of both the Creative Commons and the Free Software Foundation. The U.S. Attorney’s office has not responded to a request for comment."

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Rest In Peace Aaron Swartz

Aaron Swartz commits suicide - The Tech: One comment (out of many) - ". . . Aaron represented the very best that youth has to offer the nation. There must have been several forces that drove him down this tragic end, but one, certainly, has to have been the ignorant and despicable governmental thugs that conspired and contributed to this loss. Just check his web site http://www.aaronsw.com to get a hint of his genius and humanity. I for one would like to know the names and organizations of those in government whose active participation caused resulted in this tragic end. My deepest sympathies to his family . . ."

Aaron Swartz, a celebrated internet freedom activist and early developer of ...
BBC News
Aaron Swartz, a celebrated internet freedom activist and early developer of the website Reddit, has died at 26. The activist and programmer took his life in his New York apartment, a relative and the state medical examiner said. His body was found on...

BBC News

Death of internet activist Aaron Swartz prompts flood of Twitter tributes
The Guardian
The death of Aaron Swartz, the Reddit co-founder and internet freedom activist who is reported to have killed himself in New York on Friday, prompted a flood of tributes on Twitter. Given Swartz's status as a committed and prominent advocate for online ...

The Guardian

Aaron Swartz, internet activist and builder of Reddit, dies at 26
The Guardian
A committed advocate for the freedom of information over the internet, Swartz had been facing a trial over allegations of hacking related to the downloading of millions of documents from the online research group JSTOR. Swartz pleaded not guilty last ...

The Guardian

Aaron Swartz, Reddit co-creator and Internet activist, dead at 26
GlobalPost
He also did a fellowship at Harvard's Ethics Center Lab on Institutional Corruption, and was a fervent activist for Internet freedom: Swartz founded Demand Progress, a group that campaigns against censorship of the world-wide web, according to CNN.

Cofounder of Reddit and Internet Freedom Fighter Kills Himself ...
By John Furrier
At the moment the Internet community is have a virtual wake. Aaron was a young star in the tech community who was known for doing the right things for good not money. Apparently on some bogus government shakedown by MIT related ...
SiliconANGLE

Internet freedom activist Aaron Swartz commits suicide - AfterDawn
R.I.P Aaron Swartz. Swartz, the celebrated Internet activist took his own life earlier today. He was 26. The programmer was also one of the original developers of Reddit ...
AfterDawn.com

Aaron Swartz, internet freedom activist, dies aged 26, page 1
By SaltireWarrior
Aaron Swartz, a celebrated internet freedom activist and early developer of the website Reddit, has died at 26. The activist and programmer took his life in his New York apartment, a relative and the state medical examiner said. His body was ...
AboveTopSecret.com New Topics...

Aaron Swartz, Reddit founder and internet freedom activist, commits ...
By Nancy Clayson
Aaron Swartz, a celebrated internet freedom activist and early developer of the website Reddit, has died at the age of 26.
BelleNews.com

Aaron Swartz, who co-authored the RSS 1.0 specification ... - WBEZ
Swartz, who at 14 co-authored the RSS 1.0 specification, which is widely used for publishing news stories, was often described as a brilliant thinker and architect in the Internet freedom movement by his close friends. He was also considered ...
WBEZ - Metro Desk


Rest in Peace, Aaron Swartz.

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The two visions of the internet

The UN's ITU decided in 2012 to join the dark forces--those who do not want the internet to be open and free (Russia, China, some Arab nations, etc.)--

Who Signed The ITU WCIT Treaty... And Who Didn't | Techdirt: " . . . So, what does it all mean? Very little right now. Even those countries that signed on still need to go through a ratification process -- and one hopes that people in some of those countries will realize that it's bad to be supporting a regime that wants political bureaucrats having anything to do with the internet, even if it's dipping a toe in the water. However, many of the countries don't much care about that, and simply want the new rules so they can try to control parts of the internet (and/or profit from it). The rules won't actually go into effect for a while. While they aren't binding, it is pretty customary for signatories to eventually adopt such rules locally. The real story here is a world in which there are two competing visions for the future of the internet -- one driven by countries who believe the internet should be more open and free... and one driven by the opposite. . . these two visions of the internet are unlikely to go away any time soon. The next decade is going to be filled with similar clashes as certain countries seek to limit what the internet can do, for their own political needs and desires. Seeing the initial breakdown of who's in which camp is useful, but this isn't over yet."

Staying Alert--My claws are sharp!


