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If you make an obvious joke, even one in rather bad taste, and you could find yourself with a criminal record.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/may/10/tweeter-fined-spoof-message

This is just plain silly. It's blindingly obvious to even the most causal observer that his comments could not be translated as a bomb threat by anyone but the most paranoid jobsworth.

What a a gross violation of civil liberties and ludicrous waste of a taxpayers money.

Fingers crossed the incoming government will try to curb this Gak but I'm not holding my breath.

Yikes.

Asinine to the extreme.

I play 40k with a guy that was on his high school shooting team and, due to intense circumstances, was worn out and in an IM said "I feel like shooting somebody." The government got word of this and he was in bed shortly after when several police officers busted down his bedroom door (to which he immediately woke then started swinging without knowing who was there). They took him to a building for questioning and asked him all sorts of things like if he sexually active, when was the last time and they would ask him the same questions multiple times. Eventually they got it sorted out but he was banned form shooting team for half a year and he was the leader of the number 2 shooting team in the state at the time. That same night he received phone calls from the other schools who had shooting teams to see if he was coming to the next event or not. I'm doing my best not to mess up how he tells it, and he's not the type to spout bs for the attention

What an utter waste of everyone's time and money.

well honestly, I think that anyone who uses twitter should be fined regardless of the content of the message (its a fething dumb service... nobody gives a gak about you unless your a famous fething celebrity, and even then, nobody SHOULD give a gak about you...)... so this is a step in the right direction!

Well, when they get around to putting listening devices in all the lamp posts in the land, I'm sure most of the population will be fined or put into prison for all the off the cuff comments and complaints that are made about society, work places, bosses, random people, etc.

I just hope that the government hurries up and develops those thought control chips to ensure that I don't deviate from the proscribed behavior protocols they have laid out for me!

The court heard that Chambers, like thousands of other travellers frustrated by the foul weather at the time, had simply suffered "a moment of frustration" because his plans to fly to Ireland – for a blind date with one of his Twitter contacts – looked ruined.

He deserved it.

article wrote:Officers later deleted the tweet and impounded his iPhone and two computers. Chambers claimed after his arrest that he had to guide them through the details of what Twitter was and how it worked.

Hi-freaking-larious.

His only mistake was not using an emoticon.

I had something very similar happen to me in highschool that resulted in my expulsion. Irrational nationalistic fear is a pretty disgusting thing.

ShumaGorath wrote:I had something very similar happen to me in highschool that resulted in my expulsion. Irrational nationalistic fear is a pretty disgusting thing.

Story time!

LuciusAR wrote:http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/may/10/tweeter-fined-spoof-message

Fingers crossed the incoming government will try to curb this Gak but I'm not holding my breath.

"Robin Hood Airport"? Really? How about "Port Friar Tuck" and "Maid Marion Bus Station"? I'm thinking the whole thing is a joke...

You live in England, the only country in the world with more pervasive surveillance than the US. Best of luck...

Vladsimpaler wrote:

ShumaGorath wrote:I had something very similar happen to me in highschool that resulted in my expulsion. Irrational nationalistic fear is a pretty disgusting thing.

Story time!

I am waiting to hear about how Shuma taped dozens of hot dogs around his chest, wrapped a towel around his head, and ran throughout the school screaming, "JIHAD!"

ShumaGorath wrote:I had something very similar happen to me in highschool that resulted in my expulsion. Irrational nationalistic fear is a pretty disgusting thing.

I don't know what you said, but you get +1,000 internet points for having said it.

I was suspended from highschool for a week after re-programming the splash screens on the school's graphical calculators to display 'colourful language' rather than the makers logo. Best part was that they couldn't figure out how to change them back and had to ask me to show them how it was done

Man If I hear another one of these "miscarriage of justice" story's I'm gonna shoot a judge in the face.

"He was fined £385 by district judge Jonathan Bennett and ordered to pay £600 costs and a £15 victims' surcharge."

What the hell? Does someone send the airport the £15?

The whole fine is ridiculous, but that last £15 would be the bit that would get me to blow my top.

What is interesting is the comment regarding the 'context of the times'.

The climate of fear is all pervasive. Terrorists win again.

Technically I would say that we lost, and the terrorist didn't really gain much of anything, besides the ability to instill more fear.

In terms of winning anything, I think we got a tricycle with two wheels in the back.

Wrexasaur wrote:

Vladsimpaler wrote:

ShumaGorath wrote:I had something very similar happen to me in highschool that resulted in my expulsion. Irrational nationalistic fear is a pretty disgusting thing.

Story time!

I am waiting to hear about how Shuma taped dozens of hot dogs around his chest, wrapped a towel around his head, and ran throughout the school screaming, "JIHAD!"

