Who is behind RightToSpeak.ca?

[Connie Fournier]

A few days ago a site called RightToSpeak.ca popped up online. I noticed that several bloggers have been promoting it and urging people to go there and sign the petition. I'm going to say straight out that, if you post anonymously, you'd be crazy to go and sign that petition.

We don't know who is running the site, so we don't know what they are really doing with the information they collect for the petition. And, when you sign that petition, your IP address can easily be collected at the same time, matching the two pieces of information together.

I don't want to sound paranoid, but I wouldn't give my personal information to a site that has no identifiable owner.

Just sayin'.

[CdnRepublican]

Signing a petition or viewing a site will not land you in jail......it is good to be paranoid but defending free speech and the right to think needs support.

No i have nothing to do with the site.

Seems that the site is offering people a voice. Nothing wrong with it.

Had a look, looks fine to moi.

[Connie Fournier]

They are collecting personal information, and nobody knows who is behind it. People should understand that, if they are posting elsewhere anonymously, leaving their information on that site provides the site owner with a direct link between their IP address and their contact information.

That is exactly what we were in court last week fighting about.

It may "look fine" to you, but what is being done with that information?

It's a legitimate question.

[Connie Fournier]

Put another way, I could put up a blog saying that I support Section 13 and have a petition attached to it so that I could get IP addresses and names of people on the other side.

When you look at the extremes the other side went to to find the John Does, it is rational to worry about people giving up their own privacy to someone anonymous.

If the people who run that site are legit, why are they hiding?

[StrictlyRight]

Put another way, I could put up a blog saying that I support Section 13 and have a petition attached to it so that I could get IP addresses and names of people on the other side.

When you look at the extremes the other side went to to find the John Does, it is rational to worry about people giving up their own privacy to someone anonymous.

If the people who run that site are legit, why are they hiding?

Hi Connie,

I absolutely understand your frustrations. I had posted a thread about it yesterday which got deleted. The girl behind it is a personal friend of mine from Saskatchewan, Alexandra Hutton (former Conservative party employee.) It was started by her and a group of students.

I'm going to be chatting with her today about the concerns people have raised. I suppose that would make an interesting discussion question for you and the other FDers, what information would you like RightToSpeak to provide so that you would be more comfortable signing the petition?

[Edward Kennedy]

Constance is cautious and rightly so. Some of us are not, and I am one of them.

Anyone wants to come get me, you have a warm welcome in store...BTW I will be here all day doing taxes, if any ROPP, KP, RCMP, CSIS or even rockhead, francis a hole, turdcitylieberal, swillella, or even crybaby want to visit, I am ready baby!!!

Would love to discuss free speech issues I have with hrcs...hey jenny, wanna come visit, you could be here in two hours...bring some of the other dipheads with you.

[Connie Fournier]

Put another way, I could put up a blog saying that I support Section 13 and have a petition attached to it so that I could get IP addresses and names of people on the other side.

When you look at the extremes the other side went to to find the John Does, it is rational to worry about people giving up their own privacy to someone anonymous.

If the people who run that site are legit, why are they hiding?

Hi Connie,

I absolutely understand your frustrations. I had posted a thread about it yesterday which got deleted. The girl behind it is a personal friend of mine from Saskatchewan, Alexandra Hutton (former Conservative party employee.) It was started by her and a group of students.

I'm going to be chatting with her today about the concerns people have raised. I suppose that would make an interesting discussion question for you and the other FDers, what information would you like RightToSpeak to provide so that you would be more comfortable signing the petition?

Your thread hasn't been deleted, it was just moved to a private forum temporarily until we could find out what we were dealing with.

I think if would be good if they had some kind of privacy statement on their site saying what they were going to use the name and address information for, and, ideally, they shouldn't be collecting IP addresses at all. She should check to see if her software and/or her server logs are keeping that information.

It is the match between the online identity (through the IP address) and the personal contact information that is the issue. This is especially important in a legal climate where a Canadian webmaster can be compelled to turn over that information.

If she wants to talk to me, I'd be happy to have a discussion. And, if it can be done in a way that anonymous members are safe, we could probably even help her promote it with a banner ad etc.

[Edward Kennedy]

Put another way, I could put up a blog saying that I support Section 13 and have a petition attached to it so that I could get IP addresses and names of people on the other side.

When you look at the extremes the other side went to to find the John Does, it is rational to worry about people giving up their own privacy to someone anonymous.

If the people who run that site are legit, why are they hiding?

Hi Connie,

I absolutely understand your frustrations. I had posted a thread about it yesterday which got deleted. The girl behind it is a personal friend of mine from Saskatchewan, Alexandra Hutton (former Conservative party employee.) It was started by her and a group of students.

I'm going to be chatting with her today about the concerns people have raised. I suppose that would make an interesting discussion question for you and the other FDers, what information would you like RightToSpeak to provide so that you would be more comfortable signing the petition?

Your thread hasn't been deleted, it was just moved to a private forum temporarily until we could find out what we were dealing with.

I think if would be good if they had some kind of privacy statement on their site saying what they were going to use the name and address information for, and, ideally, they shouldn't be collecting IP addresses at all. She should check to see if her software and/or her server logs are keeping that information.

