back to article Senator saves YouTube from al Qaeda

Senator Joseph Lieberman claims to have struck a mighty blow against the forces of al Qaeda this week by pressuring YouTube to forbid users from uploading terrorist training videos. The popular video site updated its "Community Guidelines" yesterday, warning terrorist cells they're at serious risk of violating the site's Terms …

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  1. Gareth

    Saving us from the 9/11 of Terms of Service Violations...

    Good on ya Joe. I'm sure 'The War on ToS Violations' will be just as successful as all the other 'Wars On...' the US is valiantly waging.

  2. DZ-Jay

    We can has permishoon?

    >> "We've updated the Community Guidelines to address some of the most common questions users ask us about inappropriate content."

    From: j****@alqaeda.online.org

    To: support@youtube.com

    Subject: Help with content

    Attachments: recrutmen1.mov; recrutmen2.mov

    Deer sirz:

    were planing to show one of our videoss in yur site to recrutment of yoofs into our troopz. plez you can chek the attach videoss and letus now if is ok. we can has permishoon to post?

    kthnxbyek.

  3. Chris
    Pirate

    I'm genuinely confused..

    In order to "recruit" someone, wouldn't you want to give them a way to talk to you? IE, you have a promo video advertising 'Jihadi Kamp for Kids!!!', but if they can't actually sign up for the service (Ie, go to iraq and train and what not) what good is the video?

    Terrorist propaganda is free speech, and all the graphic stuff gets taken down anyway.. and, are there really that many videos there that advertise how to make a bomb, train assassin ninja squirrels, and tell you how to snipe?

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Black Helicopters

    Guess video's of US military and US government..

    ... should be taken down because of "Foreign Terrorist Organizations"

    The US is a terrorist of someone or another someplace or another!

    Black Helo's and anonymous for obvious reasons...

  5. Chris G

    Funny you should mention it

    But I have been considering making a video in Arabic explaining how to make and train an exploding, ninja squirrel sniper.

  6. dave lawless
    Boffin

    What about the CNLA

    Bah, Graham Hart's pro-CNLA video got taken down too!!

    Probably since he got arrested in connection with the threats against Jamie Oliver and Rick Stein

    these will have to do

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K782zEesfEE

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guj1lLZRREI

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCW9PT7Qe00

    this one's the scariest

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pdk4v11U4tQ

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    potato cannons?

    does this mean potato cannon videos will be removed?

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Ok, YooToob

    I r not terrist - clip is legit EOD operations destructing SAM 7 missiles in Iraq. K?

  9. theotherone

    free speech

    free speech doesn't apply to non Americans obviously...

  10. Andrew Norton
    Pirate

    wha?

    "No doubt another example of underhanded rider legislation by the pirate lobby group."

    This is the first I've heard of it, so don't look at us

    Andrew Norton

    Pirate Party of the US

    http://pirate-party.us

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Thin end of the wedge

    "YouTube's revised policy now forbids "things like instructional bomb making, ninja assassin training, sniper attacks, videos that train terrorists, or tips on illegal street racing"

    ...because obviously all street racers are pinko commie subsersive al-qaeda members, right?

    What next? bikers, rockers, gays, blacks, atheists and those damn evolutionists ?

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    theotherone

    free speech doesn't apply to non Americans obviously...

    nope not on US owned equipment.

    There has always been limits on free speech. I cant make death threats . I cant yell fire in crowded theater.

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Obama or Palin for President

    IMHO, it's a pity the Republicans didn't have Palin as their candidate. She said this:

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7611625.stm

    ...the only option for them is to become a suicide bomber, ... they need to be provided the hope, that all Americans have instilled in us....

    Essentially she understands you need to diffuse the bomber, rather than the bomb, you do that by letting them speak, even if their words hurt, just word, just videos.

    She would have been a better candidate than McCain, the trouble with McCain is he takes his cue from other people, whether it's his spin master telling him to smile at the pause in a speech, or Lieberman telling him who the bad guys in Iraq are, he's not a leader, he's a puppet.

    Oh well, next time maybe.

  14. Martyn Ranyard

    Hang on, tautology?

    So you can't educate potential terrorists... unless ..."Any depictions like these should be educational or documentary"... Well, sounds like google's TOS team are as clever as the people who claimed ownership of content posted via their browser.... oh.... wait, that was google again wasn't it?

  15. Anonymous Coward
    Flame

    Dear Joe

    Ya'll got a squirrel brains up in that head of yours? Ya'll think we (the american people) are that dumb?

    Wait - we elected W(acko) twice... OK

    SAVE US JOE! SAVE US! WE ARE BLESSED WITH WONDERFUL DEAR LEADERS IN THE USA

    On second thought, go F#$% yourself Joe. http://www.foundingfathers.info/stories/gadsden.html

  16. James Butler
    Thumb Down

    Hmphf

    Lieberman is an ass.

  17. Hein-Pieter van Braam
    Unhappy

    RE: free speech

    free speech doesn't apply to non Americans obviously...

    Or Americans, for that matter...

  18. Duffy
    Joke

    Great idea.... NOT!!!

    We want terrorists uploading videos. Not for propaganda purposes, but to lure them into the "open" so the NSA can find them (as if NSA and the rest of the intel community weren't already looking at youtube).

    Make matters worse, Sen. Leiberman is one of my senators. He really could have found something more useful to do instead of campaigning for McCain...

  19. unitron
    Coat

    About that squirrel...

    "Funny you should mention it

    By Chris G

    Posted Friday 12th September 2008 19:58 GMT

    But I have been considering making a video in Arabic explaining how to make and train an exploding, ninja squirrel sniper."

    Yeah, but you're just wasting your time if you haven't trained that squirrel to water-ski. :-)

    Mine's the one with the rodent fur collar and a faint odor of acorns.

