News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by whatshisface on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:41PM (#46605645)
The USA cannot do it, because there is actually a law against cutting off communications systems dating back to 1944. Of course there have been attempts to make it possible.

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/116/hr8336/summary

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by joe_mamba on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:43PM (#46605672)
> X cannot do it, because there is actually a law against Y

Famous last words.

I'm more than shocked that people STILL haven't learned how quickly laws came become meaningless. Which is why history keeps repeating itself.

If fascist government goons break into your house to kill you, do you think waving a piece of paper with the law in their face will stop them? Isn't that the whole point the found fathers made the Second Amendment? Even they knew this 300 years ago. Have people already forgotten?

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by rootusrootus on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @04:01PM (#46607941)
> Isn't that the whole point the found fathers made the Second Amendment?

At the risk of going off on an entirely different direction ... no, I don't think that was the point of the second amendment, not really. It was more about making sure they had something that would function like a standing army (in the absence of the real deal) should a foreign government invade. Defense against tyranny from our own government doesn't really feel like it was something they worried deeply about (at least with regards to the right to bear arms), and the self-defense justification for the second amendment wasn't even a commonly held viewpoint until about the 20th century.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by ryandrake on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:49PM (#46605773)
I was going to say! I actually laughed out loud at the computer screen when reading OP's comment. There is no way "There's a law against it" is going to stop the current administration (with all three branches of government aligned) from doing whatever the heck it wants.
Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by worldsavior on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @02:04PM (#46606054)
I'm actually not shocked judging by that comment that you don't know how pyramid of authority works in most countries, and in this context, the US.

Most countries (including the US, obviously) follow their laws. Can you please give an example for a first world country that *consistently* ignores it's own laws?

History repeats itself because people ignore history, not because people ignore the law.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by ceejayoz on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @03:20PM (#46607321)
> Can you please give an example for a first world country that consistently ignores it's own laws?

In the US, it's standard to do ten miles an hour over the speed limit past a cop, and there's probably 20 Federally illegal marijuana dispensaries within a few miles of me. Our current President got convicted of 34 felonies, but any possible consequences were automatically voided when he got elected again.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by worldsavior on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @04:59PM (#46608869)
There isn't enough men power obviously for every marijuana dispensary, and also for speed violations.
Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by ceejayoz on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @05:18PM (#46609101)
This was very intentional policy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cole_Memorandum

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by joe_mamba on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @02:07PM (#46606132)
Sorry, I expressed my thoughts wrong. What I meant to say was that laws can change overnight based on mob political feels or black swan events (WW2, 9/11, etc.)

So just because something is illegal for the government TODAY, doesn't mean it will stay like that for the next 500 years.

Laws aren't real, they're just made up constructs on worthless pieces of paper, but the only thing that is always consistently real is the enforcement of the will of state through means of violence and they'll put that in writing to give it legitimacy but ultimately the people in charge of the guns can make whatever they want legal or illegal.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by worldsavior on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @04:56PM (#46608830)
You're right, but what do you care what happens in 500 years?

The world changes. Maybe in 50 years child pornography will be legal, who knows? It doesn't change based on what those rulers want, because in a true Democratic country, the people rule.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by 0x1ch on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:43PM (#46605669)
Given everything going on in this country, I don't think a silly law from 1944 is going to deter the current administration from trying.
Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by mhb on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @02:31PM (#46606495)
This "current administration" thinking is exactly the problem. When your version of the current administration had the power to diminish the power of the administration, did it do that? None of them do.

Somehow there's always a failure of imagining that whatever the current administration is won't always be current.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by 0x1ch on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @03:37PM (#46607555)
Well, that's the fun part of democracy. You don't get to bet on the status quo remaining the same.
Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by veidelis on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @02:05PM (#46606084)
The US also are by law not allowed to start a war without the approval of Congress, right? But they did anyway in Venezuela.
Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by themgt on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:47PM (#46605736)
> The USA cannot do it, because there is actually a law against cutting off communications systems dating back to 1944. Of course there have been attempts to make it possible.

The link you provided says:

In 1942, during World War II, Congress created a law to grant President Franklin D. Roosevelt or his successors the power to temporarily shut down any potentially vulnerable technological communications technologies.

The Unplug the Internet Kill Switch Act would reverse the 1942 law and prevent the president from shutting down any communications technology during wartime, including the internet.

The House version was introduced on September 22 as bill number H.R. 8336, by Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI2). The Senate version was introduced the same day as bill number S. 4646, by Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY).

The bill did not pass and did not become law. So what are you referring to?

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by hadlock on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @02:36PM (#46606585)
Even if your optimism had some basis in reality, about 12 guys with $5 serrated pocket knives bought on aliexpress could knock out 80% of communications in under an hour. Fiber optic strands are alarmingly tiny, and wrapped in day-glo orange plastic tubing making them intentionally easy to find.

For whatever reason it's taboo to talk about how fragile infrastructure is, but if you wanted to shut something like comm links down, that's a problem for whoever installs the new judiciary. Chances are, whoever gets the job of being the new judiciary is likely to rule it as acceptable use of emergency powers.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by epolanski on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:57PM (#46605917)
Laws are just words, not real barriers as this and previous administrations proved.

In fact, it's likely that you can turn off the internet, and then, after some time, a judge will rule on the topic.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by bagels on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:45PM (#46605709)
Laws in the era of lawlessness. Laws never really stopped all crimes anyways.
Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by chasd00 on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:49PM (#46605784)
I don't think it's technically feasible to blackout the US but if it came to that no law would stand in the way of the attempt.
Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by akabalanza on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:44PM (#46605687)
I'm sure there is at least one security-claiming act that can be used to override that sentence
Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by vovavili on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @02:25PM (#46606390)
>cannot do it, because there is actually a law

Oh sweet summer child.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by cromka on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @01:51PM (#46605801)
> The USA cannot do it, because there is actually a law

Good one, buddy. That's a good one.

Re:90M people. 118 hours of silence. One nation erased from ... by xorcist on Tuesday January 13, 2026 @06:21PM (#46609897)
Does it really matter what is illegal if it is pardoned?

Starting insurrection to overthrow election? Pardoned. Killing police officer? Pardoned. Ordering contract killings? Pardoned. Large scale drug smuggling operation to the US? Pardoned.

Brand anyone who follows the law as a criminal and make sure to have them fired, and you can even ignore the constition that says power to regulate trade lies with the senate and enough of civil society might just decide to play along.