It is the match between the online identity (through the IP address) and the personal contact information that is the issue. This is especially important in a legal climate where a Canadian webmaster can be compelled to turn over that information.

If she wants to talk to me, I'd be happy to have a discussion. And, if it can be done in a way that anonymous members are safe, we could probably even help her promote it with a banner ad etc.

Thank you Constance for your protocols. On such issues as oppositon to hrc;s fascism and politically correct tyranny, I surmise maybe others might want to be "in their face" and unabashedly public about who they are. The maggotry of the hrc' hierarchy do not like it and get uncomfortable when people demonstrate they HATE these scambags enough to not fear opposing them.

BTW, while up in a tree earlier in the week, I happened to glance over into the next door neighbours back yard and saw dozens of hrc personnel having a meeting. Thinking the hrc hierarchy was having a party, I roped down to introduce myself but a closer look revealed to me that in fact, those I had mistaken for hrc maggotry, were in fact the dozens of curly cone deposits of the great Dane that protected the property.

Well, least is was an honest mistake.

[RedDog]

The website's pretty slick - which tells me in Canada there's likely government money involved.

[StrictlyRight]

Put another way, I could put up a blog saying that I support Section 13 and have a petition attached to it so that I could get IP addresses and names of people on the other side.

When you look at the extremes the other side went to to find the John Does, it is rational to worry about people giving up their own privacy to someone anonymous.

If the people who run that site are legit, why are they hiding?

Hi Connie,

I absolutely understand your frustrations. I had posted a thread about it yesterday which got deleted. The girl behind it is a personal friend of mine from Saskatchewan, Alexandra Hutton (former Conservative party employee.) It was started by her and a group of students.

I'm going to be chatting with her today about the concerns people have raised. I suppose that would make an interesting discussion question for you and the other FDers, what information would you like RightToSpeak to provide so that you would be more comfortable signing the petition?

Your thread hasn't been deleted, it was just moved to a private forum temporarily until we could find out what we were dealing with.

I think if would be good if they had some kind of privacy statement on their site saying what they were going to use the name and address information for, and, ideally, they shouldn't be collecting IP addresses at all. She should check to see if her software and/or her server logs are keeping that information.

It is the match between the online identity (through the IP address) and the personal contact information that is the issue. This is especially important in a legal climate where a Canadian webmaster can be compelled to turn over that information.

If she wants to talk to me, I'd be happy to have a discussion. And, if it can be done in a way that anonymous members are safe, we could probably even help her promote it with a banner ad etc.

Sounds good. I sent her an email. Your concerns are very valid. Like Edward, I've given up trying to protect my privacy . I will let you know once I hear back from her and we'll see what can be done in moving forward. I'm assuming it's a case of letting the idea get in the way of the process (been there, done that.)

[Connie Fournier]

Yeah, I obviously don't have any privacy to protect, either, SR. LOL!

It's terrible that we have to be so careful, but the past couple of years have taught us a painful lesson about what can be done with information if it falls into the wrong hands.

I should be near the computer all day if either of you want to email me.

[styky]

I won't sign petitions anywhere. They are an open invitation to junk e-mails, junk post mail and telephone hell. Not this cowboy.

[RedDog]

I won't sign petitions anywhere. They are an open invitation to junk e-mails, junk post mail and telephone hell. Not this cowboy.

Exactly, and it's usually a captive audience, which is to say the result is meaningless.

I see the spam garbage going on daily at the office and I just shake my head. I have none of this BS on the Mac at home or at the office.

[J.B. Stone]

http://www.righttospeak.ca/petition/view-signatures/

LOOKS LIKE YOU CAN ENTER BOGUS INFO FOR ADDRESS, ETC. - HAS TO BE A FUNCTIONING E-MAIL.....

I used OREILLY@FOXNEWS.COM

[shiva]

I won't sign petitions anywhere. They are an open invitation to junk e-mails, junk post mail and telephone hell. Not this cowboy.

Exactly, and it's usually a captive audience, which is to say the result is meaningless.

I see the spam garbage going on daily at the office and I just shake my head. I have none of this BS on the Mac at home or at the office.

I understand the concerns too but that's why we have a delete button.

I'm always aware that when I send out these invitations to people to sign a petition, they may have all of the concerns expressed here.

For my part, I don't give a damn. I think many of my activities have already given a public voice to where I stand on this issue and many others. And with respect to junk mail, like I said, there's a delete button.

One of the people I sent it to said since people don't like to sign on-line petitions for the reasons stated, I should instead encourage people to write to the various Senators.

First problem with that, how many people do you think will actually take the time to do it? Second problem with that, so what? I'm going to assume the Senators already know they have support from a good chunk of people which is why they're doing it. Third point, if we want this thing to pass, the most important way to contribute is to give them a list of names that visibly demonstrate how much support there is out there for this issue. That is critical to how politics works. If we have some politicians hesitating and sitting on the sidelines on this issue, the reality of a large number of people (and they have formulas for these things they apply in order to determine what the volume of correspondence means spread out over the population) expressing support, that can move politicians to the decided column which can then result in action.