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Comment by haseman | Hacker News Reader

While I like this in theory (because burning the Koran en mass is a stupid idea) I'm troubled by it in practice. Does this mean that if I espouse on an idea that Rackspace doesn't like they'll pull my service? Obviously this has nothing to do with the 1st amendment... Rackspace may terminate my use of their property by grounds in the contract I've signed with them. I'm not sure, however, I like the idea of a hosting company policing the ideas that are posted on their servers.

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I am no lawyer, but along the lines of your question: by asserting editorial control of the pages they host, is Rackspace abandoning the safe-harbor protections of the DMCA?

It sounds kind of scary when you put it like that, but generally I've no principled objection to a server policing its hosted content for contract compliance as long as it's not the only hosting game in town. If I'm looking for a server, I get to choose whether I trust or want Rackspace. If I'm looking to provide a service, I get to choose whether I want to provide it to crazy dangerous guy. If the guy doesn't think he broke the contract (I don't know what he actually had on the site) let him complain. Otherwise, he can a) find another server that doesn't care about how nuts he is, b) set up his own server, c) exercise his free hate speech from his personal pulpit, or d) join the presumably already established subreddit for Bookburners against Censorship.

If Rackspace doesn't like your idea, and takes your idea down, you no longer pay Rackspace. Instead, you'll go and pay one of their competitors to host your message. Rackspace may like policing, but they probably would enjoy spending your money more.

If all hosting companies decide that "Quran book-burning messages will not be hosted", then you have the freedom to start your own niche business that services these needs. Money: It makes the world go 'round.

It sounds like it, assuming the way your idea is espoused violates TOS that you agreed to.

Fair point, I guess if a movement to burn the Koran "...contains harassing content or hate speech" I have to wonder what other ideas and writings, in Rackspace's considered opinion, might violate that clause in their TOS? As this isn't a legal or constitutional issue, one presumes they aren't using the legal tests for hate speech/hate crimes. Is this a 'I'll know it when i see it' sorta test?

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