German Politician Thinks Gmail Constituent Messages Are All Faked By Google

from the not-how-it-works dept

Christopher Clay alerts us to the latest Google Derangement Syndrome from an EU Bureaucrat. Last year, we noted that various EU politicians kept insisting that all of the complaints about their awful plan were due to Google lobbying and astroturfing -- when the reality showed that nearly all of the lobbying came from legacy copyright players.

However, German MEP Sven Schulze must have thought he was really on to something in claiming he had real proof of Google astroturfing. In a tweet (in German) he claimed that because all of the complaints he's getting seem to come from people with Gmail addresses, it's proof of fakery. No, really. Here's a translation (courtesy of Google, of course) of his tweet:

Now coming back every second of messages about # upload filter & # Article 13 pure. Apart from the fact that these contents are not correct, ALL come from # Gmail accounts. 🤔Man # google , I know that you are angry, but ye have this # fake really necessary action?

Really now? Perhaps Schultze is unaware that (as of the most recent public stats), Gmail is used by 1.5 billion people. These days, it's pretty typical for lots and lots of people to use Gmail as their personal (and often professional) email address. To claim that seeing Gmail emails proves Google is astroturfing is... nutty. And, it would appear that Schulze's followers recognize just how idiotic this looks.

How do you say ratioed in German?

And many of those 4.5 thousand replies are ruthlessly mocking him for being completely clueless.

I'm guessing he'll blame Google for all those replies as well?

Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team

Filed Under: article 13, bots, copyright, email, eu, eu copyright directive, gmail, lobbying, sven schulze


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  1. icon
    That One Guy (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 7:47am

    If you pretend it's from the boogieman, you don't have to answer

    Easier by far to simply dismiss any criticism as coming from a large company that disagrees with you than to address that criticism, especially when it's entirely valid and you have no defensible position.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. icon
    Gary (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 7:49am

    Re: If you pretend it's from the boogieman, you don't have to an

    True. I was recently told by some Trumpetors that everything published by WaPo or the TImes was false by definition and they didn't have to address the facts in the articles. Win for the Cheeto.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 9:17am

    Fake News, fake emails, what will the next excuse for ignoring the electorate be.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. icon
    Stephen T. Stone (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 9:23am

    Re:

    Fake electorate.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. icon
    Anonymous Anonymous Coward (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 9:24am

    Re:

    Teflon, which in conjunction with closed ears, closed eyes will compliment the already closed mind. Oh, and don't forget the 'campaign contributions' that the rest of us know as bribes.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  6. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 9:32am

    Ugh, these weasels...

    I almost cannot believe the sheer brazen nerve of them, making out like this legislation is meant to target the very beneficiaries of it, the established internet giants whose positions as arbiters of what content is permitted on the internet will be entrenched by making it impossible for anyone to offer alternatives.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  7. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 9:35am

    I do wonder...

    How many of the complaints he's received by phone came from Android phones or iPhones?

    Clearly Apple and Google must be behind all of those, too!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  8. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 9:39am

    I'm guessing he'll blame Google for all those replies as well?

    He'll blame Twitter for extra brownie points.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  9. identicon
    TFG, 19 Feb 2019 @ 9:48am

    Re: Re: If you pretend it's from the boogieman, you don't have t

    When that starts, since communication has broken down, I just aim to make them as mad as possible, and start treating all their sources as false by default.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  10. This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:16am

    Copyright is not legacy. Companies purchase the rights from artists who lack mass distribution, and in return most artists get rich. Those who get screwed usually deal with fly-by-night labels or people they trusted, not the biggest players. That's why the top-shelf talent won't even work with indies. Listen to the horror stories of unprofessional productions (lack of insurance being one example), or not getting paid, nonunion work or union rules not being followed, and there's a reason these companies have that "legacy."

    Masnick, on the other hand, is a loudmouthed, cowardly (as in lets his commenters bully people as if he shouldn't endure any consequences for that), NOBODY whose sole purpose seems to be seeding Google with sentence-long headlines that people can read without even clicking to his site.

    What was in the other post? The top 20 searches on YOUTUBE (owned by Google) said something, yet Google itself talked about "good censorship." This is predicated on a belief that the audience is stupid and easily manipulated.

    Copyrightholders and governments have had enough of piracy. One way or another, it's on the way out. Anyone who doesn't like what this does to the internet should blame the pirates, not the government.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  11. This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:18am

    "Waaaah! We can't steal content anymore!"

