Computers: July 1998 Archives
Yesterday, a certain person on IRC made a derogatory remark about a book another person on the channel had written. The insulted person, an op of the channel, kickbanned the insulter, as is often the custom on IRC. A bit quick on the trigger finger maybe, but as op, it is his right.
The insulter came back promptly under a different account, trying to evade the ban. Ban evasion usually results in an immediate kick and a longer ban, and this case was no exception.
Then the insulter came back under a third account, and threatened legal action.
Sigh.
Let me straighten this out here and now: you have no right to be on my computer if I don't want you there. But these computers are not owned by anyone involved, not owned by the government, not owned by any of us. Rule is determined on EFNet simply by who has op status on a channel. If you have op status, then you are the de facto ruler, and you can do anything you want in there, including kicking out anyone else. I am op, I rule. Period.
If you tick me off, I will kick you. Quid Pro Quo. I don't need a reason. I can kick anyone for any reason. If I do that, there are three options:
- Live with it
- If you are an op too, deop me
- Go somewhere ele
That's it. Those are your only choices. This holds true in all of society. If I own a store, I can't kick you out because you are black, but I can kick you out because you are a wanker.
No justification is needed, and no amount of court action can do anything, even if what was going on were illegal. Heck, if you don't like it that I keep you out, I have a dozen friends in Australia, Norway and Sweden ready to kickban you as soon as you step in. I don't think they are afraid of your lawyers.
Realize one thing: if you threaten legal action for ops kicking you, then expect to get kickbanned by all the other ops. We don't care why you got kicked in the first place. We don't care at all. We just care that you threatened to sue another op for kicking you. And that in and of itself means you will continue to be kickbanned by everyone else.
"It is the common fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt."
