On Jul 17, 2013, at 9:28 PM, Kerim Aydin wrote: > > On Wed, 17 Jul 2013, Tanner Swett wrote: >> >> With support, I intend to raise an eyebrow skeptically. >> >> How does "the right to participate in the fora" entail "the right to >> successfully time the sending of a message so that it takes effect >> immediately >> before a deadline, thereby preventing other players from responding to it >> before the deadline"? > > It doesn't on its own. But assuming a majority of players have that > ability, then it is part of standard 'participation'. So if that > participation is then restricted for certain people, it limits > participation, and therefore the right.
You have an argument, but I don't think it holds water. The mere fact that a majority of people can perform some action does not mean that that action is an essential part of the overall activity. Most people are capable of playing pickleball, eating paczkis, taking pictures of Venus, making lasagna, tearing newspapers into tiny pieces, and shoplifting, but these things are not essential parts of human life. If you were prohibited from doing one of these things, or even all of them, it wouldn't be a significant restriction of any of your human rights. —Machiavelli
