OrbWeaver on 4/12/2007 at 17:08
Quote Posted by Carini
It's called mental health.
Where "mental health" is defined as "the opinion of the majority codified in various medical literature and used by healthcare professionals and society at large to categorise people into 'healthy' and 'unhealthy' based on their conformance to it".
Depending on one's axioms and reasoning, suicide may be the logical choice for some people (although almost certainly not in this instance).
Trappin on 4/12/2007 at 17:21
As provided under the uniform penal code,
in other words each states statutory language is basically the same as follows
1).Prohibiting behavior, any person who willfully, maliciously, and repeatedly
a).”Harasses”
Means engages in a knowing and willful course of conduct directed at a specific person
that seriously alarms, annoys, torments, or terrorizes the person, and that serves no legitimate purpose.
b).”Harasses a minor child “
Means knowing and willful conduct directed at a specific child that seriously alarms, annoys, torments, or terrorizes the child, and that serves no legitimate purpose. The conduct must be such as would cause a reasonable child to suffer substantial emotional distress, and actually cause the victim to suffer
substantial emotional distress.
c).”Credible Threat”
Means a verbal or written threat, including that performed through the use of “any” electronic communication device, or a threat implied by a pattern of conduct or a combination of verbal, written, or electronically communicated statements and conduct, made with the intent to place the person that is the target of the threat in reasonable fear for his or her safety or the safety of his or her family,
d).”Electronic Communication”
The term “electronic communication device” means and includes, computers, internet and email applications, and is not limited to, telephones, cellular phones, video recorders, fax machines, or pagers.
e).”The ability to carry out the threat”
It is not necessary to prove that the defendant had the intent to actually carry out the threat.The present incarceration of a person making the threat shall not be a bar to prosecution
Ripped from a comment at protein wisdom.
Mr.Duck on 4/12/2007 at 18:20
Quote Posted by Pyrian
In the end, I'm glad they're not prosecuting. If insulting people on the internet were criminal, most of this forum
would be hauled off
to the Chair.Fixed :cool:
37637598 on 4/12/2007 at 18:58
If there was a law passed to abolish freedom of speech, then I guess the constitution is just a big old used piece of toilet paper of which the poop smears just happened to look like words making up a foundation to a free country, and exact signatures of the signees.
I think if someone is so weak as to resort to suicide, the parents aren't doing the best they could be. When I was young I almost did, but something told me that things would be ok. I look back now and just see how stupid it was, but when you're in the position, you see no way out. When people are making fun of you, your parents dis-like you, you're raised weird so you're too scared to talk to new people/ make new friends, you literally feel that nothing good will come, and you also have a desire for attention. Hoping that someone will find you, bring you to a hospital, and everyone else will see how it has affected you and suddenly change.
I still think suicide is very selfish, but for a child it is just sad. If someone feels that un-loved, perhaps they're better off.
Pyrian on 4/12/2007 at 19:58
Huh - so the guy who created the account which was used to send the messages has been hospitalized for psychiatric treatment. Interesting...
Starrfall on 4/12/2007 at 20:11
Quote Posted by Trappin
As provided under the uniform penal code,
in other words each states statutory language is basically the same as follows
You (or the comment-maker) probably mean the model penal code and it doesn't contain "each states statutory language".
If you don't mean the model penal code, then you're probably talking about something that is basically made-up garbage.
demagogue on 4/12/2007 at 20:11
I think it is, and he was just trying to say as a shorthand you can trust the states to have basically the same language. But your point is still good; the language among state is usually so different that you can't trust the model language very far, even as a shorthand.
Quote Posted by 37637598
If there was a law passed to abolish freedom of speech, then I guess the constitution is just a big old used piece of toilet paper
What are you talking about? The US has lots of laws and principles that abridge freedom of speech all the time ... fighting words, incitement, hate speech, flag burning, certain kinds of solicitation and advertising ...
In European constitutions they admit speech has to be balanced against other things. In the US they do the exact same thing in practice, but then they pull a bait and switch by saying that free speech is absolute, but these bad things were never speech in the first place to be protected. But they sure look like speech.
I think the European way is much more straightforward and logical. In the US, you have the absurdity of judges arbitrarily drawing lines (and often disagreeing!) about what they think is speech absolutely-protected as if it were the word of God and what is nothing, noise they can shut down without batting an eye. They're getting ready to pass a law in this state that clarifies that this internet speech was destructive noise all along.
But you can't blame them; some types of speech really do need to be controlled. The US Constitution isn't toilet paper, but it's old fashioned with the all-or-nothing language sometimes, which can encourage this kind of perverse lawmaking.
catbarf on 4/12/2007 at 21:50
Very well-written post demagogue. I couldn't agree more.
Aerothorn on 4/12/2007 at 22:55
"When Megan's mother returned home, she found her daughter crying at the computer. After reading the messages, she criticized her daughter for using inappropriate language, Banas said."
While I'm certainly not blaming the mother for what happened (playing the blame game with suicide is a stupid thing to do), that was a remarkably unemphatic response.
And unlike (apparently) most of the folks on this board, I can definitely empathize with the girl. It's hard to deal with flames if you haven't built up a resistance to them.
SD on 4/12/2007 at 23:02
Quote Posted by Pyrian
Huh - so the guy who created the account which was used to send the messages has been hospitalized for psychiatric treatment. Interesting...
Not so much interesting as it'll-look-good-when-he's-in-court-ting.
Quote Posted by Aerothorn
And unlike (apparently) most of the folks on this board, I can definitely empathize with the girl. It's hard to deal with flames if you haven't built up a resistance to them.
There's an old saying that springs to mind: "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen".
