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September 05, 2007
Bill of Rights
Bill of Rights: Marc Canter and other signatories write up "A Bill of Rights for Users of the Social Web". I'm in agreement with the goals (people able to monitor, edit, move the digital data they themselves generate), but the phrasing bothers me. The US Bill of Rights was not a list of entitlements, but a list of specific spheres in which the federal government may not exert force upon individuals. I'd be happy if they set up a certifying body, where sites can gain badges or whatever saying they support the principles Marc espouses. But calling it a "Bill of Rights" tends to trivialize personal capability of equalizing force, the laissez-faire approach to religious choice, and the rest of the natural human rights which are beyond government's scope, by comparing it with a set of service requests between two consenting parties. "The time has come to demand our rights!"... I think it may be more effective to entice than to demand... more effective to draw a clear line beyond which you will not personally participate.
Posted by JohnDowdell at September 5, 2007 08:41 AM
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Comments
It also comes off as a stunningly self-involved little effort. Considering the events of the last six years and the open questions relating to government and the real Bill of Rights in the US, making declarations about "fundamental rights" with regards to people posting on the social web verges on the contemptible.
Posted by: Eric at September 10, 2007 01:12 PM