    Japan has it right. Lock up these thieves.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  12. This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    identicon
    Bob N Weave, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:24am

    "complaints ... due to Google lobbying and astroturfing"

    Is true and NOT contradictory to "nearly all of the lobbying came from legacy copyright players", that's just your misleading pro-Google juxtaposition.

    But the ODD and interesting part of your phrasing there is:

    the reality showed

    Just wacky. Implies that you believe in more than one reality, or as I'd put it in vernacular: cherry-pick to suit any given piece.

    You then go on to IGNORE the 669 "likes", which also fits "many", instead try to claim this person is overwhelmingly opposed.

    It's TRIVIAL at best. So what's your true purpose with this TRIPE about ONE "German politician"?

    Now, for REAL contrast: where's your numbers for how many "bloggers" are "supported" by Google and attack anyone who opposes it?

    Here's UNDENIABLE evidence linking opposition to this person with Google's support:

    https://copia.is/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/sponsors.png

    From the THAT'S HOW IT WORKS department.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  13. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:26am

    Re: Re: If you pretend it's from the boogieman, you don't have t

    Particularly NY digital media for self-preservation publishes unverified outrageous claims for the attention. Word selection purposefully ambiguous to imply the most outrageous interpretation, and too often other digital media firms pick up that outrageous implication and write their own story stoked to be even wilder.

    The harassment of Covington high-school kids is an example of this. While the digital media world is escalating their feedback loop of outrage to the highest levels, more moderate democrats and trumpets watched the original footage. Waited for more information. Then took note of the loss of credibility of platforms that ran with the outrage.

    Smollett is another example of this exact process. Digital media world escalated and fired up feedback loops of outrage to the highest levels, gathering readership clicks for the story. More moderate democrats and trumpets observed things didn't add up as depicted. Waited for more information. Then again took note of the loss of credibility of platforms that ran with the outrage.

    Charlottesville is another example of this process. Digital media escalated and fired up feedback loops of outrage to the highest levels, claiming President Trump came out in front of the world and stated openly he thought racists were fine people. More moderate democrats and trumpets observed the clear and repeated denunciation of white supremacists. Then again took note of the loss of credibility of platforms that ran with the most outrageous interpretation as indicator of racist statement that never happened.

    Russia is another example of this process. The Steele dossier is opposition research from the Jeb Bush campaign, then picked up by Clinton, laundered through the press with headlines baked into the document to support itself, then passed through confused politicians to the intel agencies, the rubber-stamp FISA court (so appropriately derided in Techdirt), then used to fuel constant outrage stories for readership clicks. We've relived the Groundhogs Day version of the story since then with the same story ramped up over and over again going no where. More moderate democrats and trumpets observe accurately that there's nothing there, and three years into this all key claims are well documented as empty claims. Looking and taking note of the loss of credibility of platforms, Washington Post and New York Times are two that went hardest at empty claims and lost the most credibility in doing so. They cannot be trusted.

    Those of us who took note of the lies, outrage, and omissions that marked us into war in Afghanistan and Iraq under Bush/Cheney are well tuned to spot the bullshit by this point. This is the very same engine driven largely by former intelligence and other political figures now embedded in the press driving their political agendas under protection of freedom of the press. It's political activist 'journalism' that sends us down the wrong path time and time again. I look at the current direction of the left and shake my head wondering when the worst of the Bush/Cheney administration power brokers took over and infested the left. It's as bad or worse than ever.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  14. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:29am

    Re:

    Iceland's path. Lock of the thieves -- most of which are bankers.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  15. icon
    John Roddy (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:38am

    From the THAT'S HOW IT WORKS department.

    Narrator: That's not how it works.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  16. icon
    Igualmente69 (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:38am

    Re: "complaints ... due to Google lobbying and astroturfing"

    Oh, so you missed the recent Techdirt article that referenced an independent study which clearly showed that most of the lobbying came from legacy industry sources, much more than Google?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  17. icon
    Igualmente69 (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:41am

    Re:

    Yes, that is right, you do think your audience is stupid and easily manipulated.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  18. icon
    wereisjessicahyde (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:42am

    How do you say Ratioed in German? Ratioed.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  19. This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    identicon
    Bob N Weave, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:42am

    Re: Re: Re: If you pretend it's from the boogieman, you don't ha

    I look at the current direction of the left and shake my head wondering when the worst of the Bush/Cheney administration power brokers took over and infested the left.

