McKinnon Saved

[0kult13]

Poor old Gary has been saved for extradition. Wonder how many UFO files he found.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19957138

"British computer hacker Gary McKinnon will not be extradited to the US, Home Secretary Theresa May has announced.

Mr McKinnon, 46, who admits accessing US government computers but claims he was looking for evidence of UFOs, has been fighting extradition since 2002.

Mrs May said the sole basis for the decision was Mr McKinnon's human rights and she blocked the extradition order."

Did they learn nothing from the WOPR affair in 82  :D

[bayonetbrant]

What human rights are being violated by facing criminal charges for illegal activity?

I get that searching for evidence of UFOs seems innocuous, and a little wacky.  But it's still illegal activity.  It's like telling the officer "sorry I was speeding through the school zone; I was being chased by the Flemish."

[LongBlade]

What human rights are being violated by facing criminal charges for illegal activity?

I get that searching for evidence of UFOs seems innocuous, and a little wacky.  But it's still illegal activity.  It's like telling the officer "sorry I was speeding through the school zone; I was being chased by the Flemish."

Small point of correction: searching for UFOs is not illegal. Hacking government computers to search for UFOs is illegal. Come to think of it, hacking government computers for pretty much anything is illegal.

[0kult13]

Amusingly he never hacked anything, he accessed open ports were the admins had never bothered to change the default settingsand he was on a dial up modem lol.

[LongBlade]

Amusingly he never hacked anything, he accessed open ports were the admins had never bothered to change the default settingsand he was on a dial up modem lol.

OK, say you forget to lock your door as you head out to work.

So in walks a government investigator. He goes through your drawers, flips on your PC and looks through your internet cookies and downloads to see what you've been up to.

Is that OK? Remember, you *did* leave your door unlocked.

[Staggerwing]

No Way am I allowing the Gov't in my drawers unless they buy me dinner and flowers first. Roses could do it, maybe...

[LongBlade]

No Way am I allowing the Gov't in my drawers unless they buy me dinner and flowers first. Roses could do it, maybe...

Precisely.

Just because you can doesn't mean you should. A lot of folks could learn from that lesson. A lot. With increased freedom comes increased responsibility. Those who abuse their freedom deserve to lose it.

[bob48]

^Totally agree with you.

[Pining]

No Way am I allowing the Gov't in my drawers unless they buy me dinner and flowers first. Roses could do it, maybe...

Precisely.

Just because you can doesn't mean you should. A lot of folks could learn from that lesson. A lot. With increased freedom comes increased responsibility. Those who abuse their freedom deserve to lose it.

Hello Longblade,

In the end of this incident is the mens rea of the accused. My understanding of the case is that the accused has a psych illness. He was looking for UFO's.

On that basis he stays where he is. A bit like a child who did the same might have no case to answer.

I haven't looked into it close enough to see if his illness is accepted by both sides, a diagnosed illness or a convenient excuse. If it's real, it's an acceptable judgement, in my opinion.

[LongBlade]

No Way am I allowing the Gov't in my drawers unless they buy me dinner and flowers first. Roses could do it, maybe...

Precisely.

Just because you can doesn't mean you should. A lot of folks could learn from that lesson. A lot. With increased freedom comes increased responsibility. Those who abuse their freedom deserve to lose it.

Hello Longblade,

In the end of this incident is the mens rea of the accused. My understanding of the case is that the accused has a psych illness. He was looking for UFO's.

On that basis he stays where he is. A bit like a child who did the same might have no case to answer.

I haven't looked into it close enough to see if his illness is accepted by both sides, a diagnosed illness or a convenient excuse. If it's real, it's an acceptable judgement, in my opinion.

No argument there. Let the experts figure it out.