Freedom of Speech - Abortion

[C. W. Tazewell]

FYI - Bill.
                   The Hampton Roads Central Library
               (You don't drive to it; you point to it.)
                  Your *REASON* to have the Internet
Digital Library of Hampton Roads           E A S Y  L I N K S
Front Entrance                              Your WWW Hotlist
http://wwwp.exis.net/~cwt/    http://www.infi.net/~cwt/easylink.html
 
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Date: 12 FEB 1996 00:53:53 GMT 
From: dplast at exis.net
Newsgroups: va.general
Subject: Re: Freedom of Speech (NOT!) 

> dplast at exis.net writes:
> cmerrit at exis.net (Charles W. Merritt) writes:
> Feb.04, 1996
> My Fellow Virginians and Netizens
> Our freedom of speech has been taken away from us. Did you realize this.
> This past week our Federal lawmakers passed new federal law that made it a 
> crime to take about abortion on the Internet.
>  

My thanks to Charles W Merritt for providing these 2 links with more on the 
abortion on the internet subject:
#1. //www.eff.org/pub/Alerts/index.html#cda   and
#2.//www.eff.org/pub/Alerts/schroeder_020696_comstock.announce

After reviewing them, I found the following excerpt from the Congressional 
Record to be most interesting, and IMHO, indicative that the new bill does 
NOT prohibit discussions of abortion on the Internet, any more than it 
prohibits such discussions in the US Mail.

Don Plaster, VA Beach

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February 1, 1996		
	             CONGRESSIONAL RECORD -- HOUSE

Mr HYDE.
		* * *
Mr. Speaker, I am happy to yield to the gentlewoman from New York [Mrs. 
LOWEY] for the purpose of engaging in a colloquy.

Mrs. LOWEY. Mr Speaker, I would like to congratulate the gentleman from 
Virginia  [Mr. BLILEY], the chiarman of the committee, and other members 
of the conference in bringing this very important conference report to 
the floor today. However, I would like to bring to your attention one 
section that is very troubling to me.

Section 507 amends the preexisting section of the Criminal Code (18 
U.S.C. 1462) and applies it to the Internet. Now, it was my understanding 
that your intent behind adopting this provision was to place reasonable 
restrictions on obscenity and indecency on the Internet. I support this goal.

However, a section of this act may be constured to curb discussions about 
abortion. It seems to me this provision would certainly be unconsitutional.

Mr. HYDE. Well, reclaiming my time, Mr. Speaker, I certainly agree with 
the gentlewoman that any discussion about abortion, both pro-life and 
pro-choice rights, is protected by the First Amendment guarantee of free 
speech; and I certainly agree, nothing in title V should be interpreted 
to inhibit free speech about the topic of abortion.

Further, it is correct that our principal intent in adopting this 
provision was to curb the spread of obscenity and indecency, speech that 
is not protected by the first amendment, from the Internet in order to 
protect our children.

[...]

Concerns have been raised about the amendment to 18 U.S.C. Section 1462 
regarding an interactive computer service. Section 1462 generally 
prohbiots the importation or transportation of obscene matter. Subsection 
1462(c) prohibits the importation or interstate carriage of "any drug, 
medicine, article, or thing designed, adapted, or intended for producing 
abortion, or for any indecent or immoral use; or any written or printed 
card, letter, circular, book, pamphlet, advertisement, or notice of any 
kind giving away information, directly or indirectlym wherem howm or of 
whom, or by what means any of such mentioned articles, matters or things 
may be obtained or made***."

We are talking about the advertisement, sale or procurement of drugs or 
medical instruments or devices used to bring about an abortion, This 
language in no way is intended to inhibit free speech about the topic of 
abortion, nor in any way to limit medical or scientific discourse on the 
Internet. This amendment to subsection 1462(c) does not prohibit serious 
discussions about the moral questions surrounding abortion, the act of 
abortion itself, or the constitutionality of abortion. This statutory 
language prohibits the use of an interactive computer service for the 
explicit purpose of selling, procuring or facilitating the sale of drugs, 
medicines or other devices intended for use in producing abortions. The 
statutory language is confined to those commercial activities already 
covered in section 1462(c) of title 18 and in now way interferes with the 
freedom of individuals to discuss the general topic of abortion on the 
Internet. 

[end Congressional Record snippets]

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Don Plaster   dplast at exis.net http://wwwp.exis.net/~dplast/
Virginia Beach, VA        Home Schooler and Data Normalizer
Life's @ Beach!                               Extrordinaire
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