Richard ODwyer extradition petition

26/06/2012

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TV Shack seized
In January 2012 we reported on the US attempt to extradite UK citizen Richard O'Dwyer to the USA. Richard was one of many British citizens wanted by the US authorities yet in most people's eyes he and others were not criminals. Any justice that they needed to face should have been possible in the UK. The extradition of UK citizens such as Richard and pensioner Christopher Tappin end up looking purely vindictive.

Richards's alleged "crime" was creating and operating a website. TV Shack offered links to sites where users could download movies and the like. He did not force visitors to the site, to follow the link nor recommend that they do so. He offered a go between service.

At the time of his arrest his actions were not illegal in the UK. That loophole has since been closed. However that is another reason his extradition to face US justice is nonsense. In our earlier report we wrote, "" under the so-called dual criminality rule, since he has not been charged for an offence in the UK, the US has no right to extradite him". The UK should respect this rule instead of simply handing Richard to the US,over like a lamb to the slaughter."  Six months later that still stands.

Yesterday it was made public that Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales had begun an online petition in the hope that Richard's extradition will be stopped. It is coped here with the necessary link which we hope you will follow and sign:

Stop the extradition of Richard O'Dwyer to the USA

Hi,

I am writing to you to stop the extradition of British citizen, Richard O'Dwyer to the USA.

I’m concerned about this case because O'Dwyer is not a US citizen, his site (TVShack.net) was not hosted there, and most of his users were not from the US. I don’t understand why America is trying to prosecute a UK citizen for an alleged crime which took place on UK soil. If there was a crime it should be investigated and tried here in the UK, not in the US.

When operating his site, Richard O'Dwyer was careful to always try and play by the rules: on the few occasions he received takedown notices, he complied. His site hosted links, like a search-engine does, not copyrighted content, and these were submitted by users. Both of these are protected in the USA.

Copyright is an important institution, serving a beneficial moral and economic purpose. But that does not mean that copyright can or should be unlimited. It does not mean that we should abandon time honored moral and legal principles to allow endless encroachments on our civil liberties in the interests of the moguls of Hollywood.

I’m aware that both parties in the coalition government criticised the unfair extradition treaty when in opposition, and more recently David Cameron and Theresa May have spoken of the need to review it.

But for Richard there’s no time for a lengthy review. The USA is pushing hard to extradite him now. So please, for Richard and his family stop this extradition.

Sincerely,

[Your name]

You can sign the petition here.

In the time it took to put this report together the petition increased from 40,000 signatures to 50,000. Good luck to Richard.

Tags: Extradition treaty with US, Richard O'Dwyer extradition, extradition from UK to US, Jimmy Wales petition, Wikipedia founder,TV shack creator, Stop Richard O'Dwyer extradition

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US Internet privacy changes

28/02/2012

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Obama Privacy Bill of Rights: Is It What the U.S. Needs Or Not? 

The post here was written in February 2012. Today July 11, 2012 there is news which relates to the article. Find it at the end of the report, after you refresh your memories as to the original content.

This blogger receives updates from various companies online. The latest included information on possible Internet privacy changes. It seems that many Western countries are intent on preventing us maintaining our Internet freedoms. Recently TEK reported that the Canadian government were looking at making changes. The UK has limited its users freedoms also. The latest email contained information about proposed US changes. Here is what it said:

"The Obama Administration announced a privacy plan last week in hopes of increasing protections for consumer privacy. The Administration has been working toward this effort for several months and has created a framework consisting of a Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights, a multi-stakeholder process to determine how the rights will apply to the context of business, an adequate enforcement model, and a commitment to strengthen interoperability between the privacy standards in the U.S. and its global partners.

While privacy advocates welcomed the proposal, for the most part, some of them have voiced concerns about the enforcement of the plan. Others, including Adam Thierer, a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, have also spoken out in opposition of the White House’s proposal.

According to Thierer, the intentions at the core of the plan appear to be good, but the consequences that may result instead could be very harmful. For instance, he believes the framework is strikingly similar to the privacy laws and regulations in Europe.

He told us that, if fully executed, the Administration’s approach could be damaging to consumers and competition for Internet businesses. In addition, Thierer said the plan could limit new services and lead to more government regulations over the Web.

In the White Paper released, the Administration asks Congress to adopt the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights and give the FTC and state attorneys general the power to enforce them. However, given the election year and other pressing issues, Thierer pointed out that it was unlikely that anything would happen in this regard this year.

Do you think the U.S. needs “Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights”? We’d love to hear your opinion"

There you have it. It is for you to decide how this may affect you and whether you find it acceptable. 

July 11, 2012, RT has reported that last Friday US President Obama "quietly" signed an Executive Order allowing the White House to control all private communications in the country in the name of national security. What!
 
The full RT report can be found here.

A pertinent line or two that you may find interesting reads, In explaining the order, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) writes that the president has authorized the DHS "the authority to seize private facilities when necessary, effectively shutting down or limiting civilian communications." 

Make of that what you will!


Tags: SOPA, internet privacy, Obama signs order, US President Obama, US privacy

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