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rustybbs.txt
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1993-02-21
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A statement of Opinion:
I think It was with great distress that everyone involved in
telecommunications heard of the feds action against Rusty & Edies BBS.
The action that bothers most of us who use pc's and modems, I think, is
the outright confiscation of equipment and livelihood without apparent
due process of law. This kind of action was what one might expect in a
country void of human and civil rights. Obviously, whatever laws allowed
this to happen need immediate redress. Although I don't condone
violation of copyright laws, the offence certainly does not fit into the
same category as selling dope, wherein forfeiture laws are still, in my
opinion, constitutionally questionable. Without even questioning the legal
constitutional status of a BBS as an electronic print information medium,
I think its time for everyone to become alarmed, concerned and firing
off letters of protest and concern to our elected representatives.
Rusty & Edie was touted as the third largest BBS in the US. It is
difficult for me to believe that these sysops got there by peddling
copyrighted software through the back door to their registered users as
the Shareware Publishers Association has alleged. As a frequent user of
Rusty & Edie's BBS, this kind of access was never made known, or even
insinuated as available, to me.
Rusty & Edie was a competitive BBS system, but, as a subscriber to
many services, I am somewhat disappointed at the "apparent" cavalier and
ambivalent attitude of most other Sysops towards what has happened to
Rusty & Edie. Maybe most other major boards have already taken a more
active position, and I (and others) are simply not privy yet to what is
going on. If this is so, it would be a welcome sign to see all major
Boards go more public with forthright statements outlining their
various positions. What touched Rusty & Edie is still out there and
can apparently happen to any BBS, anytime.
I enjoyed using Rusty & Edie's BBS as I do EXECPC and other BBSes. I am
the first to admit that strange things happen. But, as every day passes
on to the next, greed seems to be in control of everything. The question
I always ask is, who benefits and who loses when these things happen. I
think the answer is obvious. Anyone involved in private telecommunications,
shareware, and or electronic mail has suffered a blow.
Gary Raymond
Compuserve 70613,3165