Anonymous Posters, Your Days Are Numbered
First Kentucky, next...America! Last week, Kentucky state legislator Tim Couch filed a bill to end anonymous internet comments. Here's some more info from the local ABC News affiliate ACTION NEWS 46 WTVQ out of Lexington:
The bill would require anyone who contributes to a website to register their real name, address and e-mail address with that site.
Their full name would be used anytime a comment is posted.
If the bill becomes law, the website operator would have to pay if someone was allowed to post anonymously on their site. The fine would be five-hundred dollars for a first offense and one-thousand dollars for each offense after that.
Check out the rest of the piece, and be sure to watch the accompanying video of fingers typing and typing and typing...and then typing some more and then...that's it. Now that's some ACTION NEWS!
Gawker reacted quite violently to this idea.
10:05 am
Another example of how our elected officials are out of touch with the digital age. This bill will put people's privacy in danger. In addition, imagine the endless amount of lawsuits that will overrun our legal system. I can see why the folks at Gawker are not pleased with this.
10:28 am
What a waste of paperwork and time. Ain't there some more legitimate legislating these funky legislator cats should be getting down wit?
11:52 am
Will people keep commenting if they can't be anonymous?
1:49 pm
I think that's a GREAT idea! We need more bold, innovative proposals like that one.
Please sign me up as a registered commenter on your website:
Tim Couch
702 Capitol Ave
Annex Room 432B
Frankfort KY 40601
http://www.lrc.ky.gov/Mailform/H090.htm
5:03 pm
Man, just because your NFL career hit the skids, that's no reason to take it out on us anonymous posters, who had nothing to do with your torn rotator-cuff.