The Internet Archive, the HTTP time machine that records the history of World Wide Web, is planning to create a backup in Canada because of the uncertainty of the policies of a Trump administration.
While any attack on the Archives by the government would probably be reversed by the courts, the attack might be enough to destroy its work and stop its continuing collection of updates. Court cases take time and Trump lawyers specialize in dragging out court cases.
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3 comments
I was thinking of posting a comment about this a week ago. It’s interesting in many ways & I decided to think about it some (when I had time). 🙂
They have backups (partial anyway) in Egypt and Amsterdam. Canada was something of a surprise for a mirror (rather than *backup*). I have heard from contacts that this has been on the cards for some years & a 2nd mirror is planned outside the USA. Perhaps Trump was just a catalyst to speed things up. 🙂
One curious part is that the IA was officially designated a Library by the State of California in 2007 (from memory). So I’m unsure how that works in the USA regarding treating them as purely a website or hosting business. They have already successfully challenged an FBI NSL. They have also successfully earned a (partial) exemption from the DMCA for archived s/w & documents (generally for those not given public access. Ie. Archival only). IA also has powerful friends & official supporters.
I doubt Trump would get very far with any challenge, legal or otherwise. He hasn’t the temperament for a long battle & isn’t the brightest light on the street! 😉 😀
Kryten, Trump successfully waged a battle against the City of New York for back taxes on one of his hotels that lasted from 1987 to 2004. That’s *SEVENTEEN YEARS*, in case you’re counting. Yes, Trump has the temperament for a long battle. He’s a vindictive SOB, and they nurse their grudges for a *long* time.
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/10/trump-files-how-donald-screwed-over-new-york-city-his-tax-bill
Trump’s legal team specializes in dragging out court cases. It is a tactic to make the other side run out of money or will to fight. If he loses, he appeals so the other side has to put out the money for the appeal. He doesn’t ‘fight’, he has people for that.
There is no Federal ‘slot’ for IA to drop into that would provide it with a suite of protections. It has to fight every new assault out in the courts. The First Amendment provides wider free speech protections for the US than any other country. If you mirror in Europe you run into restrictions on religious and Nazi issues. Canada has a few of them, but is closer to the US than anyone else.