Expect the first EBay auctions of debris from the "Columbia" to be a constitutional issue soon. (Actually, the censors at fascist EBay have probably already flagged any transactions which mention "space shuttle" and "Columbia" to be illegal thoughtcrime sales.) Many tons of debris, scattered over at least three states. The FedGov is already trying to claim control over the entire debris field. (Of course, those in the know would be interested in any debris which includes artifacts from Shen Zou 4, the module left in orbit by the Chinese satellite launch, said by Jane's to be a military surveillance satellite, China's first, and said to have been a recovery mission by the three payload specialists on the classified STS-107 misison. The possibility that the Chinese set a 3-kg explosive charge to detonate under accelerometer signals is...interesting.) Janes.com: "SZ 4 left its orbital module in orbit, where it will operate as an independent satellite for six or seven months, conducting Earth observation (perhaps military as well as civil), science and technical experiments. " But, of course, such speculations are now banned under orders of HomeSec Internal Security Directorate 117-4, so I am making no such speculations. --Tim May "Ben Franklin warned us that those who would trade liberty for a little bit of temporary security deserve neither. This is the path we are now racing down, with American flags fluttering."-- Tim May, on events following 9/11/2001
On Sat, Feb 01, 2003 at 12:31:16PM -0800, Tim May wrote:
Expect the first EBay auctions of debris from the "Columbia" to be a constitutional issue soon. (Actually, the censors at fascist EBay have probably already flagged any transactions which mention "space shuttle" and "Columbia" to be illegal thoughtcrime sales.)
Yep, ebay has already removed such auctions, e.g., item #2156954390, `SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA PIECE OF WRECKAGE PART'. John Bethencourt
At 06:01 PM 2/1/2003 -0600, John Bethencourt <bethenco@upl.cs.wisc.edu> wrote:
On Sat, Feb 01, 2003 at 12:31:16PM -0800, Tim May wrote:
Expect the first EBay auctions of debris from the "Columbia" to be a constitutional issue soon. (Actually, the censors at fascist EBay have probably already flagged any transactions which mention "space shuttle" and "Columbia" to be illegal thoughtcrime sales.)
Yep, ebay has already removed such auctions, e.g., item #2156954390, `SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA PIECE OF WRECKAGE PART'.
Perhaps this is an opportunity for competitive, even offshore, auction sites to take the fore. http://www.goldbarter.com uses e-gold. steve
From: "Steve Schear" <schear@attbi.com>
Expect the first EBay auctions of debris from the "Columbia" to be a constitutional issue soon. (Actually, the censors at fascist EBay have probably already flagged any transactions which mention "space shuttle" and "Columbia" to be illegal thoughtcrime sales.)
Yep, ebay has already removed such auctions, e.g., item #2156954390, `SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA PIECE OF WRECKAGE PART'.
Perhaps this is an opportunity for competitive, even offshore, auction sites to take the fore.
I don't think there are any difficult legal issues involved. If you drop your wallet on someone's property, it is still your wallet. If you crash your car onto somebody's front yard, it's still your car (for better or worse). If a plane crashes carrying U.S. mail, the Post Office gathers up whatever mail it can find and tries to deliver it. Would you have it any other way? Even if ownership was in question, does anybody really think it's a good idea to sell the pieces of evidence while the accident investigation is going on?
participants (4)
-
John Bethencourt -
Ken Hirsch -
Steve Schear -
Tim May