Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cornell!uw-beaver!blake!gwangung
From: gwangung@blake.acs.washington.edu (Roger Tang)
Newsgroups: news.misc
Subject: Re: Expansion of rec.humor.funny to other networks
Message-ID: <1441@blake.acs.washington.edu>
Date: 3 Apr 89 03:57:27 GMT
References: <439@corpane.UUCP> <3100@ddsw1.MCS.COM> <9773@bloom-beacon.MIT.EDU> <1989Mar16.165623.20831@utzoo.uucp> <487@tiamat.fsc.com> <749@aoa.UUCP> <3131@alembic.UUCP>
Reply-To: gwangung@blake.acs.washington.edu (Roger Tang)
Organization: University of Washington, Seattle
Lines: 28

In article <3131@alembic.UUCP> csu@alembic.UUCP (Dave Mack) writes:
>In article <749@aoa.UUCP> carl@aoa.UUCP (Carl Witthoft) writes:
>>Heyhey. Dont' you guys know the difference between freedom of expression
>>and offensive behaviour? Free example:
>>1) I disagree that you should be allowed to say anything you wish about
>>someone so long as you don't actually make criminal accusations.
>>2) You dumb f***s have no *** idea what you're talking about. You are
>>all probably Commies anyway, so go eat s**t.
>>Now, should both of these examples really be covered by free speech?
>
>Yes.
	Sure.  But a site also has the right to encourage the second
person to exercise his right at another site.  Or temporarily suspend #2's
posting priviliges.  Or put #2 on probation.  

	Legally, the rights of a system administrator to police his/her
site has little to do with the First Amendment.  Only when an agent of
the state, such as a state-run university, can we even entertain First
Amendment arguements--and even then, only under certain conditions,
depending on the terms access to posting was granted.

	Ethically and philosophically, of course, it's a different
situation.  But even here, I'm not willing to give any and every poster
free and untrammelled posting rights.  A poster must take some responsibility
for his privilige (I repeat, PRIVILIGE);  there's absolutely nothing wrong
with a temporary suspension of posting privileges, a probation period or
a restriction to local groups only IF a user violates standard user
etiquette.