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Activists v ITU -- WCIT Treaty rendered VOID

The new politics of the internet: Everything is connected | The Economist: "WHEN dozens of countries refused to sign a new global treaty on internet governance in late 2012, a wide range of activists rejoiced. They saw the treaty, crafted under the auspices of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), as giving governments pernicious powers to meddle with and censor the internet. For months groups with names like Access Now and Fight for the Future had campaigned against the treaty. Their lobbying was sometimes hyperbolic. But it was also part of the reason the treaty was rejected by many countries, including America, and thus in effect rendered void. The success at the ITU conference in Dubai capped a big year for online activists. In January they helped defeat Hollywood-sponsored anti-piracy legislation, best known by the acronym SOPA, in America’s Congress. A month later, in Europe, they took on ACTA, an obscure international treaty which, in seeking to enforce intellectual-property rights, paid little heed to free speech and privacy. In Brazil they got closer than many would have believed possible to securing a ground-breaking internet bill of rights, the “Marco Civil da Internet”. In Pakistan they helped to delay, perhaps permanently, plans for a national firewall, and in the Philippines they campaigned against a cybercrime law the Supreme Court later put on hold. “It feels like when ‘Silent Spring’ was published,” says James Boyle, an intellectual-property expert at Duke University, North Carolina. . . . "


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Remember the ITU is a Liar

From the Wall Street Journal article by L. GORDON CROVITZ--

"On behalf of the two billion people now online, a look back at 2012, with thanks where it's due: . . . To the United Nations: When the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), a U.N. agency, held its conference in Dubai (WCIT 2012), its leaders promised not to claim power over the Internet and pledged to operate by consensus, not by voting. Late one night, there was a vote of 89 authoritarian regimes against 55 free countries to give governments the U.N.'s blessing to censor the Internet, monitor traffic and lock up online troublemakers. The U.S. walked out. It is unregulated engineers at private companies who run the tens of thousands of networks that make up the Internet. Keeping an open Internet is more valuable than continuing any U.N. agency."

Abolish the ITU! Internet Freedom!

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China tightens Internet restrictions

The following must make the ITU and WCIT really proud--

China tightens Internet restrictions - Salon.com: "China has further restricted Internet usage, legalizing the deletion of posts or pages that contain illicit information and requiring all users to provide their real names to service providers. The new rules, issued on Friday, make it harder for businesses to protect commercial secrets and for individuals to access websites from abroad that the Chinese government believes are politically sensitive, The New York Times reported. The estimated number of Internet users in China has grown to more than 500 million, about 40 percent of the population, the Bangkok Post reported. While netizens are allowed to use pseudonyms, under the new rules they first must provide their real names to service providers, which is expected to stifle conversation on microblogging websites. China’s biggest Internet firm, Sina Corp, reported that the move would reduce traffic to websites like Weibo, China’s version of Twitter. Chinese authorities and Internet companies have always monitored and censored what citizens can say online, but now the government has actually put in place measures that would make deleting possibly controversial posts into law, Reuters reported."

Remember it was China (among other repressive governments) that supported the ITU's attempt to take over the internet at WCIT 2012.


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Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry - The film examines this complex intersection of artistic practice and social activism as seen through the life and art of China's preeminent contemporary artist. From 2008 to 2010, Beijing-based journalist and filmmaker Alison Klayman gained unprecedented access to Ai Weiwei. Klayman documented Ai's artistic process in preparation for major museum exhibitions, his intimate exchanges with family members and his increasingly public clashes with the Chinese government. Klayman's detailed portrait of the artist provides a nuanced exploration of contemporary China and one of its most compelling public figures.

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Thank You Vint and all others who stood up for internet freedom!

As we head into 2013, I'll take a moment to thank all who stood up for internet freedom in 2013, including Vint Cerf--his most recent correspondence below--

Hi Velcro, Over the past few weeks, you stood with millions from all corners of the world who took action in support of a free and open Internet. Your voice was heard. Some governments sought to use the recent meeting of the International Telecommunication Union in Dubai to increase censorship and regulation of the Internet. At the conclusion of the meeting last Friday, 89 countries signed the treaty, while 55 countries said they would not sign or that additional review was needed. We stand with the countries that refused to sign, and we stand with you. We we want to thank you for your actions over the past few weeks. Your voice helped shine a light on a process that would otherwise have been in the dark, and you helped bring the issue of Internet freedom to global prominence. With your support, we can continue to help ensure that governments alone do not direct the future of the Internet. Thank you. Until next time, Vint Cerf Google

Thank You Vint! - http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2012/12/keep-internet-free-and-open.html

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