Re: Junk Mail

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Vicki Richman (vicric@panix.com)
Sun, 26 Jan 1997 08:32:57 -0500 (EST)


Terry Carroll has written:

> The Fourteenth Amendment doesn't all governmental discriminations: only
> certain ones, such as discrimination based on race, gender, legitimacy of
> birth, and citizenship. For example, my local government discriminates
> against persons driving more than 25 MPH in a school zone when children
> are present, and that's quite constitutional. As mentioned earlier, it's
> quite constitutional to discriminate between someone who sends a solicited
> fax and someone who sends an unsolicited fax.

The laws on driving prohibit actions. Besides, the right to
drive an automobile (unlike the right to own a gun) is not
Constitutionally protected. It's a privilege of which
drivers must continually prove themselves worthy.

I'm arguing that your proposed legislation against spammers
is based on intention, not action. We have a Constitutional
right to send mail. Your legislation attempts to deny that
right to a class of mailers with the wrong motives.

> A bigger problem is the First Amendment, but I think that the restrictions
> I propose would be well within the time/place/manner types of restrictions
> that have been repeatedly upheld by the courts.

Well, yes, exactly. The 14th strengthens the 1st, among its
other provisions.

My final point: E-mail is driven by digital code --
software programs. We're better off stopping spam by writing
better code than by writing more laws.

Regards,
Vicki



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