    Think that's the only point you're wrong on. In my view, was the left that took over Republican party, starting with the first, a Harvard-educated Northeastern liberal named William Buckley, who simply started calling himself a "conservative" and subverting all our positions. I wondered in the 80s why his National Review wasn't worried about what I was: debt, big government, and such. It's since come out that the Kristols used that strategy too, and the "Republican In Name Only" label became necessary.

    Anyhoo, today seems there's almost enough of us here to take over Techdirt! I don't ally with anyone because not necessary: my views as yours stand on own merits... But one strategy would be get rid of the "hiding" by copy-pasting what the kids censor until they tire of it; when IP address is banned as will be, to get TOR Browser and resume. -- But I don't advocate that because prefer to just HOOT. And it's not really worth the effort.

    It's certainly a valid response to Masnick's pieces like this, and then the comments getting off-topic about Trump. Sheesh.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  20. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:44am

    Re:

    Did you actually cry real tears while writing that manifesto or were they more of the dry sob variety?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  21. icon
    wereisjessicahyde (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:44am

    Re:

    What has that got to do with German politicians and emails?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  22. This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    identicon
    Bob N Weave, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:45am

    Re: Re: "complaints ... due to Google lobbying and astrotur

    Oh, so you missed the recent Techdirt article that referenced an independent study which clearly showed that most of the lobbying came from legacy industry sources, much more than Google?

    As I stated, it's not the NUMBERS: Masnick is mixing "complaints from Google" with "lobbying" from those who have a direct stake in copyright. It's just Masnick's usual tactic of putting two unrelated facts up and thereby clearing GOOGLE of its de facto monopoly and underhanded tactics.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  23. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:46am

    Re: "complaints ... due to your shadow on this doorstep

    Better watch out blue balls. Old Jhon boy is gunnin for the spot of dumbest, craziest, whinest bitch, on this forum.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  24. This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    identicon
    Bob N Weave, 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:50am

    Re: "Copyright is not legacy." -- Good catch of MM's sly phrase.

    He's always slanting that way with adjectives slipped in.

    But of course, copyright IS a valuable legacy from the Founding Fathers of America who put in protections for the few creators from the many thieves. Damn good that they did, else the system that works so well to protect WORK and bring benefits to The Public would never have been able to come about.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  25. icon
    Rico R. (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 10:55am

    Re:

    Copyright is not legacy. Companies purchase the rights from artists who lack mass distribution, and in return most artists get rich. Those who get screwed usually deal with fly-by-night labels or people they trusted, not the biggest players. That's why the top-shelf talent won't even work with indies. Listen to the horror stories of unprofessional productions (lack of insurance being one example), or not getting paid, nonunion work or union rules not being followed, and there's a reason these companies have that "legacy."

    I'm an independent musician who has put ALBUMS on iTunes, Spotify, etc. I have not had any sales, only streaming royalties totaling up to less than $5. So you would think I would be ALL FOR Article 13. You'd be wrong. If a major label offered to turn me into a star tomorrow in exchange for my rights, I wouldn't take their deal. NOT because I don't want to move up within the industry, but because of the industry's view on copyright not aligning with mine. What I'd consider "free publicity" they'd consider "copyright infringement". They'd call money from Content ID claims "royalties", but I don't want that kind of royalty.

    Furthermore, you're really generalizing artists who get screwed over who signed to a major label. And nowadays, why would you want to go to a gatekeeper with a chance to get screwed over when you can put music out independently without gatekeepers? That way, if you don't like what you're getting, it's 100% in your control and you can do whatever you want. As far as collaborating with "indies", you again are generalizing it. There are plenty of independent productions that follow the union rules, get union workers, all without the need to go to a gatekeeper for their blessing. You're painting a picture where the gatekeepers and the industry has everything figured out, and that anyone who says they can do it without them is destined to fail. That's no longer the case in the 21st century.

    Masnick, on the other hand, is a loudmouthed, cowardly (as in lets his commenters bully people as if he shouldn't endure any consequences for that), NOBODY whose sole purpose seems to be seeding Google with sentence-long headlines that people can read without even clicking to his site.

    Bully. Noun. A person who uses strength or power to harm or intimidate those who are weaker. Bully. Verb. Use superior strength or influence to intimidate (someone), typically to force him or her to do what one wants. Tell me this: How is what you say not make you a bully? Furthermore, using sound, logical arguments to rebut arguments like this is not bullying. Even if you're feelings are hurt because you don't like what you're reading doesn't make that bullying.

