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Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jun 27, 2005 5:49 UTC (Mon) by jmerkey (guest, #30549)
In reply to: Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is... by dps
Parent article: The next chapter in the Merkey saga

Time to respond.

I know what a "kill file" is. The problem I have with Mr. Perens extremely big mouth is he stated that "I" should be placed in a kill file. Kill files are used to identify email servers and email addresses, not individuals. I also know LWN took down his statements "He works for SCO". Too bad -- I snapshotted and printed them -- and guess what -- there's a Federal Subpoena coming LWN's way this week -- surprise. Spoilate evidence and go to jail possibly, BTW.

By stating "Jeff should be placed in an email kill file" is a death threat, and many people assumed this was what he said (and I believe it's what he meant.) I started seeing comments advocating I be killed on slashdot and other websites as a result of this and it got really outraeous.

So all of you weird strange demented people who somehow think this is all OK are the ones who are nuts.

Have a nice Day.

Jeff


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Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jun 27, 2005 13:10 UTC (Mon) by sitaram (subscriber, #5959) [Link]

merkey -- get a life and a clue. Bruce said "He belongs on every person's email kill file". By your incredibly deluded interpretation, this means that EVERY person maintains a file of people he would want to literally kill. This is so preposterous that no judge will buy it.

Why do you insist on monopolising the idiocy franchise?

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jun 27, 2005 17:13 UTC (Mon) by jmerkey (guest, #30549) [Link]

Say whatever you want -- it's going to trial and so is Mr. Perens. Deal with it.

Jeff

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jun 28, 2005 21:07 UTC (Tue) by vjv0vjv (guest, #30722) [Link]

So you're saying that calling someone a "SCO employee" is slander/libel? Ok. I'll agree that it's a serious insult. Further, I'll agree that there's no obvious evidence that you were ever directly employed by SCO, Caldera, or Canopy.

If anyone's really called you that, I think their suspicion of your motives is due to LKML posts like this one. Let's suppose that people are only heaping all this criticism on you strictly because they aren't clear about your motives, which makes them feel mistrustful. Let's further suppose this is all a big misunderstanding, which could easily be cleared up by just sitting down and talking it over calmly, without any lawsuits or unkind language.

Let's talk common sense for a moment. All heated rhetoric aside, in real life nobody actually wants to harm you or your family in any way. It's true that posters on Slashdot are known for their ill-considered hyperbole, and posters on Slashdot are also known for being pimply basement-dwelling 15 year olds with no social skills. Nothing they say is credible, and their opinions are of no value. They get bullied at high school, so they come home and act like bullies on the net. But they only have power over you if you let them. Playing their game and complaining about it just makes them do it more, and not even a federal judge can change that.

My advice to you is to forget about suing people, shrug it all off, and get on with life. If you just stop feeding them, they'll forget all about you and find something else to fixate on.

Can't we all just get along?

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jun 28, 2005 22:23 UTC (Tue) by jmerkey (guest, #30549) [Link]

"Can't we all just get along"

It's gone a little far for that. Making death threats is going too far....

Jeff

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jun 28, 2005 23:44 UTC (Tue) by vjv0vjv (guest, #30722) [Link]

You said:

> It's gone a little far for that. Making death threats is going too far....

I absolutely agree. Making death threats would be going too far, if that's happened. If you've received any genuine, credible threats, you really ought to alert the authorities, rather than trying to handle this on your own. That's what they're there for, after all.

I understand you've been encountering skepticism over your reading of Mr. Perens' "killfile" comment. You've said you experienced emotional distress as a result, and I'm sure that's true. If someone of his prominence suggested that everyone put *me* in their killfiles, I know I'd find it distressing. Convincing a jury that counts as a death threat is another matter, and it may be a tough sell. Please note that I'm offering this strictly as advice, not as criticism.

If you do decide to go through with this civil case, and put the matter in front of a jury, of course you'll want to have the strongest case you can muster. In that spirit, you may not want to lead off with that Perens remark, if you've got any better material at your disposal. You've mentioned that you've received numerous threatening emails. You might want to review those and pick out a few that look like stronger "death threat" candidates than the Perens comment, in case the jury's not convinced by that one. Actually if you could provide some examples either here or on your website, that might go a very long way towards winning the public over to your side.

How's that bogus lawsuit working out for ya, toad licker?

Posted Jun 29, 2005 21:18 UTC (Wed) by yuk (guest, #29782) [Link]

You are a waste of perfectly good oxygen. Go away already.

signed, saltydogmn (signed in via bugmenot)

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jun 29, 2005 21:31 UTC (Wed) by Ross (subscriber, #4065) [Link]

Jeff you're not helping your case if what you are really concerned with your
image in the Linux community. We know what Perens meant and I just don't
buy your interpretation. If there are examples of actual death threats,
that's another matter completely. I think you would find that we wouldn't
support anyone who does that. However your recent comments about how Groklaw
is hurting SCO by commenting on the court cases is just too much. If public
commentary hurts their case it wasn't strong enough to begin with. Court
cases are open to the public for a reason: public scrutiny. This is good
for most of the same reasons that government transparency is good.