I bet it was because they were Pork Hot Dogs on a Friday, and that it's offensive to Christians!

JohnHwangDD wrote:"Robin Hood Airport"? Really? How about "Port Friar Tuck" and "Maid Marion Bus Station"? I'm thinking the whole thing is a joke...

No, it's a real place.

George Spiggott wrote:

JohnHwangDD wrote:"Robin Hood Airport"? Really? How about "Port Friar Tuck" and "Maid Marion Bus Station"? I'm thinking the whole thing is a joke...

No, it's a real place.

So this is an example of British humor?
____

Kragura wrote:Man If I hear another one of these "miscarriage of justice" story's I'm gonna shoot a judge in the face.

*forwards this to the Australian Home Office*

...

*puts his feet up and gets out the popcorn*

...

*waits for Australian SWAT to shoot Kragura's dog in front of his kid*

The Governments of our countries know what is best. I mean, the same government that gave us the DMV, Tax forms, etc, should be able to regulate what is OK to say and what is just too darn dangerous for us simple folk to contemplate.

Anyways, this is another example of what happens when a government thinks has waaaaaay to much control over their people. Lanched a raid against him for saying something in jest? WTF!!! Didn't they investigate it before getting all police state on him?

I was suspended from highschool for a week after re-programming the splash screens on the school's graphical calculators to display 'colourful language' rather than the makers logo. Best part was that they couldn't figure out how to change them back and had to ask me to show them how it was done

The same thing happend to me but with school computers. I was suspended for two days, after they made me change it. They were really mad because I used the school's beloved football team as the basis of the naughty phrase

Gonna party like its 1984 (IE quietly)..

Someone in Australia got sacked for a twitter message recently.. I think it was a politician.

Twitter should have a disclaimer like..

Welcome to Twitter the only social networking software able to ruin your life in 150 characters or less.

Its been a good idea to be careful about what you say on the internet for quite some time.

Someone where I work is (or has) been pulled over the coals recently because of what they were saying on facebook while they were supposedly off sick

I wonder if the Coalition will start clarifying some of the draconian laws imposed upon us by Blair.

Its way too easy to be labelled as someone unpleasant for no good reason in the UK nowadays.

Orlanth=unpleasant

Sorry could not resist

M.

Cannerus_The_Unbearable wrote:I play 40k with a guy that was on his high school shooting team and, due to intense circumstances, was worn out and in an IM said "I feel like shooting somebody." The government got word of this and he was in bed shortly after when several police officers busted down his bedroom door (to which he immediately woke then started swinging without knowing who was there). They took him to a building for questioning and asked him all sorts of things like if he sexually active, when was the last time and they would ask him the same questions multiple times. Eventually they got it sorted out but he was banned form shooting team for half a year and he was the leader of the number 2 shooting team in the state at the time. That same night he received phone calls from the other schools who had shooting teams to see if he was coming to the next event or not. I'm doing my best not to mess up how he tells it, and he's not the type to spout bs for the attention

Where the damn fudge nuggets do you live?! High School SHOOTING Teams?!! That doesn't sound right at all. I can't even imagine a school where they would actually promote shooting guns as a school sport or activity. But I live in Minnesota though and you're in Texas, I guess they like their guns.

HiveFleetGoliath wrote:

Cannerus_The_Unbearable wrote:I play 40k with a guy that was on his high school shooting team and, due to intense circumstances, was worn out and in an IM said "I feel like shooting somebody." The government got word of this and he was in bed shortly after when several police officers busted down his bedroom door (to which he immediately woke then started swinging without knowing who was there). They took him to a building for questioning and asked him all sorts of things like if he sexually active, when was the last time and they would ask him the same questions multiple times. Eventually they got it sorted out but he was banned form shooting team for half a year and he was the leader of the number 2 shooting team in the state at the time. That same night he received phone calls from the other schools who had shooting teams to see if he was coming to the next event or not. I'm doing my best not to mess up how he tells it, and he's not the type to spout bs for the attention

Where the damn fudge nuggets do you live?! High School SHOOTING Teams?!! That doesn't sound right at all. I can't even imagine a school where they would actually promote shooting guns as a school sport or activity. But I live in Minnesota though and you're in Texas, I guess they like their guns.

They were commonplace about a half century ago. They've diminished almost completely since.

HiveFleetGoliath wrote:High School SHOOTING Teams?!! That doesn't sound right at all. I can't even imagine a school where they would actually promote shooting guns as a school sport or activity. But I live in Minnesota though and you're in Texas, I guess they like their guns.

You're in Minnesota and you don't think target shooting is a proper activity? You sure you're even in America? Much less a state with a hunting season?