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Official Statement from the family and partner of Aaron Swartz

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Re: Official Statement from the family and partner of Aaron Swartz

#11

Post by shawn-butler »

seiji wrote: post #7
shawn-butler wrote: post #6

I am removing MIT as a benefactor from my will and ceasing donations to the alumni association. I will not reconsider until the institution provides a full accounting and takes responsibility for the actions of its legal counsel in deciding to refer the matter to federal authorities. If you are a current member of the student body or faculty you have a lot more power than me. Please read about this matter and learn w…

This is clearly out of my purview, but why in the world would you have an institution as a beneficiary unless it's one you control? Are they really that accomplished at brainwashing people?

Not that it is any of your business but because I have no children and the education of future generations is about the most important thing there is to me. What is important to you?

Thanks for trolling me. I will try and make your contribution positive by reminding readers that if they lack a will with benefactors or executors with real world power, the state generally takes everything often ignoring legal documents you leave behind.

Re: Official Statement from the family and partner of Aaron Swartz

#13

Post by jhuni »

toyg wrote: post #4

Fuck yes, make them bleed. I can understand a US Attorney being reckless, but I cannot believe MIT would act so cowardly. If not even hacker-friendly institutions like MIT will side with people like Aaron, it's a sad state of affairs.

> If not even hacker-friendly institutions like MIT will side with people like Aaron, it's a sad state of affairs.

MIT hasn't been a hacker-friendly institution since the early 1980s which is why Richard Stallman left MIT to found the free software movement.

Re: Official Statement from the family and partner of Aaron Swartz

#15

Post by seiji »

shawn-butler wrote: post #11
seiji wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is clearly out of my purview, but why in the world would you have an institution as a beneficiary unless it's one you control? Are they really that accomplished at brainwashing people?

Not that it is any of your business but because I have no children and the education of future generations is about the most important thing there is to me. What is important to you? Thanks for trolling me. I will try and make your contribution positive by reminding readers that if they lack a will with benefactors or executors with real world power, the state generally takes everything often ignoring legal documents…

No intent to troll here. I was just curious, seeing as I hold my academic institution in such high contempt.

Now that you mention it, I'm not sure where I would leave any form of wealth I had. My first intuition would be needy organizations of some sort (cancer/hiv/troubled youth--and there's always hackerdojo). Intelligence finds a way. I'm not too worried about the world on that front.

Re: Official Statement from the family and partner of Aaron Swartz

#16

Post by semenko »

shawn-butler wrote: post #6

I am removing MIT as a benefactor from my will and ceasing donations to the alumni association. I will not reconsider until the institution provides a full accounting and takes responsibility for the actions of its legal counsel in deciding to refer the matter to federal authorities. If you are a current member of the student body or faculty you have a lot more power than me. Please read about this matter and learn w…

I'd be interested to know what people were expecting from MIT (and would also like a public statement).

The dockets (1) suggest MIT made the poor (perhaps incidental?) decision to involve the Secret Service, at which point the evidence became part of a federal investigation.

I think the paragraph about MIT's "tepid" interest in the investigation is telling.

(1) http://tech.mit.edu/V132/N46/swartz/swartz-suppress1.pdf http://tech.mit.edu/V132/N46/swartz/swartz-suppress2.pdf

Re: Official Statement from the family and partner of Aaron Swartz

#17

Post by mhartl »

toyg wrote: post #4

Fuck yes, make them bleed. I can understand a US Attorney being reckless, but I cannot believe MIT would act so cowardly. If not even hacker-friendly institutions like MIT will side with people like Aaron, it's a sad state of affairs.

I'm reminded of the time MIT threw Star Simpson under a bus when she wore a breadboard on a sweatshirt to Logan Airport and the local authorities freaked:

http://tech.mit.edu/V127/N40/simpson.html

At least some faculty got it:

http://tech.mit.edu/V128/N17/facultyopn.html

Re: Official Statement from the family and partner of Aaron Swartz

#18

Post by unimpressive » 

  Beware would be activists of the forces you put to your axe.
  Like the tip of an iceberg, their great heft can remain unseen.
  These machinations have no appreciation for hacks.
  Even lawful men have much to fear from their vision keen.
  The unlucky must contend with a 13 stringed marionette.
  Whose deadly snare targets all free men.
  Probing at the six lines in every hearts quartet.
  The song it plays is fell indeed.

  Moments of silence won't bring this man back.
  But we can rally as our thoughts are often not thought alone. [0]
  We can repel the forces who's wishes for the public domain is to sack.
  We can refuse to reap for us what others have sewn.
  Don't falter at the sight of a martyers fall.
  There is always work to be done with one less hand at the helm.
  Stand up and shout, silence strangles us all!
  Strangled, by this intellectual miasma that seeks to  consume our world with hell.

  And though this life has been bought,
  full speed ahead! Eight knots!
[0]: In the interest of honesty, I don't feel like I'm doing enough.

Re: Official Statement from the family and partner of Aaron Swartz

#19

Post by mrbill »

What sort of "standing up" for Aaron was MIT supposed to do?

No matter his ultimate intentions, from what I understand, there wasn't much doubt that he repeatedly broke into MIT facilities to access its network without authorization, and then evaded attempts to prevent him from accessing the network. I've not seen anything that indicated he was a student or alum of the school (only that he went to Harvard).

What would you expect any school or company to do when presented with an unauthorized intruder on their network, using resources to mass-download data? Just let them waltz in, break into a network closet, and leave a laptop plugged in?

MIT did the right thing in this case; it's the government that blew things out of proportion and was using this as a way to get back at Aaron after the PACER incident.

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