Posts Tagged ‘dissent’
thoughtcrime … in Canada ?
Byron Sonne’s trial is proceeding. Yesterday the Crown rested its case. As a citizen of this fair nation, I have some concerns.
Criminal prosecution is quite expensive, yet the Crown spent a fair bit of effort trying to explain Byron’s use of the word “goat” in his various online nick names. In much the same way truck drivers assumed CB radio “handles,” computer users have been adopting nicknames as their personal brands even before the Internet became publicly accessible in the 1990s.
It seems that Byron has quite a collection of pictures of goats on his computer. (It isn’t at all hard to find a picture of a goat on the Internet⇒) The police witness told the court that the acronym “G.O.A.T.” stands for “Greatest Of All Time” made popular by hockey star Wayne Gretsky. The Crown seems to want this on the record as a indication of Byron Sonne’s ego. Even though this explanation is a guess. No credible evidence was presented to explain why Byron’s personal brand is “goat.” The only one who can factually explain the selection of the nick name would be Byron Sonne himself.
Did I miss the part where the Crown presented evidence that Byron was even a hockey fan? (Although the police witness seems to be.) The Crown suggests this explanation will characterize Byron as an egotistical hacker. Now, I’m not a lawyer, but I really don’t understand what the point of this is. If, by some amazing coincidence, the police guess about why Byron chose the word goat was correct, what exactly would it be evidence of?
More disturbing is what appears to be the “guilt by association” vibe promoted by the Crown. Receiving emails or a digital newsletter from people who are later arrested isn’t a criminal offence. Or, if it is, it should not be.
Reading, attending meetings and/or talking about political participation, even if such participation is or leads to protest or dissent should not be a criminal offence. Or, if it is, it shouldn’t be. George Orwell called government repression of ideas “thoughtcrime.” Is that what this is?
As far as I know, TCMN (Toronto Community Mobilization Network) is a congregation of a variety of activist groups that came together due to shared concerns about the G20. Personally, I don’t even live in Toronto, but what I read made me concerned about the G20 even before it happened.
As well as not liking the TCMN, or convicted activists, apparently the Crown also doesn’t like anarchists organizations like SOAR (Southern Ontario Anarchist Resistance). As far as I know, it isn’t illegal to be an anarchist.
Just as it isn’t illegal to be a liberal. Or a conservative. Or even a hacker.
Because freedom of association is protected by the Charter.
Reading and thinking aren’t illegal in Canada. There’s even a whole genre called “true crime” but reading about crime doesn’t make you a criminal. Thinking radical thoughts isn’t a crime.
Committing criminal acts is.
Even so, criminal acts are defined by laws. If our lawmakers were to designate walking on the grass a felony, then walking on the grass would become a criminal act. This is one reason why dissent is so important for a free society; citizens need to be able to complain if government passes laws that are contrary to what society holds as acceptable. As well, the practical application of the laws that define and confine us are interpreted and tested out through court cases like this one.
So it’s worrisome to know that Byron’s Charter rights were ignored.
But it is more troubling to me that Canadian law enforcement invested so much in building a case seemingly based on association and innuendo.
Just as it is a concern that law enforcement has such a tenuous grasp of technical issues important to this case.
Judge Spies had never heard of Linux before, yet Crown attempts to dazzle and/or confuse with reams of detail aren’t working; the Judge may not use Twitter, or understand the difference between a .jpg or a .png, but she doesn’t have to — they’re both photographs.
Judge: Let me see if I’ve got this all right. Mr. Sonne is on the mailing list for the TCMN. He gets an email about a presentation where Hiscocks and Henderson were going to speak about “black block or diversity of tactics”. We have no evidence that Mr. Sonne attended or that he associated with these women. Those emails are in, whatever they mean. Now you want me to accept their guilty pleas and use that to infer about the nature of the talk?
— Unofficial Byron Sonne Trial Notes
Charter rights are supposed to protect citizens; they should not be so easily cast aside. It is reassuring that although Judge Spies isn’t tech savvy, she appears to see the big picture. Still, the smell of politics is strong in this one, and I don’t know how this will play out, and so I worry about the future. For my family, my community, my country.