    What was in the other post? The top 20 searches on YOUTUBE (owned by Google) said something, yet Google itself talked about "good censorship." This is predicated on a belief that the audience is stupid and easily manipulated.

    Is there a source saying Google talked about "good censorship"? And as far as the audience being manipulated, come on! Even those in the US who are for copyright law are against Article 13. Just because you disagree with their logic, and Google sides with their logic, does not mean Google manipulated those people. What's next: Assuming everyone who uses an Android phone is against Article 13 because of Google?

    Copyrightholders and governments have had enough of piracy. One way or another, it's on the way out. Anyone who doesn't like what this does to the internet should blame the pirates, not the government.

    First off, copyright holders lobbied the governments for this kind of law that will screw up the Internet. I already addressed how Article 13 won't kill piracy in another comment (presumably to you), but to recap: Article 13 won't stop piracy; it'll only mess up the rest of the internet platforms who are trying to avoid copyright infringement (i.e. YouTube, Facebook, etc.). If we want to stop Article 13, we need to talk to government officials. Talking to "pirates" will do absolutely nothing!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  26. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 11:00am

    Re:

    May I parse legacy copyright industry for you, it is adverb, adverb verb. Legacy and copyright both describe the industry consisting of the old established gatekeeper publishers, labels,studios and newspapers.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  27. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 11:03am

    Re: Re:

    Oops, wrong parts, that should be adjective, adjective, noun,

    link to this | view in thread ]

  28. icon
    Ninja (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 11:08am

    So this is what they meant when they said artificial intelligence. Clever Google, clever.

    It's obvious now, Masnick is not a shill, it is a GOOGLE BOT. Emphasis on that "it".

    (/derp < just in case)

    link to this | view in thread ]

  29. identicon
    Rocky, 19 Feb 2019 @ 11:11am

    Re: Re: "Copyright is not legacy." -- Good catch of MM's sly phr

    Yeah!! Lets get back to the "copyright IS a valuable legacy from the Founding Fathers"!!

    Which means something can only be copyrighted for 14 years with the option to renew it once for another 14 years.

    The benefit to The Public would be awesome since everything copyrighted before 1991 would be in the public domain now.

    I like your idea!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  30. identicon
    Rocky, 19 Feb 2019 @ 11:26am

    Re: Re: Re: "complaints ... due to Google lobbying and astr

    For many, the word "lobbying" is an euphemism for "pay offs". Also, EVERYONE has a stake in copyright which you fail to realize.

    And you complaining about Mike allegedly putting two unrelated facts up is hilarious because you mix "facts" willy nilly with made up shit and you ALWAYS refuse to provide citations - instead you engage in straw-man attacks, misdirection or just ignore comments to prove you wrong.

    In essence, you are an impotent loudmouth that has stagnated and can't keep up with the world anymore.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  31. icon
    Thad (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 11:27am

    Re:

    Copyright is not legacy.

    If you're not going to bother coming up with a new talking point, then I'm not going to bother coming up with a new response. So here's a rerun of the one I wrote last week.

    You're either legitimately failing at reading comprehension, or you're being intentionally disingenuous.

    The phrase is "legacy copyright companies". Three words. Not two. The word "legacy" is clearly meant to describe copyright-owning companies whose business model relies on a pre-Internet conception of copyright law.

    That is extremely clear from both the phrase and the context. So either you're bad at understanding plain English -- entirely possible; you're certainly not very good at writing it -- or you understand just fine and you're merely pretending not to.

    Which is it, John -- are you stupid, or dishonest?

    Given that you're still repeating the same bullshit after I already called you on it, it's looking a lot like the answer is "dishonest". Though I'm sure your coming replies will provide plenty of evidence in support of "stupid".

    link to this | view in thread ]

  32. icon
    Darkness Of Course (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 11:35am

    He's actually expanding.

    The replies all come from ... Twitter!

    OMFG, they're in it together.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  33. identicon
    TFG, 19 Feb 2019 @ 11:44am

    Re: Re: Re: Re: If you pretend it's from the boogieman, you don'

    Try again, Kid.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  34. icon
    That One Guy (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 11:49am

    Short-term gain, long-term loss

    After having 'their guy' spending so long vilifying the press and asserting that it's all 'fake' they are going to have a real fun time when the other side takes the spot and rolls with it.

