Readers of this blog are advised against two activities: the setting up of a blog account with BLOGGER, and the use of DIVSHARE to host one's files. The reasons for this are evident in the notice I have received below. The result of these notices is that I am now at work on a separate autonomous website, presumably less subject to the oversight of Kafka-esque bureaucracy. My central irritation does not stem from actions clearly derived from what must be Blogger's strict CYA (cover your ass) policy, but from the fact that Blogger takes it upon itself to completely delete my post, without giving me the opportunity to revise / preserve it in some non on-line form. The post is simply annihilated, and without any indication as to what specifically about the post was in violation of Blogger's terms of agreement. I can't even contest it, because the post no longer exists. I've responded twice to Blogger's notices about post removal, and have received no further communication from them on the issue, even when I've simply asked if they could specifically identify the violation. Now it's quite possible that the language I've been using in the emails has been too complicated for the support team's reading level, so in case they happen to read this, let me take this opportunity to say just:
FUCK YOU.
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From Blogger:
"Blogger has been notified, according to the terms of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), that certain content in your blog infringes upon the copyrights of others. The URL(s) of the allegedly infringing post(s) may be found at the end of this message.
The notice that we received, with any personally identifying information removed, will be posted online by a service called Chilling Effects at http://www.chillingeffects.org. We do this in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Please note that it may take Chilling Effects up to several weeks to post the notice online at the link provided.
The DMCA is a United States copyright law that provides guidelines for online service provider liability in case of copyright infringement. We are in the process of removing from our servers the links that allegedly infringe upon the copyrights of others. If we did not do so, we would be subject to a claim of copyright infringement, regardless of its merits. See http://www.educause.edu/Browse/645?PARENT_ID=254 for more information about the DMCA, and see http://www.google.com/dmca.html for the process that Blogger requires in order to make a DMCA complaint.
Blogger can reinstate these posts upon receipt of a counter notification pursuant to sections 512(g)(2) and 3) of the DMCA. For more information about the requirements of a counter notification and a link to a sample counter notification, see http://www.google.com/dmca.html#counter.
Please note that repeated violations to our Terms of Service may result in further remedial action taken against your Blogger account. If you have legal questions about this notification, you should retain your own legal counsel. If you have any other questions about this notification, please let us know.
Sincerely,
The Blogger Team"
