-Caveat Lector- AOL Calls Guns Pornography Source: Shotgun News Author: Bill Clede Posted on 10/15/1999 AOL Calls Guns Pornography A SHOTGUN NEWS columnist found himself put in the smut merchant category by the Internet colossus. By Bill Clede Jim Supica, a SHOTGUN NEWS columnist familiar to readers of this publication, operates Old Town Station Ltd., a dealer in antique and collectable firearms. He holds a Federal Firearms License for this purpose. In short, he runs a clean, above-board, and legal business. That is, he thought he did until America Online (AOL) summarily removed his web site from their system and sent email to his account address, which is shared by his wife and children. AOL wrote, "We have become aware of a web page site that is part of your account. This web page violates Hometown AOL's Community Standards, which prohibits sexually explicit graphics, links to other sites which Hometown deems offensive, harassment, the use of vulgar or sexually oriented language, discussion of illegal activities, and/or other activities that may impair the enjoyment of our community's members. "We have placed a note of this incident on your account history and consider this a first warning. We have removed all the file(s) from your web page/ftp site. A second occurrence will result in termination of your account with no chance of reactivation." Huh? I looked at Jim's site, now housed at www.armchairgunshow.com, and the only obscene thing I saw were the four-figure prices these guns carry. I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice, but calling an innocent person a pornographer sounds a lot like libel to me. "I've heard from other dealers who got the same form letter and no-warning boot from AOL," Supica said. "I got a bunch of emails from litigious types who suggested a lawsuit, plus an equal number from folks saying AOL has a right to edit their service as they see fit." He's right there. Services such as America Online, Microsoft Network, Prodigy and CompuServe are not common carriers, nor publications in and of themselves, although they provide the means by which others publish web sites and periodicals. At about the same time as Jim's site was scrubbed by AOL, he got a message in CompuServe's Firearms Forum that CompuServe had decreed the sale of firearms, even the legal sale of firearms, would no longer be allowed on the system. GoOutdoorsGroup Administrator Tony Mandile said, "The move was basically CYA. Obviously a headline reading, "Student Kills 10 With Online Purchase" wasn't something their legal department would like to see." When I asked CompuServe what they had actually said, they refused to comment. They referred me back to the Forum Administrator. You should know that CompuServe is owned by AOL, but is operated separately. Yeah, right! Since these services are private businesses they have the right to conduct their business as they see fit. I think Tony Mandile is entirely right. The radio station I used to work for has a Sunday "Tag Sale" program for years. They prohibit automobiles and devote one whole show every couple of months to nothing but automobiles. They prohibit firearms and do not dedicate a special show to guns. Preston Spaulding of Knoxville, Tenn., tells me his local newspaper refused his classified ad when he tried to sell his gun. Gary Connor held a garage sale and the Seattle Times refused his ad that mentioned a handgun. The two daily newspapers in Madison, Wis., will no longer accept classified ads for gun from anyone other than a licensed dealer. I wrote a newspaper column several years ago reporting how the National Rifle Association was refused in many of the print media when they tried to buy space for their ads. We all know there are people with rabidly anti-gun ideas. That is their right. But it is not their right to force their beliefs onto others or to interfere with the transaction of legal business. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and State of New York are reported to be suing the firearms industry for not controlling the distribution of their products. But to do so is called "restraint of trade" and is illegal. As for Supica, "I mainly want to get on with my business with the least possible hassle. AOL's decision to dump gun dealer sites did not bother me as much as the manner in which they did it." You know from this column that there are literally thousands of web sites dealing in guns on the World Wide Web. I didn't think this blatant censorship exists on the Internet. John R. Clarke of Thomasville, Ga., is in the business of developing and maintaining web sites. His is at www.outdoorwriter.com/. As the developer of The Ballistic Program in 1986, guns are his specialty. He said, "I am not aware of any Web Presence Provider dumping a firearms web site because of its firearms content. However in this day and time anything is possible." But it has happened. Rob Robles of Morgan Hill, Calif. touts his web site as the place for serious gun collectors at www.antiqueguns.com. His site is on a new server. He sends notices to some 3,800 people who have asked to be included on his mailing list, just as I do. "Suddenly my domain was turned off by my Internet service provider," he said. "They had received a complaint that I was sending out Spam. This company figured I was out advocating the use of illegal weapons, and simply will not listen to anything I say. They have not looked at the letter I sent and have not looked at my site to see what I am selling. "My mailing was perfectly legal, it had a statement telling people that they could respond and be removed. I was in shock. What kind of idiot would completely shut down a legitimate business because of a complaint? They would not even let me talk to them and explain my side, I was completely shocked." It's only conjecture what the company's response might have been had Robles been selling religious icons. The left panel of Robles' auction area categorizes guns so you can focus your window-shopping. To the right are featured items. Click on one and it takes you to a form where you can see more about the particular item and enter a bid, if you want. There is a search utility. Many experts will respond to questions within their expertise. There's one way you can be sure your web page won't ever be turned off. SHOTGUN NEWS will host your page as part of www.shotgunnews.com. For more information, see http://www.shotgunnews.com/dealerhome.dog. By Bill Clede Hodgdon Note: If you're as concerned as we are, you can email an AOL service rep at [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please don't direct your anger at this person, but general comments to AOL would be appropriate. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Steve Wingate California Director SKYWATCH INTERNATIONAL Anomalous Images and UFO Files http://www.anomalous-images.com DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance�not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. 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