By Douglas J. Hagmann
For me and my first popular website – HomelandsecurityUS.com, the censorship began on June 22, 2012. I can recall that day and this incident with absolute clarity, as my late son’s wedding was scheduled for the following day. I recall, again with absolute clarity, certain individuals telling me, upon hearing the news, that it wasn’t censorship and that I must not have paid my bill with GoDaddy. They scoffed at the notion that GoDaddy would tell me to get off their servers; it was impossible, and GoDaddy wouldn’t do that.
In the following years, I received copies of emails from two so-called conservatives who claimed to be my friends and allies, mocking me for making “false claims.” That was nearly eleven years ago. My oh my, have times changed.
I published the following report, complete with the correspondence from GoDaddy, on June 26, 2012, on my new ISP. My report was again met with skepticism, with even more “conservatives” and self-proclaimed Christians insisting that GoDaddy would not remove my site over ideological issues, despite my transparency. There had to be other reasons.
Today, those critics are silent.
The following was initially published on June 26, 2012:
Obama Truth Teams in Action
It was like something from George Orwell’s “1984.” Last Friday evening, I was notified by my internet service provider that I was in violation of the hosting company’s terms of service, and I had 48 hours to find another hosting company, or they would forcibly shut down my website.
This, after having my website in operation for the last ten-(10) years and weathering such controversies as showing the world videos of the unsanitized version of Muslim beheadings while the corporate media failed to explain such inhumanity. We’ve always prevailed in the storms of trumped-up controversies, so what changed?
Truth Teams. Internet censorship. Why do you think there’s been such a push for internet-related legislation such as SOPA, PIPA, ACTA, and so on? Why NOW?
The following is the e-mail letter I received from GoDaddy. Read it. More importantly, understand YOU could be next.
Dear Sir or Madam,
Our records indicate that you are responsible for the HOMELANDSECURITYUS.COM domain name and its hosted content. We have received complaints about your domain name and the contents of your website. Upon reviewing the situation, we have found that they are in violation on section 7 of your Domain Registration Agreement. (http://www.godaddy.com/gdshop/legal_agreements/show_doc.asp?se=%2B&pageid=REG%5FSA)
We understand that this can be a very sensitive topic, and that there will likely be a difference of opinion as to the nature of the complaints. We are not making a determination in favor of either, but do not wish to be involved in such disputes. As a result, we ask that you move the registration and hosting for these sites to another provider (Not affiliated with GoDaddy.com or our Reseller division, WildWestDomains.com).
If you can initiate this move within 48 hours of the transmission of this notice, there will not need to be any downtime for your site. If the transfer is not initiated by this time, we may have to suspend services to your website. We strongly recommend you reply to this message as to your intentions. This will further help insure that no unnecessary downtime results for your site.
If you have any questions, please let us know. Please be aware that this decision is final, and we do not wish to debate the actual content of your site.
Regards,
Network Abuse Department
GoDaddy.com
24/7 Network Abuse Department
Hotline: 480-624-2505
ARID1020
To determine the nature of my transgressions, I contacted the abuse department.
I asked if it was a single complaint they received or a series of complaints. I asked if they would identify the specific article or articles that spurred complaint(s). In short, I asked the representative to review their files so I could be provided with answers – answers I felt I deserved. The representative stated that there was not one specific article, but “it was the conclusion of the abuse department that the entirety of my site contains published information they found to be morally objectionable.” After rephrasing the question in an effort to secure more specific information, the investigator finally became a bit short-tempered and said that they had made their decision and that my site would be shut down for “morally objectionable content.” Period. When I asked if they would provide me with any information about the complainant, she emphatically said “no.”
As anyone knows, it takes time, money, and a lot of resources to move a large site from one server to another. It takes about 48 hours to point the DNS alone, so I was looking at the possibility of downtime.
Several hours later, still upset that I was given no information about what or who was behind this, I called the ISP abuse department back and spoke with an individual who seemed to be a bit more friendly. I repeated my initial questions, and although he refused to provide any specific details, he eventually gave me some clues without breaking ranks from his company policies on not telling their customers anything. The clues pointed to Obama’s “truth teams.” It was also noted that the ranking on our site was rising and growing in traffic and popularity, and as such, it is becoming a natural target.
People such as Steve Quayle warned people about this taking place but has been routinely scoffed at on political forums, self-professed Christian sites, so-called “survival websites,” and by idiots in general who know nothing or by hired guns of this current administration. Steve Quayle and others are being vilified to this day by people who don’t have a clue about what they write on internet forums or their own sites. Someday, when it is too late, they will experience this censorship, but who will hear their objections?
No one will be left.
I find that sad that truth has become “morally objectionable” to publish. I, for one, will not be silenced, and truth itself must not be silenced.
People MUST understand, before it is too late, that they will feel the direct impact of this “Truth Team” that is out in full force, scouring for any “objectionable” information posted by private websites. Perhaps it’s already too late. Regardless, I will remain in the fight, relocate out of the reach of these despicable Marxists, and continue the battle until my last breath. Regardless, people need to wake up now. There might not be a tomorrow.
