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Department Of Justice

January 20, 2012 by · Comments Off on Department Of Justice 

Department Of JusticeDepartment Of Justice, A strange confluence of events brought the question of how to deal with online piracy to the forefront of the American consciousness this week. Protests against the anti-piracy bills, SOPA and PIPA, were the major news of the day on Wednesday with blackouts of big sites across the web. The very next day, MegaUpload, one of the largest sites allegedly enabling piracy on the internet, was shut down as the result of a two year FBI investigation.

By taking unilateral action against a rogue site who’s owners were scattered across the globe, the DOJ showed that it doesn’t need new legislation like SOPA or PIPA to handle piracy. Advocates of the legislation have always said that piracy was costing America billions in jobs and endangering jobs. Stronger laws were needed, they argued, even if they might pose risks of censorship, chill investment in tech and damage the fundamental architecture of the internet.

But the DOJ was able to rely on ProIP, a law passed back in 2008, in order to shut down MegaUpload and arrest seven of its founders. It also worked with the government of New Zealand, which denied bail to the four people arrested there, including the site’s infamous founder, Kim Dotcom. Extradition to the U.S. for trail is under way.

Of course, the debate over how best to deal with piracy is far from over. In response to the indictment of MegaUpload, the hacktivist group Anonymous took down the websites of the DOJ, MPAA and RIAA. And while MegaUpload and its partner sites, like MegaVideo, might seem like a clear cut villian to those who have used it for downloading albums or streaming films, there is still a strong contingent who sees the sudden arrests of its executives as overreaching.

The comment thread on the tech forum Hacker News provides a sample of this strain of thought. “It’s better to allow these sites to continue to exist and demand that they comply with the requests than take them down with the FBI or whatever law enforcement agency. The precedent is far too dangerous. Today it’s Megaupload, tomorrow it will be YouTube,’ wrote user Kermit the Hermit.

Fbi Wikipedia

August 4, 2010 by · Comments Off on Fbi Wikipedia 

Fbi Wikipedia, The Federal Bureau of Investigation has called for Wikipedia to quit using the FBI seal on items in the free online or face legal action possible.

According to a letter dated 28 July, the FBI lawyer David C. Larson said the site is using the seal without the permission of the director of the agency, as required by law. Larson sent the letter to the Wikimedia Foundation, owner of the site.

“The purpose of this letter is to inform you of these legal requirements and seek their enforcement through the elimination of the board of the FBI,” Larson said in the letter available for download by The New York Times.

Wikipedia The agency gave 14 days to remove the seal. “Failure to comply may result in legal action,” the letter said.

In response, the Wikimedia Foundation questioned the FBI’s interpretation of the law governing the use of their label. The nonprofit said the bill was intended to prevent persons or organizations using the seal of posing as the FBI or for commercial use. Wikimedia said he did not meet this criterion.

“While we appreciate their desire to revise the statute to reflect his expansive view of it, the fact is that we must work with the current language of the law, not the version of Section 701 aims to be sent to us, “said attorney Mike free encyclopedia Goodwin said in a letter to the FBI. The letter, dated July 30, was also made available for download by The Times.

In response to a question from InformationWeek, Wikimedia spokesman Jay Walsh confirmed the correspondence with the FBI, and was awaiting the response of the FBI.

“To my knowledge we have not received further communication from the FBI in this matter,” Walsh said in an e-mail sent Tuesday.

FBI Jobs

July 15, 2010 by · Comments Off on FBI Jobs 

FBI Jobs:(USA Today) — I have to admit that I was not surprised when I read the comment piece writer James Sherk’s opinion “Government Jobs: Nice if you can get ’em,” considering that the writer draws a paycheck from the conservative Heritage Foundation. The piece was blatantly biased, anti-union and seething with contempt for government workers (The Forum, July 07).

Yes, federal workers earn good wages and excellent benefits. What should people in the Department of Defense, NASA, the FBI and other agencies to win? Peanuts? Government employees whose jobs vital, important. wages and benefits are an integral part in attracting and keeping good people.

My main complaint concerns the dubious assertion that the federal average worker earns $ 79,000 a year, compared with $ 50,000 a year for private sector worker. That is a false comparison. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics: “The analytical and technical nature of many government agencies resulting in a much higher proportion of professionals, management, business and financial occupations in the Federal Government, compared with all other industries combined.”

The proportion of the types of employees in the federal government is more than double that of private enterprises. That goes a long way toward explaining the difference in average wages.

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