Tuesday, January 05, 2010

Discovery Institute Busted

It seems the clowns at the Discovery Institute just can't stand being criticized - so much so that they issued a bogus DMCA takedown notice on a youtube video. The DI says it's all about the unauthorized use of their logo, and they say they don't "contest right [sic] of this user to publish satire, parody, or criticism", but that's about as believable as their other claims.

17 comments:

Joshua said...

The quote he ascribes to Napoleon is I think actually originally due to Robert Heinlein.

I'd make a more substantive comment but it doesn't seem like there's much to add. I don't think this surprises anyone.

Takis Konstantopoulos said...

It's through your blog that I discovered [sic] that Discovery Instutute is synonymous to Dishonesty Institute. So no surprises here, right?

Jeffrey Shallit said...

No, no surprise. Just wondering how much lower they can go.

Unknown said...

As a wise man once said:

"You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy."

Miranda said...

Just want to make sure that it's been established that the DI didn't get permission from PBS to use their logo.

Or, maybe it's best to judge them unfavorably, even without knowing the answer to that.

Jeffrey Shallit said...

Just want to make sure that it's been established that the DI didn't get permission from PBS to use their logo.

Why don't you ask them?

For me, that's not the critical issue - it's the bogus takedown notice.

Miranda said...

Why is the takedown notice "bogus"? I'm not saying it's not LAME, but it doesn't rise to the level such that they were "busted" for it. "Busted" means they were being hypocritical, which would likely be the case if they used the PBS logo without permission.

Jeffrey Shallit said...

It's bogus because there is no legal basis for it.

Again - I ask - what is your native language? Because "busted" to me doesn't necessarily imply hypocrisy, just that some is caught doing something that they shouldn't.

Miranda said...

English, what's yours?

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/busted

Take a look at the "informal" definition.

"BUSTED: caught out doing something wrong and therefore in trouble"

The DI are not "in trouble" and they didn't do something wrong, just lame.

However, I can see teenagers kidding around with each other, saying "you're so busted" and that's probably how you were thinking.

Jeffrey Shallit said...

So, even the dictionary you cite doesn't agree that "busted" has a connotation of being hypocritical?

Filing a bogus DMCA takedown is illegal. And suppressing the speech of others would constitute being "in trouble" for an organization that supposedly supports free speech for anti-evolutionists.

I conclude that you're wrong but can't admit it. Or maybe you just like interminable arguments about trivialities. Either way, not worth my time further.

Miranda said...

"So, even the dictionary you cite doesn't agree that "busted" has a connotation of being hypocritical?
... you just like interminable arguments about trivialities."

You knew what I meant and what I didn't mean when I wrote "Busted means they were being hypocritical"!
Speaking about triviality!

Jeffrey Shallit said...

Miranda:

You're a bore. And you're even more of a bore when you claim to have intimate knowledge about my mental states.

Miranda said...

You claim that I claim, but all I said was "probably."

You never quite get things right when it comes to representing me.

Takis Konstantopoulos said...

Miranda: As I wrote a moment ago in my other comment, you keep disagreeing for the sake of disagreeing. The Discovery Institute is a moronic organization which tries to change the meaning of science. The topic of the posting is not the meaning of the word but the fact that, again, the Discovery Institute is a dishonest organization and should not exist.

Unknown said...

"You never quite get things right when it comes to representing me."

Perhaps you are incapable of expressing yourself clearly?

That often happens to people who play semantic games hoping for cheap points. When those points fail to materialize, they often fall back on "you all misunderstood me!!!"

Try saying something substantive once. See if people understand it.

Miranda said...

"You never quite get things right when it comes to representing me."

Perhaps you are incapable of expressing yourself clearly?"

I guess your M.O., Ty, is to not inquire what the other person means, but just assume the worst and go with that. -- Like Jeff.

MDR said...

This reminds me of the Diebold case. I hope you take them for some big cash.