Image Credits
“Tethered Goat” by ceridwen released under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Glossary
“The Crown“
refers to the Crown Attorney (the title of the government’s lawyer prosecuting the case under Canadian law) and/or the focus of the prosecution in the Canadian legal system.
["Prosecutor" or "District Attorney" would be the American equivalent]
“The Charter“
is the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms which is supposed to protect the human rights of Canadian citizens from government or justice system abuses.
“Linux“
(sometimes called GNU/Linux) is a free software computer operating system (OS), a software program (similar to Windows or MacOS) that allows a computer to function. Although there are basic differences in the way Linux systems operate, many technical people use Linux systems because they are free to customize them.
“Hacker“
There are two opposing definitions for the word “hacker.” The pejorative definition embraced by the mainstream media is as someone who subverts computer security. Yet for many in the computer security and programming subculture the word hacker is the highest accolade bestowed on verhttps://github.com/colah/ByronTrialNotes/blob/master/daily-notes/day27.mdy clever and often playful innovators and problem solvers. Among such programmers the word “cracker” is used to describe criminals who engage in criminal computer security breaches.
“Twitter“
an online network that allows two way sharing of information and/or conversation with friends and/or total strangers, best viewed on the Twitter site, not in a proprietary spreadsheet.
Must Listen:
Jesse Brown interviews security expert Dr. Kate Milberry on today’s Search Engine Audio Podcast #130:
The Legacy of the G-20: #Toronto’s #G20 Hangover
Post Script: Today the Crown cross examined the Defence witness. The evidence phase is over and court will resume Thursday at 10:30, 361 University Avenue, Toronto. Today’s Trial Notes are online.
Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble… G8/G20
I admit it, the bard actually wrote “Double, double, toil and trouble” in the Scottish play. But in the light of the continuing aftermath of the Canadian G8/G20 debacle, the soap opera of international celebrity “Officer Bubbles” makes the often used misquote so terribly apropos.
View this Video with this YouTube Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGMTm3QRwEc
View this video in OGG format: http://russwurm.org/hostess/frombubblestobookings.ogv
Over and over again, the peaceful protests against the G8/G20 summit were met with over-reaction and unmerited violence by the authorities. I assume the well paid security forces were operating on the theory that the best defense is a strong offense.
If you smash opposition mercilessly beneath your jackboots, perhaps protesters can be frightened away.
I would suspect the reason a social worker Courtney was arrested was simply that she was not cowed by “Officer Bubbles.” After the officer threatened her with arrest, Courtney put the bubbles away as he instructed. But she was not cowed. Although she complied with the order, she had the temerity to tell him that she did not feel respected. On camera. If you want to keep order, arresting anyone who is not frightened into backing down can seem to be a good thing.
Officer Bubbles was very much aware he was being filmed, placing the camera over the camera. It is only that this camera catches Courtney being arrested away from the action. While Officer Bubbles stands beside the officer who is actually cuffing the young woman, scanning the crowd, you can see him stiffen as he realizes that the camera has caught the arrest.
Knowing there were cameras everywhere, Officer Bubbles interjected himself in non-confrontational conversation being held between the other officer and the protester. The protester with the camera was directly in front of him, closer than the bubble blowing protester. Of course it was captured on video. Of course it went viral.
People all over the world have seen this video. It is all over YouTube. It has spawned cartoons and comments he apparently finds defamatory. Officer Bubbles is now attempting long distance intimidation by bringing lawsuits against people who made comments on the various YouTube video postings.
View this Video with this YouTube Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H12AI6dkVIM
View this video in OGG format: http://russwurm.org/hostess/IntervieWwithElderlyWomenAttackedatG20TorontoJune2010.ogv
While Officer Bubbles considers being impacted by a soap bubble an assault, I am more inclined to think that being physically pushed around and thrown to the ground falls into the more universally understood definition of “assault.” Although this incident is “relatively mild,” I fail to see what purpose is served in manhandling elderly ladies — or anyone — exercising their democratic right to peaceful protest.
Learning that these particular grannies emigrated here to Canada in search of democratic freedom makes it all the more poignant.
