To need to use the phrase in the first place indicates that the caller is unable to state the real apparent problem with the person so-called.
Nobody can be an ahole!
What does it mean?
They look like one?
They smell like one?
They are something the person does not like?
They are something that nobody can manage without?
Ambiguous statements are as good as meaningless.
youngman, you want a serious answer? Then contact a lawyer and pay for the legal advice you are seeking.
You are looking for, essentially, the answer to a Constitutional question. Partly it is about freedom of speech, and partly it is (possibly) about libel and perhaps also intentional infliction of emotional distress but it is also about the rights of minors, and the rights of a school (or a company or other organization) to control any statements about it online. This can get the matter into the realm of International Law.
There is no simple yes or no to this question, nor is there a simple yes or no answer to the question of being able to use the school's name in a website. A lot of this is unsettled law. Since it is potentially interstate and possibly even international in scope (not the tort part, but the Internet part and the freedom of speech and the rights of minors {See, among others, New Jersey vs. TLO} and rights of schools parts {Also see TLO for a discussion of the clashes between schools and minors, and that minors do not have all of the rights of adult citizens}), federal law applies. The US Supreme Court has not, so far as I am aware, ruled on all of these matters.
So, if you really want an answer to your inquiry, a serious, no fooling around answer, then you want to consult with a Constitutional lawyer and have him or her do research -- and perhaps submit an amicus curiae (that's Latin for "friend of the court") brief in any test cases out there, or perhaps even bring a test case on your behalf. Constitutional Law is a serious, difficult and rare legal specialty. It's not discount and probably will not be well-covered by Legal Aid or other discount legal services. A standard Constitutional lawyer will cost at least $150/hour, more if you are in a large city, get help from a partner or the matter goes to court.
well, people. the reason that i am on here asking this questions, it is because it is not a very urgent question, and i don't want to spend any money for this matter.
i thought that maybe there are people who know the answer. and i don't like to give out the complete detail, it is because everything i type on here is saved, so who knows what kind of people will read and do with them.
anyway, all i did was created a web group, and had the exact thing like
[my site is a a a free, a..hole free, a... and a... (those two people's first name). then the school counselor told me that i have to take down those two people's name. then a few days later, he came back again, and told me that i can't even have that a..hole free on my group!!!
don't you think that it is ridiculous? that is why i am asking on here. i just think that i have the freedom to put on [my site is aaa free, a..hole free]
and there are so many people with the same first name. how can he tell me that i am attacking a specific person by only putting on their first names? and i did not even call them directly as the a...holes.
so you know what i mean now?
1. what country are you in?
2. are you using school equipment to set up/administer/run the website?
If you're in Canada, and you're using school property in any way related to this endeavour, you're way out of luck.
Youngman--
Quote:i thought that maybe there are people who know the answer. and i don't like to give out the complete detail, it is because everything i type on here is saved, so who knows what kind of people will read and do with them.
Mark, read, learn and inwardly digest.
Re: is it ok to call anyone ahole on the web?
youngman wrote:if I just randomly name someone, and call him/her an ahole on a web site. such as "so and so is an ahole." without any other extra information.
is it ok? it is not a nice thing to say, but i wonder if it is my freedom of speech to do that?
If the Constitution gives us right of freedom of expression of speech (written and said word), then yes, you have the right to call anyone asshole anywhere and without reason. If you don't have that right then you do not have the right of freedom of expression of speech (said and written word). That is another matter that your using the word asshole may or may not be justified. But if you have the right of freedom of expression of speech then you have the right to say or write anything. Otherwise, no one would feel free to express their thoughts anytime or anywhere. It is true that using bad words might cause abuse and cause harm, but greater abuse and harm would prevail if we did not have this right totally!