    'When your guy was in power news critical of the president was nothing but lies and could be ignored, but now that the other side has the seat, now people are supposed to believe news critical of the president when people and agencies put it out? Hypocrisy much?'

    link to this | view in thread ]

  35. icon
    Thad (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 12:01pm

    Re: Short-term gain, long-term loss

    link to this | view in thread ]

  36. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 12:04pm

    Re: Do it you pussy

    Remember when you said only pirates use VPNs. Techdirt Farms does.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  37. icon
    Shufflepants (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 12:24pm

    Re: He's actually expanding.

    Turns out the Internet isn't actually something that connects people together, but is just a single chatbot that everyone interacts with. Every post or tweet you've ever seen other than your own was authored by The One True Chat Bot.

    This message brought to you by "The One True Chat Bot".

    link to this | view in thread ]

  38. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 1:05pm

    Re:

    Stop copying and pasting. No one is taking you seriously at this point.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  39. This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 1:06pm

    Re: Re:

    The law won't screw up the internet at all.

    The major labels and content producers (film, tv) have no difficulty attracting top-shelf talent, because professionals like being treated and paid as such.

    Masnick has ties to some pretty awful people that will be highlighted down the road, perhaps not even by me. I've gotten wind of some deep-diving exposes that will reveal a lot about some of whom he has spoken very highly. His verbally aggressive tone is that of a bully, one a lot more smug than he should be given what reporters are honing in on now.

    Both the anti-copyright and pro-Section 230 brigades consist of a mutual-admiration society numbering fewer than two dozen people who have created a feedback loop that gives the impression that their voices are much larger than they are. One by one, this group will be exposed for what it is and what it does. This is already well underway and what has been published now is literally the tip of the iceberg.

    Governments are no longer fooled by this technologically-amplified internet noise. Masnick is like that kid in class who tries to be your friend on the first day of school, before you figure out what he's about. He's just not really important enough to put on blast so quickly, more like something done at convenience, or when one has a few minutes of boredom to pass. He's nothing more than a pathetic little gnat.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  40. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 1:13pm

    Re: Re: "Copyright is not legacy." -- Good catch of MM's sly phr

    the few creators from the many thieves

    HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA!!!!!!

    I should really reply seriously to this.........HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!

    Ok, ok, whew, wow, that was a good one.

    So, given that there are millions (potentially billions at this point) of creators, and that constitutes "a few" to you, please do tell how many thieves you think exist in this world of a few billion people? Please, I'm really interested in what you have to say on this.

    the system that works so well to protect WORK and bring benefits to The Public would never have been able to come about

    Oh yes, because NOBODY created ANYTHING of BENEFIT to the public prior to the Found Fathers of America coming up with copyright protections. You should do stand up comedy, you're freaking hilarious, in a sad, pathetic way. I'm assuming then that you think Leonardo Da Vinci, Michaelangelo, Galileo, Isaac Newton, William Shakespeare, Chaucer, and all the other famous artists, writers, and creators in history all lived after America was founded? Correct?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  41. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 1:24pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    The law won't screw up the internet at all.

    Except for the fact that in reality, the internet doesn't work that way so yes it will.

    The major labels and content producers (film, tv) have no difficulty attracting top-shelf talent, because professionals like being treated and paid as such.

    Ah so you openly admit that you don't give a rat's ass about independent and smaller creators. You only care about "top-shelf talent". This alone is enough for me to dismiss you and everything you say. The internet allows the little guy to have a shot. You openly admit you are against that.

    Masnick has ties to some pretty awful people....

    [Citation needed] Also, that's quite the lie you have going on there about deep-diving exposes.

    His verbally aggressive tone is that of a bully, one a lot more smug than he should be given what reporters are honing in on now.

    And your tone is any better? Also what reporters? Facts or GTFO please.

    Both the anti-copyright and pro-Section 230 brigades consist of a mutual-admiration society numbering fewer than two dozen people who have created a feedback loop that gives the impression that their voices are much larger than they are.

    If you were talking solely about TD commenters you MIGHT be able to argue that, but the number of registered commenters would likely still prove you wrong. Regardless, if you look outside TD there are MILLIONS if not BILLIONS of people who think this is a piece of crap.

    One by one, this group will be exposed for what it is and what it does. This is already well underway and what has been published now is literally the tip of the iceberg.

    Oh I'm so excited to see what kind of fantasy nonsense BS gets published about me! Please, do fill me in on all the juicy details of what I have been doing.

