Cyber Bullying Law

[Thomas M. Miovas Jr.]

There is a new cyberbullying law out there working its way through the legal system that will basically hold someone accountable for someone else's bad feelings of being emotionally hurt by those on the Internet. I agree with most of the commentators in this story that there already exists statutes to cover this, such as harassment and stalking laws. I certainly don't think someone ought to go to jail for saying something mean about someone, and if you don't like dealing with someone, go find a better forum or don't deal with those individuals. Supposedly, some young girl was driven to suicide due to cyberbullying. While harassment and stalking can lead to psychological problems, current law already covers that, with not only anti-harassment laws, but there are already laws (at least in some states) that makes it illegal to intentionally give someone a psychological problem associated with harassments and stalking.

I think this is yet another democrat grab for power over the individual and an attempt to set up a nanny state where people will not be held responsible for choosing their friends and associates carefully. No one force that girl to go to those pages on that forum; and I would think that one could block others from making comments on most of them anyhow.

I think the bottom line is that if you can't take the heat, then get out of the kitchen -- i.e. do not participate in forums that are aggravating your psychological problems.

[chuckleslord]

but, Thomas, if we say that the victim has the power of choice, we give up our power of nanny-state. and we can't allow such things to occur. because, we all know, that if people are held responsible for themselves, they'll destroy everything... for us, that is.

[IchorFigure]

How ridiculous is it the Dems are seen as the youthful and internet savvy party while they simultaneously wish to censor it.

[Thomas M. Miovas Jr.]

I would like to point out that if the woman pretending to be a thirteen year old knew that the child in question had a psychological problem, and she deliberately tried to mess with that child to deliberately screw her mind up further, then this is tremendously evil -- one of the most evil things that can be done to another person. However, whether she should go to jail for doing that would depend only on if she violated the child's individual rights or not. And in this particular case, I don't see how the woman violated the rights of the child. If the user agreement of the forum said not to harass others, then she may well have violated the user agreement and should have been kicked off. But I don't see the evidence that complaints were filed against the adult to the moderators of the forum. And if that didn't get her kicked off, then the best thing to do would be to leave that forum.

I also think the young girl was possibly too much into trying to remain in a clique -- i.e. social metaphysics. Nonetheless, she still has the responsibility, insofar as a child does, to choose her friends and associates carefully.

There are definitely evil people on the Internet; and animosity tends to bring them out. So one definitely ought to be careful. Even as an adult, I made some bad choices of who to deal with via the Internet out of too much a sense of safety of them not being in my life immediately, so I am not just speaking abstractly, since it can happen. In other words, be careful out there!

[Jill]

The woman pretending to be a thirteen year old should be arrested for fraud, not for bullying.

Even as an adult, I made some bad choices of who to deal with via the Internet out of too much a sense of safety of them not being in my life immediately, so I am not just speaking abstractly, since it can happen. In other words, be careful out there!

Same as me! Good advice.