Police names send web users on political detour

[Shawnski]

Police departments in several Canadian cities expressed surprise Friday that websites with similar names to their sites are taking people straight to the New Democratic Party's main website.
"Oh boy, this is not good," Sgt. Kelly Dennison of the Winnipeg Police Service said after typing www.winnipegpolice.ca into his web browser and getting the NDP site.

"Anybody looking for the Winnipeg police service would think we're endorsing the NDP," he said. "Obviously, that's not the case."

The same thing happens if users type www.reginapolice.ca, www.saskatoonpolice.ca, www.edmontonpolice.ca, and www.windsorpolice.ca. All the traffic is directed to www.ndp.ca.

http://www.cbc.ca/toronto/story/to_police20051209.html

Follow up story:

On Sunday, the extra web traffic to the NDP site ended.
Instead, people putting www.windsorpolice.ca and the other names into their browsers are redirected to one of Bedford's own websites - one that targets Harper and "religious extremists."
"If you vote for Stephen Harper and the Conservatives you would be voting for religious extremists with a hidden agenda," the website says.

http://www.mytelus.com/news/article....icleID=2115572

Fair game or nutbar action?

[Cowperson]

Very, very nutbar.

Don't screw around directing desperate people away from police websites. That's common sense.

Cowperson

[RougeUnderoos]

Capstick said the NDP doesn't have any control over what sites people choose to direct traffic from. "There's not much we can do," he said. Asked if the NDP told Bedford to stop, Capstick said no. "We don't have the power," he said.

Well did they at least ask the guy not to do it? There response seems to be basically "oh well" which is pretty dumb.

This doesn't actually put anyone in danger, but it sure looks like a crazy thing to do.

[flamingchina]

Uggh I hate domain squatters..
if one thing should have the death penalty, this is it....
anyways, this guy's a bit of a nutbar...
athiest messiah? wtf

[4X4]

Hey! If you get to dole out the death penalty to domain squatters, I get to execute merge lane stoppers.

[mykalberta]

And people who speed up lanes that are ending due to construction and then expect me to let them in. HAHAHA - yah right azz.

MYK