    Governments are no longer fooled by this technologically-amplified internet noise.

    You mean bought out by deep-pocketed corporate lobbying, bolstered by a lack of technical knowledge of how computers and the internet actually work.

    He's just not really important enough

    That explains why he regularly gets media attention, mentioned as a source in other publications and is largely, if not solely responsible for the now mainstream term of the "Streissand Effect". Yes, not important at all.

    He's nothing more than a pathetic little gnat.

    Aww! Jealous much?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  42. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 1:25pm

    Re:

    When you can't legally get content anymore let me know how that works out for you.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  43. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 1:45pm

    Re: "complaints ... due to Google lobbying and astroturfing"

    How is

    complaints ... due to Google lobbying and astroturfing

    true and not contradictory to

    nearly all of the lobbying came from legacy copyright players?

    Google is THE EXACT OPPOSITE of a legacy copyright corporation.

    Logic, consistency, and reading comprehension are really not your strong suits, are they?

    Just wacky. Implies that you believe in more than one reality, or as I'd put it in vernacular: cherry-pick to suit any given piece.

    No, this just shows you don't understand English very well and lack much in the way of reading comprehension.

    So what's your true purpose with this TRIPE about ONE "German politician"?

    Well maybe the fact that he doesn't seem to understand how free email services work.

    where's your numbers for how many "bloggers" are "supported" by Google and attack anyone who opposes it?

    Umm, what? Who cares? Seriously, who cares if Susie Q blogger who has a blog about knitting is "supported by Google" and quite obviously doesn't attack anyone who opposes Google because, you know, her blog is about knitting. Have you finally gone off the deep end? Wait, my bad, you did that long ago, let me rephrase. Has the cognitive dissonance finally caught up with you and caused you to devolve into rambling incoherence?

    Here's UNDENIABLE evidence linking opposition to this person with Google's support:

    Wooo! That's great! You managed to show that Google supports the COPIA INSTITUTE, but not TD. And that link says nothing about anyone else speaking out against this legislation. Congratulations, you failed to prove your point.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  44. identicon
    Alternate title, 19 Feb 2019 @ 1:58pm

    Re: If you pretend it's from the boogieman, you don't have to an

    German man thinks hate mail about polish invasion is not real.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  45. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 2:04pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    Get angry for me girl lol

    link to this | view in thread ]

  46. icon
    ECA (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 2:45pm

    He didnt get it...

    If it was from Google, it would have an CompuServe address..

    link to this | view in thread ]

  47. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Feb 2019 @ 3:28pm

    Re: Get yo assess chaos out Jhonny Boi

    So we ARE doing the investigative reporter fantasy today.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  48. identicon
    bob, 19 Feb 2019 @ 4:07pm

    Re: I do wonder...

    Didnt you notice your phone auto-dialing his number. Weird.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  49. identicon
    Rocky, 19 Feb 2019 @ 4:38pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    It seems you are off your meds again.

    Either that or you really do need meds.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  50. identicon
    Rocky, 19 Feb 2019 @ 4:40pm

    Re: Re:

    Stop copying and pasting. No one is taking you seriously at this point.

    You sure about that?

    Stop copying and pasting. No one is taking you seriously at this point.

    You sure about that?

    Stop copying and pasting. No one is taking you seriously at this point.

    You sure about that?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  51. icon
    Coyne Tibbets (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 7:58pm

    I thought consistency was the Bugaboo of small minds?

    Consistency. These guys need to get their act together. FCC politicians thought the AstroTurf messages were all gospel, these politicians think the AstroTurf message are all from the "bad guys." Get your act together or get out.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  52. icon
    That Anonymous Coward (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 9:22pm

    Dude unable to understand people use gmail who have nothing to do with Google... and yet you want him to decide how the internet shoudl work?

    I think he just proved that none of the legislators pushing this understand anything about the internet & are just in the pockets of the copyright cartels who demand the world pay to protect them from progress.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  53. icon
    techflaws (profile), 19 Feb 2019 @ 9:55pm

    This one appears to be a hot contender for the Rudy-Guliani-Genius-Award...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  54. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 21 Feb 2019 @ 12:11pm

    I know I'm a few days late here, and not saying that he's right, but it might be relevant to note that the "Gmail" trademark in Germany is owned by another company, and as such German users can only sign up for googlemail.com addresses.

    link to this | view in thread ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.