View this Video with this YouTube Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiLt40d_AbU
View this video in OGG format: http://russwurm.org/hostess/PoliceOpenFireOnPeacefulProtestersG20toronto2010.ogv
This is Canada. For the most part Canadians are deserving of our mild mannered and law abiding reputation. This does not preclude our ability to stand up for what is right. Dissent is an important part of democracy. Without it, there can be no democracy.
We have a tradition of peaceful protest. Clearly, these protesters sought to keep the protest peaceful. The forces of “law and order” did not.
View this Video with this YouTube Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pw2TokwsmKQ
View this video in OGG format: http://russwurm.org/hostess/G20TorontoPoliceFireAtWoman+PeacefulProtesters.ogv
Our government appears interested in crushing dissent in any way possible. Is this the Canada we want?
Is this the Canada our young people have fought and died for over the years? A Canada where free speech is suppressed, grannies are manhandled, and peaceful protesters are shot with dangerous weapons?
There are many many videos on You Tube, documenting peaceful protesters being run down by horses, herded like cattle, caught between a rock and a hard place. Where mass arrests are made as a deterrent.
To silence dissent.
An Invisible Abuse of Power
Byron Sonne was arrested before the G8/G20 even began.
A middle aged husband, a computer security expert with his own business, a homeowner, a concerned citizen active in the community.
Byron Sonne posted remarks on Twitter which caught the attention of the G8/G20 security forces monitoring Twitter. They searched Byron Sonne’s home, then arrested Byron and his wife (who has since been released) on a series of charges.
Charges that can be applied extraordinarily broadly:
- Possession of explosives for an unlawful purpose.
- Possession of dangerous weapons.
- Intimidation of a justice system participant by threat.
- Intimidation of a justice system participant by watch and beset.
- Mischief.
- Attempted mischief.
Sounds pretty scary, right? I’m not a lawyer, I’m a writer, but both exist within a framework of definitions. To understand what I mean about a broad application of the laws, offenses often include a range of actions. If you look at any law, you’ll find it begins with an extensive list of definitions.
Lets look at “Possession of explosives for an unlawful purpose.” Just by looking at an explosive, you can’t tell of it will be used for a lawful or unlawful purpose. That stick of dynamite might be intended to blow out a tree stump. They may even be a permit for it. Since Byron Somme is a security expert, it is not unreasonable to assume he might have material of this type for study. Proving “for an unlawful purpose” would be the hard part.
Even “explosives” have room for interpretation. At one end of the scale you find nuclear warheads. On the other you don’t even have to go to Toys R Us to buy a child’s chemistry set to make explosives, you can find the ingredients to make explosives in pretty much anyone’s kitchen. Fireworks are explosives too. It’s a work covering many things. Not too long ago Cory Doctorow provided the recipe for a smoke bomb he created as an adolescent on his popular boingboing site: Explosives
Or “dangerous weapons.” When I was a kid, my older brother built a slingshot capable of killing small animals. (It’s O.K., he didn’t grow up to join the NRA, these days he’s a sensitive artist.)
a few years of pre-trial custody
“Now that we’re looking at a few years of pretrial custody, this is something that’s taking off quite rapidly,” said James Arlen, a security consultant in Toronto and a longtime friend of Sonne’s.
—Toronto Star: ‘Free Byron’ campaign grows for man in G20 case denied bail
Whatever happened to the idea of “innocent until proven guilty” ?
I’ve never met Byron, and I only learned about his plight the other day at an Ubuntu Release Party. The publication ban prevents release of the facts in the case, but at the same time, I find it strange that he is being held without bail when black bloc protesters who actually acted have been released.
Four months later he is still incarcerated without bail. This is a Canadian citizen who has not been convicted of anything. In a country where accused murderers routinely get bail. What is going on? It certainly looks as though Byron Sonne is a political prisoner. In Canada.
I can’t believe this is happening here.
Visit the Free Byron website if you want to help. There are links to the published articles, and advice on the different ways we can help Byron get through this ordeal. Donations to his defense fund would be appreciated, but I’ve been told that he is in need reading matter, and very much appreciates receiving letters from people.
Of course the thing Byron needs most is his freedom. Don’t we all?
I’ve also written about this in my personal blog
