Mozilla resists US gov't request to nuke "MafiaaFire" add-on

Wish they'd hurry up and port this to SeaMonkey. I'd like this one but don't care for FireFox.

These big money companies own the government and also think they own the "homeland". Enforcement agencies are their pawns, concerned solely about their corporate overlords financial security. This will continue to get worse. They're already calling Open Source socialist software. I wholly expect them to find a way to make Open Source illegal as a threat to homeland security. That will spell the end of real innovation.

 

For FireFox, follow the links until you get to the end user agreement. When you hover over the actual install link, you'll see the text below displayed in the status bar.

Code:

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/downloads/file/117862/mafiaafire_redirector-0.4b-fx.xpi?src=addondetail

Assuming FireFox works the same as SeaMonkey, right click and select "save link target as", which should get you a "save as" dialog. If the file extension is XPI, that's the file you want. To install later, just open it with your browser.

 

It never fails to amaze me what the USA defines as socialism. I think it triggers some pavlovian image of goose-stepping moujiks in furry hats or something. To Europeans 'socialism' tends to represent state run health care or transport systems. If I get run over by a Range Rover or develop cancer my government will pay for my treatment. It is not free but paid for by National Insurance. It seems civilised & a fairer system to me. I would hardly equate it with Open Source freeware.

I'm really glad I live in the EU.

 

It is completely backwards, especially when you consider that Open Source is literally made by the people, for the people. I wonder if the masses here will ever realize that what they're calling "homeland security" is often corporate security.

I wish someone would release a kit or conversion utility that could take a FireFox extension like this and convert it into a SeaMonkey compatible version. I'm sure others would like to see something similar for other browsers. It does seem like building such a utility would be possible.

 

Question?
Why does the US goverment fund the TOR project but catches a fit with a stupid add on?

 

I think that it is a trend happening throughout the world, not just the USA.

There is a Chrome version, with all the publicity that the extension is getting I'm sure someone will port it for SeaMonkey. Especially when SM 2.1 comes out of beta.

 

Mozilla's Questions Asked of DHS:


April 19, 2011 email from Mozilla to US Department of Homeland Security SpecialAgent

To help us evaluate the Department of Homeland Security's request to take-down/remove the MAFIAAfire.com add-on from Mozilla's websites, can you please providethe following additional information:



1. Have any courts determined that MAFIAAfire.com is unlawful or illegal inany way? If so, on what basis? (Please provide any relevant rulings)

2. Have any courts determined that the seized domains related to MAFIAAfire.com are unlawful, illegal or liable for infringement in any way? (please provide relevant rulings)

3. Is Mozilla legally obligated to disable the add-on or is this request based on other reasons? If other reasons, can you please specify

.4. Has DHS, or any copyright owners involved in this matter, taken any legal action against MAFIAAfire.com or the seized domains, including DMCA requests?

5. What protections are in place for MAFIAAfire.com or the seized domain owners if eventually a court decides they were not unlawful?

6. Can you please provide copies of any briefs that accompanied the affidavit considered by the court that issued the relevant seizure orders?

7. Can you please provide a copy of the relevant seizure order upon which your request to Mozilla to take down MAFIAAfire.com is based?

8. Please identify exactly what the infringements by the owners of the domains consisted of, with reference to the substantive standards of Section 106 andto any case law establishing that the actions of the seized domain owners constituted civil or criminal copyright infringement.

9. Did any copyright owners furnish affidavits in connection with the domain seizures? Had any copyright owners served DMCA takedown notices on the seizeddomains or MAFIAAfire.com? (if so please provide us with a copy)

10. Has the Government furnished the domain owners with formal notice of the seizures, triggering the time period for a response by the owners? If so, when,and have there been any responses yet by owners?

11. Has the Government communicated its concerns directly with MAFIAAfire.com?If so, what response, if any, did MAFIAAfire.com make?

http://www.scribd.com/doc/54218316/Questions-to-Department-of-Homeland-Security-April-19-2011

 

Tor is used by law enforcement, 3-letter agencies, and many dissident groups that are supported by the government. Like the internet itself, Tor is a tool used by all sides. The same design that protects an agent of a 3-letter also protects those who don't want to be tracked by that agency.

MafiaaFire on the other hand is a tool that helps to bypass censorship and give access to domains that are seized for legally questionable reasons by an agency that's abusing its authority for reasons that are well outside of its legitimate roles. Unlike Tor, MafiaaFire is of no use to a government agency as its sole purpose is to work against them and their big money overlords. If its sole purpose for its existence was to gain access to pirated material, they would have a semi-legal basis for trying to get rid of it. But like the internet itself, that's just one of many potential uses for it. Big money views this tool as a piracy app. Anything that can contribute to a user getting something for nothing terrorizes big money, hence DHS gets involved. This might sound like a joke, but that's just about what it boils down to, especially when there's no legitimate reason for DHS to be involved at all.