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From: tjc@hrcca.UUCP ( Tom Chapin )
Newsgroups: soc.women,news.admin
Subject: Re: I ain't afraid of no Batwoman
Message-ID: <1102@hrcca.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 28-Aug-87 08:42:59 EDT
Article-I.D.: hrcca.1102
Posted: Fri Aug 28 08:42:59 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 30-Aug-87 01:49:42 EDT
References: <863@hao.UCAR.EDU> <1442@epimass.EPI.COM> <864@hao.UCAR.EDU> <1112@dasys1.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T - Hickory Ridge - Lisle, IL
Lines: 55
Summary: trying to give the boot
Xref: mnetor soc.women:6705 news.admin:938

In article <1112@dasys1.UUCP>, rsweeney@dasys1.UUCP (Robert Sweeney) writes:
 
> - exactly how could someone be kicked off of the net?  

1) System Administrator removes their account.
	- The censored person gets an account somewhere else, such as a
	  public access system, or fights the action politically
	  (freedom of speech has a large following even now).

2) Netnews Administrator recompiles netnews with the FASCIST option set.
	- The censored can try for a different user id name, send
	  articles for someone else to post, use the options above...

3) Use Nobody's suggestion to expire the person's articles.
	- This will do next to nothing.  Nobody's suggestion only
	  expires articles which have already been successfully
	  posted to a given machine, and if someone reads the article
	  before the Netnews Administrator runs the expire, then they
	  get to read the article.  But the article itself still gets
	  transmitted throughout the network.

4) ALL surrounding sites which exchange the newsgroups which the
   censored person likes to use hack their software reject this persons
   articles.
	- This assumes the improbability of universal cooperation,
	  and assumes admins have the expertise and time to go to all
	  the trouble for one person.  Unlikely.

It is very unlikely that a determined poster can be kept off the net.

> offender's sysadmin and try to convince that person to cut off his access
> to netnews, which would work if the sysadmin capitulated.  But I can't
> see how someone determined to have net access could be kept off.  His/her
> account could be deleted on the original machine, but what's to keep her/him
> from gaining access through other means (such as signing up for a public-
> access system like mine)?  As far as I can see, nothing.  The net could
> put pressure on any site that allowed this person access, but what other
> recourse would it have - short of implementing those 'censorship' programs,
> which would only work if the articles passed through the sites where the
> programs were in operation.  The general trend of net topography, so far
> as I can see, is toward decentralization rather than the 'backbone' system -
> many articles that we receive here at dasys1 have not passed through a
> 'backbone' site yet.
> 
> As stated, I imagine that it would be quite difficult to actually 'kick
> someone off of the net' if that person was determined to stay on.
> 
> -- 
> Robert Sweeney              {sun!hoptoad,cmcl2!phri}!dasys1!rsweeney
> Big Electric Cat Public Access Unix (212) 879-9031 - System Operator
> "You crossed my line of death!"   


-- 
Tom Chapin  	{ihnp4,clyde,moss,ulysses,allegra,etc,etc}!hrcca!tjc