Time: Thu Jul 31 07:28:26 1997
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Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 07:16:59 -0700
To: (Recipient list suppressed)
From: Paul Andrew Mitchell [address in tool bar]
Subject: SLS: Keep Free Speech Online! (fwd)
<snip>
>
> Free speech is the birthright of all Americans. It's the First
>Amendment to the Constitution and it says you don't need permission
>from the government before offering your opinions. But as you'll see
>in the lawsuit we're filing today, if the CFTC has its way, this
>essential freedom will sacrificed on the altar of regulation - all in
>the name of consumer protection.
>
> We hope you enjoy the following press release, and for additional
>information on the case, check out our special site at
>http://free.ij.org/
>
> HOLD FOR RELEASE UNTIL: July 30, 1997
> CONTACT: John Kramer (jkramer@instituteforjustice.org)
> (202) 955-1300
>
> Institute for Justice
> Publishers and Subscribers Take on CFTC
> In Free Speech Case
>
> Washington, D.C. -The latest battle over free speech in print media
>and on the Internet was launched today when a group of small
>newsletter publishers, software developers, and Internet users took on
>the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's campaign to license speech.
>
> "In America, you do not need permission from the government before
>offering your opinions, whether on car buying or commodity trading,"
>said Scott Bullock, an attorney at the Institute for Justice, which
>represents a group of ten publishers of and subscribers to commodity
>reports. "This case will decide who controls the flow of financial
>investment information: consumers and publishers - or the federal
>government."
>
> The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is the federal agency
>charged with regulating the commodity markets in the United States.
>Not content to oversee firms managing investor accounts and to root
>out fraud, the CFTC began in 1995 to demand registration of anyone who
>for compensation publishes information, analysis or advice about
>commodity trading. Selling a book or a piece of software, or charging
>a newsletter subscription fee forces the publisher to register.
>
> Registration is akin to licensing-publishers must be fingerprinted,
>have a background check conducted on them, pay fees, be subject to
>are the most accurate advisors, serving as an important source of
>information for readers of commodity publications. "The CFTC's
>campaign suppresses speech, hurts investors, and does nothing to
>protect the public," added Rines.
>
> The publishers challenging the CFTC in this action are Bruce Babcock,
>a long-time commodity publisher; Stephen Briese; Robert Miner,
>publisher of Dynamic Trader Analysis Report; Frank Taucher; and Bo
>Thunman, manager of Club 3000 a forum on commodity trading. Five
>subscribers to these publications have also joined in the suit to
>protect their right to receive useful information without government
>interference.
>
> The Institute's First Amendment lawsuit seeks to end
>government-compelled registration of those who either through
>traditional publications, software, or over the Internet offer
>impersonal analysis and advice about commodities. The suit was filed
>in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
>
> The Institute for Justice advances a rule of law under which
>individuals control their destinies as free and responsible members of
>society. Through strategic litigation, training, and outreach, the
>Institute secures greater protection for individual liberty,
>challenges the scope and ideology of the Regulatory Welfare State, and
>illustrates and extends the benefits of freedom to those whose full
>enjoyment of liberty is denied by government. The Institute was
>founded in September 1991 by William Mellor and Clint Bolick.
>
> # # #
>
> [NOTE: To arrange interviews on this subject, journalists may call
>John Kramer, the Institute for Justice's director of communications,
>at (202) 955-1300.]
>_____________________________________________________________________
>Sent by RocketMail. Get your free e-mail at http://www.rocketmail.com
>-------
>To subscribe to c-news, send the message SUBSCRIBE C-NEWS, or the message
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>owner-c-news@world.std.com if you have questions.
>
>
>
========================================================================
Paul Andrew Mitchell : Counselor at Law, federal witness
B.A., Political Science, UCLA; M.S., Public Administration, U.C. Irvine
tel: (520) 320-1514: machine; fax: (520) 320-1256: 24-hour/day-night
email: [address in tool bar] : using Eudora Pro 3.0.3 on 586 CPU
website: http://www.supremelaw.com : visit the Supreme Law Library now
ship to: c/o 2509 N. Campbell, #1776 : this is free speech, at its best
Tucson, Arizona state : state zone, not the federal zone
Postal Zone 85719/tdc : USPS delays first class w/o this
As agents of the Most High, we came here to establish justice. We shall
not leave, until our mission is accomplished and justice reigns eternal.
========================================================================
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