  20. Jesse Dorland
    Paris Hilton

    How about Israeli foe?

    According to Senator Joseph Lieberman; terrorist is anyone who is against Israel & its allies. This explain why we only see Israeli side of the story in all major media & entertainment industry.

    Paris, because she doesn't speak orwellian.

  21. Bavenchkee Krycek

    What is terrorism?

    Is this terrorism?

    "(WSWS) -- On Wednesday eight members of the anarchist prof est group the Republican National Convention Welcoming Committee (RNCWC) were charged under provisions of the Minnesota a state version of the Patriot Act with "Conspiracy to Riot in Furtherance of Terrorism."

    The eight charged are all young, and could face up to seven-and-a-half years in prison under a provision that allows the enhancement of charges related to terrorism by 50 percent. They are: Monica Bicking, Eryn Trimmer, Luce Guillen Givins, Erik Oseland, Nathanael Secor, Robert Czernik, Garrett Fitzgerald and Max Spector."

    http://www.opednews.com/articles/How-the-GOP-Turned-the-US-by-Len-Hart-080910-968.html

  22. Raife Edwards

    YouTube... and censorship... SUCKS !!!

    YouTube has clearly had its day. Frankly, they have bowed to so many special-interests (corporate, political, social-extremists, etc), that they arent really worth using anymore.

    But, more importantly, many of those, alleged, "...terrorist" videos, frequently were, actually, the best source of unvarnished information about what was actually going on in... say... Iraq, for example. They showed the reality of unending attacks, the Iraqis that have been killed and injured, and the real story of American military-casualties... that the -mainstream news- simply ignored, in their unending attempts to ladle-out the U.S. governments, officially-approved, seemingly-bottomless, spew of creamy American-goodness and, bogus, unbridled-success. I think that is the REAL PROBLEM that Senators (such as "Joseph Lieberman") are actually trying to "protect" us from.

    In short... the government (et al) is simply scared SHITLESS, by actual free-speech and freely-available, un-censored, information (a common symptom of every totalitarian police-state that has ever existed). Luckily, "YouTube" is clearly more than willing to comply with the, milquetoast, all-controlling, CENSORSHIP-desires of a powerful few.

  23. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    bah

    no wonder theres so many terrorist around; all I ever see are training videos on how to become a terrorist, its a one way direction. I never see any attempt by the western world to post training videos about how to live life as an american or a european successfully. We need training videos on how to eat cheeseburgers, drive everywhere and a five step program on finding the best sitcoms on cable television.

  24. The Fuzzy Wotnot
    Thumb Up

    Reminds me of Billy Connolly and the dangerous dogs

    "So the government is worrying, what we gonna do about all the nutters with dangerous dogs? I know well make sure they register them at the Post Office! Yeah, that'll really have the tattooed fraternity quaking in their shoes!"

    ToS breaches for terrorists?! Jeez, I'm sure Bin-Liner and his boys are really worried now. Listen Joe, I think BL and his lads are more worried making sure that next consignment of weapons makes it over the border next month, than you and your pathetic attempt to seal votes at the next election. Tosspot of the highest order!

  25. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Free Speech

    The First Amendment applies to the US GOV - and ONLY the US Gov. It says that the the US Gov isn't allowed to create laws restricting the freedom of speech. It says F*** all about what a private (or publically owned, like Google) company can forbid as terms of service.

    Has Google replaced the US Congress as the law making arm of the US Gov? No? Good, no problems with freedom of speech.

    Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

    http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html#Am1

  26. Mike Crawshaw
    Pirate

    Ninja Training...

    YouTube bans? HA!!! As there is free an unfettered access to dodgy 80's films like Ninja Terminator and Revenge of the Golden Ninja, my ninja training will continue.

    By watching these over and over, I have already learned how to change into a (yellow) ninja costume (which I didn't have with me, complete with an arsenal of sword, staff, bow, throwing stars, knives, nunchaku etc) in the midst of a backflip, whilst making a loud **SPANGGGG!!!!** noise, then badly lipsynching everything I say.

    <- pirates beware!

  27. Anonymous Coward
    Go

    I know that I'm just pissing in the wind, but...

    It is a good idea. They're not talking about a widespread takedown of your free speech. They're talking about youtube reserving the right to remove stuff when it's egregious. It's really a 'no shit, Sherlock' thing, as opposed to a widespread invasion of your privacy/free speech like the placing of video cameras everywhere with some wanker of a local cop watching every move you make. In terms of things to protest, this just doesn't score as high as something as awful as that. Good thing it isn't being done anywhere in the free world.

    You can still carry in with the makng of ninja pirate squirrel training videos. No one will complain about your carrying western civilisation forward with such fine contributions. Personally, I think the squirrels should have jet packs and chain saws.

  28. Michael Wojcik Silver badge

    No shoving, folks - plenty of stupidity to go 'round

    Clearly, Lieberman is an ass (no news there), and Google is mocking him. Ninja training? It's a joke, people. The YouTube ToS are effectively just as permissive as they always were; YT could always take down any video they wanted, and terminate anyone's account on any pretext.

    Give the Gevil Gempire some credit. They're hardly going to let a tubthumper like Lieberman push them around. Many of their practices may be suspect, but I see no reason to complain about this one.

    And this story shows First Amendment protections working exactly as they're supposed to. Freedom of the press belongs to the press, not J Random Idiot who submits something to it. Lieberman had to *ask* Google to change the YT ToS because we still have a sliver of First Amendment rights left.

    In sum, Lieberman had to look like an idiot, grovelling for an impotent change, and Google gave it to him with a smirk to let anyone who's paying attention know that they don't give a damn what he wants. If only the rest of the War on Freedom were reduced to this sort of farce...

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