ICANN's divulging
domain-name owners' home addresses and phone numbers
to the public, against
customers' wishes.
(Icki Vicki said:)
*This* is what a secret WHOIS database is
supposed to protect???
You are confused, my dear pinhead-etta! A database is not
"secret" just because it doesn't divulge a client's home
address and phone number to the public. Would you do business
with a bank, if it made sensitive data easily available to
anyone with a modem? I never proposed a "secret" membership;
merely one that respects its clients, instead of throwing them
to the wolves.
(Icki Vicki said:)
Where's your gay holocaust, imminent as of
over four years ago?
Actually, the holocaust began when Prez Reagan looked the
other way for years, re. AIDS....because he perceived it as a
homosexual disease. We are being terrorized, imprisoned,
bashed and slaughtered in greater numbers each year (since
Prez Clinton signed Defense of Marriage Act in '96), around
the world, as well as in this sorry nation. Clinton is
directly responsible for opening the door to invite
homophobes to a national gay-bashing spree.
Further, homosexuals have to live in constant war-time
circumstances, from the day we're born till the day we
die...due to socially sanctioned harassment that is as much a
national sport as baseball, and as much a symbol of Amerika as
apple pie. We queers in the US and most other nations, really
have no idea what it's like to live in a peacetime nation; and
can only view with envy the myriad privileges that come with
the simple, unchosen act of being born heterosexual.
(Icki Vicki said:)
You've been working on your presidential
platform for four years?
Apparantly, parody eludes you. Nonetheless, when one believes
in one's ideals, one does not give up after four
years...instead, one stands firmly against any onslaught.
Sorry you're so unhappy over this simple truth. Wait a minute:
I'm not sorry...in fact, I'm amused!
(Icki Vicki said:)
This website is pathetically designed and the
content is haphazard at best.
Uh-huh. And the examples you give certainly prove your point!
Whatever you're smokin' is doing you *no good, honey bucket!
The many messages of admiration in this very guestbook you
signed, belies your claim.
(Icki Vicki said:)
I would even venture to say that this kind of
website (and spamming) is why we *need*
WHOIS.
We don't need any organization to disseminate personally
sensitive data to the public, just because one has a website.
People can find out about me simply by visiting gay-bible.org.
Furthermore, WHOIS can also keep tabs on domain-name owners,
if legal issues should arise...and do this withOUT
needlessly violating one's rights to privacy.
The idea behind this--especially from the point of view of a
gay acitivist--is to prevent nasty folks like you from burning
down my home, just because you don't like me. Of course, since
society gives tacit and up-front sanction to threaten, bash,
and murder gays...you think it's quite alright to persecute
us. After all, Goddess is on your side, ain't she?
I've been stalked, threatened, and harassed online numerous
times, by homophobic jerkwads who believe it's their God-given
duty to terrorize queers. (And in the case of atheists:
"Nature-given"...and believe me, there are atheist homophobes
out there. I guess the appeal for them is not religious
bigotry, but the lure to being a bully, for some, is
irresistable.)
Some have even slandered me to my ISP, causing me to lose my
Internet connection, with neither refund nor reasonable
response by the provider. This is because homophobia remains a
nasty psychic infection on all levels of society, ISP
employees no exception. Even those providers that brag about
protecting their minority customers from just such abuse,
often make the unacknowledged exception when it comes to
homosexual customers. In their case, they simply shut down
their subscription w/o notice or explanation, and w/o
bothering to look into the matter. They know full well how
often gays are unduly harassed; and the stalkers also know
they can play this tacit bigotry in their favor.
I have therefore had to change ISP's four times, since I began
my Internet odyssey in 1997...an expense which I cannot really
afford, considering I live on a disability stipend. I truly
appreciated those free ISPs so prevalent during the dot-com
boom. But I still consider myself lucky that some low-cost
providers still exist; and the one I'm subscribed to now,
charges just $6.95/month...so kudos to you, qwickconnect.net!
They don't provide a news service; however, I use one that is
free, if you don't mind not having access to binaries. I would
like binary access, as I enjoy original art, music, sound
effects, abandonware, etc., and participating in such groups.
(Not for pornography, which bores the heck out of me. Not to
mention the horridly offensive and violent smut that seriously
damages human integrity; yet is considered preferrable
over images of two, fully-clothed males in warm embrace,
kissing. Likewise for violent, deadly rape of women by
mentally deranged males...mostly Republikan.)
I always back up my claims, and being stalked on the Internet
is no exception. You can easily find such evidence by searching
for my name on Google's Usenet search engine. I've compiled a
"Zeke-specific" newsgroup database, to make this an easy
process.
It is highly possible, even probable, for some Usenet
homophobes to take unfair advantage of my public
vulnerability, thanks to ICANN's inconsiderate (and
anti-constitutional) policy. Instead of slandering me to my
ISP, they could simply look up my home address, and spread it
among various homophobic netizens and groups...some of which
may exist in my region of the world, and cause me severe
anxiety, and even harm. It's only a matter of time before this
happens...if I don't first find a way to have my address and
phone number concealed, before it's too late.
Sadly, homophobia remains so omnipresent and tacit, that I
don't doubt such a gay-relevant appeal would fall on deaf ears
to ICANN and even to consumer and political groups that are
not specifically there to defend the rights of sexual
minorities.
That is my take on the matter. As a longterm gay activist, I
never shirk from possible danger; and even find ways to savor
such challenges, and make them my badge of honor.
Sinqueerly,
Zeke Krahlin
(pink canary in a cave, with attitude)
P.S.: Icki Vicki, your lack of compassion towards sexual
minorities has been duly noted. May one rightly conclude that
you're a tad homophobic?
