I would argue otherwise. I personally signed the petition as a result of finding out about it on this page, as well as the similar petition for Steve Heymann, and if I'm ever in a position as a voter to influence the careers of other members of the list, their part in the proceedings would certainly be of interest to me.
The petitions were not linked in the original comment. I am not, in this thread, discussing the petitions. That is why I did not reply to the comments that link to the petition. I want to know the rationale behind promulgating (as it were) the aforementioned list.
Link
One of us is no more.
He deserves a eulogy more eloquent than what I am capable of writing. Here's Cory Doctorow's, one of his long time friends.
It's a sad world in which you are being arrested and grand jury'd for downloading scientific journals and papers with the intent to share them.