In any case, don't start badgering LWN like Groklaw and Slashdot. What
purpose can that possibly have?

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jun 29, 2005 22:58 UTC (Wed) by jhardin@impsec.org (guest, #15045) [Link]

> In any case, don't start badgering LWN like Groklaw and Slashdot.
> What purpose can that possibly have?

Feeding his own need for attention.

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jul 1, 2005 7:21 UTC (Fri) by jmerkey (guest, #30549) [Link]

This individual is a gun rights activist with a john birch style website. See -- all of these folks are far right wing radicals.

jhardin@impsec.org

Jeff

Computer Scientists might not know what a web page URL is...

Posted Jul 1, 2005 19:58 UTC (Fri) by jhardin@impsec.org (guest, #15045) [Link]

Mmm. Since when is believing that the Constitutional limitations on the powers of the Government should be obeyed considered "radical"?

I am most definitely *not* far-right-wing. I'd love to know what prompted you to make *that* judgement of my character - besides the gun pix, of course...

BTW, "jhardin@impsec.org" won't take you to my website. For that you need to use this: http://www.impsec.org/~jhardin/

Here are some more educational materials for you, since you seen to have a rather loose grasp of this concept as well:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/URL

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/U/URL.html

http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid...

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jul 1, 2005 7:08 UTC (Fri) by jmerkey (guest, #30549) [Link]

LWN was the source and starting point for all of this along with Perens and Jones and thier statements. The death threats were too much. One of these idiots posted on comment that my pregnant wife should be killed and cut open, and the unborn fetus pulled from her body and killed.

My wife was unable to sleep after seeing this comment. After she saw it, she fled the house with our newborn son and stayed in a hotel for several days in a state of panic and terror. This bullshit is going to stop -- or else.

We have had it and I have had it with idiots and sociopaths who for whatever reason have made libeling me one of their hobiies. LWN also took down some of perens comments and has spoilated evidence by doing so. I want the evidence put back up and left there or LWN may get added as a defendant.

I hope this clarifies my views for the Linux and OSS folks who harbor or support these cyber-terrorists.

Jeff V. Merkey

an important point

Posted Jul 1, 2005 18:41 UTC (Fri) by vjv0vjv (guest, #30722) [Link]

It's important to note that it was *not* public knowledge at the time that you were married, much
less that your wife was pregnant. The logical conclusion here is that whoever posted that
disgusting threat is someone who knows you on a more personal level, otherwise they wouldn't
have known any of that stuff. For whatever reason, the perpetrator decided to try to terrorize
you, while trying to pin the blame on the Linux community. That would be really convenient for
the perpetrator, you have to admit. I couldn't begin to guess what sort of person would be
harboring a grudge like that. Could be connected to the Mooney situation, for all we know.

I've said it before, but I'll say it again particularly about that one comment: If you haven't
contacted law enforcement about it already, you'd be wise to do so. Slashdot comments from
15-year old geeks in Norway are one thing, but this is quite another. If there's any chance that
your family could be in real danger, you shouldn't try to handle this on your own, for their sake if
not yours. The person who posted that probably has your address, since it's appeared in various
places (court documents, whois listings, etc.). I'm not saying you need to move, but a home
security upgrade might be a good idea.

I think you'll find that despite all the heated arguing over things like the $50k kernel issue a few
months ago, the Linux community as a whole will regard all that as a "family squabble", and
people will stand by you and reject the few extreme nutcases who do horrible things like this.
People would probably even help you track them down, if it came to that.


an important point

Posted Jul 1, 2005 21:45 UTC (Fri) by jmerkey (guest, #30549) [Link]

I appreciate your kind comments and advice. I can tell you that the US Attorney is aware of all of this and are monitoring the court filings and legal discovery. I do not know for certain, but I'd say there's a good chance anyone or any organizations or newsites who harbor or protect these people may be looking at jail time. This may include this one.

Jeff

Computer Scientists might not know what a kill file is...

Posted Jul 1, 2005 20:24 UTC (Fri) by jhardin@impsec.org (guest, #15045) [Link]

> One of these idiots posted on [sic] comment that my pregnant wife should be
> killed and cut open, and the unborn fetus pulled from her body and killed.

The vast majority of the Linux and OSS communities (including myself) does *not* endorse such behavior. The most likely situation is that someone who is "maturity challenged" posted the comment and was not serious; however this does not excuse the behavior or mitigate the effects the comment had on yourself and your wife. Proper law enforcement authorities should be notified so that whoever made such threats can be located and punished appropriately.

But lumping such threats along with Perens' comment that you should be plonked, and along with hyperbolic ranting that OSS contributes materially to worldwide terrorism, in a lawsuit seeking millions of dollars in damages against hundreds of John Doe defendants who called you names, is *not* a way to get your claims taken seriously by the community, or to convince the majority of the community that you are worthy of anything other than ridicule.

Jeff, I'll say it again: You are your own worst enemy. The world is *not* out to get you, and all of your public ranting about it is the equivalent of hanging a "kick me" sign on your own back. Are you truly surprised that there are people out there who will oblige you?

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