10 sats \ 3 replies \ @Muuny 12 Oct 2023
good intro, and thank you for summarizing this extremely important issue.
My question on the broader topic is, do laws actually have to matter?
"freedom, happiness or the grave" -Snowden
reply
123 sats \ 1 reply \ @sethforprivacy OP 12 Oct 2023
They certainly don't have to matter, and the ideal tech works with or without government approval.
But many people who are on the fence will err on the side of doing the "legal" thing, even if it means giving up freedom, so while we still can I think it's valuable to fight legal battles like this and raise community awareness.
reply
0 sats \ 0 replies \ @kepford 15 Oct 2023
Well put. In general when speaking of legality vs freedom those with less to lose and more to gain by breaking laws are the most likely to do it. Drug dealers are an example of this. There are plenty of immoral yet legal actions that are highly profitable. Look at the legal drug dealers.
Another example is home schooling parents. In many US states home schooling was illegal but parents did it anyway until the laws were changed to accommodate home schooling. Segregation is another example. The governments enforced segregation but some resisted. Peaceful resistance is the best way to push back for those that can do it.
reply
10 sats \ 0 replies \ @kandycoder 12 Oct 2023
Code can be brutal law sometimes. It gets gray when there is a mistake and the wrong person is in possession of data (i.e. funds) that do not "rightfully" belong to them. (Granted this hinges on the definition of "rightful".) In such a case you have no other recourse than to appeal to a real-life court or appeal to the honesty and goodwill of the adversary. The recent mishap with F2Pool is an example that I think showed the Golden Way. I don't agree with those who said F2Pool should have kept the incorrect fee; when the tech enforces brutal justice, it devolves upon human beings to show mercy. As this brings out the best in people, it obviates the need for courts, and I think that is a beautiful thing. But a dog-eat-dog world without courts where code is law could be extremely harsh. The moral of the story is: let us all strive to live in a way that makes courts unnecessary.
reply
0 sats \ 0 replies \ @shyfire 12 Oct 2023
Thanks for the work writing this up
reply