The Internet Under Siege

Gorgonzola writes: "Lawrence Lessig has written an accessible article in Foreign Policy on the threats to freedom on the internet, including the threat the DMCA poses to open and free software. Nothing new to Slashdot regulars, but good to see something appear in an influential magazine like Foreign Policy. An article mentioning the Sklyarov case like this one does, is going to draw a lot more attention from policymakers to the problems the DMCA and other legal troubles are posing to online freedom than your average rant on a board like this, how well reasoned it may be."

Comments

Lessig in this week's Newsweek as well

[Masem]

In conjunction with his new book, Newsweek this week had a brief interview with him, mostly covering similar concerns; again, not enough space to convey everything that is wrong, but a very good read for JQPublic. (Eg, he likens how before the Internet, talking about Star Trek amoung friends was concidered benign, now you have to play on PAramont's rules if you use the Internet).

Re:Lessig in this week's Newsweek as well

[Anonymous Coward]

Here's the URL for this week's newsweek article. I found it somewhat ironic that it was from newsweek.msnbc.com.

http://www.msnbc.com/news/655756.asp

Re:We're losing our rights... Now what?

[matthewn]

Now what? Vote wisely, dammit! Go ahead, mod me down, say it's the overly-simplistic/obvious/cop-out answer, toss around all that bullshit about how votes don't matter. I don't care. You're wrong.

This is happening because there has not been a strong Populist movement in the US since the 1920s, and the reason for that is twofold: (a) not enough people voting, and (b) not enough people THINKING about WHO they are voting for and WHY.

Maybe you think money has so colored American politics that your vote is destined to be canceled out by Votes of the Wrong Kind. You're wrong there, too. Money buys exposure, money buys TV time, money buys billboards, but money ain't putting a gun to your head forcing you to be taken in by slick campaigns. Money doesn't turn off your brain. And money doesn't force you to push the little voting pin in next to some millionaire corporate shill's name.

So read your damn sample ballots cover to cover. Write outraged ("outraged"!=angry/spiteful/immature) yet eloquent letters to your reps when they do stupid things like vote for the DMCA. Above all, STOP ELECTING THESE MORONS WHO ARE WILLING TO TRAMPLE ALL OVER YOUR FREEDOM.

Re:not the status quo

[Sylver Dragon]

I don't get this political system, as I am not American. How can you guys allow such an obviously flawed system to exist?

Its quite simple really, we haven't seen anything else we like.

Spekaing for myself, I see it as such:

1)Communism (I think that the USSR showed us that this idea worked as well as a lead ballon.)

2)Totalinarism (As I recall from my history classes, this is what a bunch of people died to get rid of here.)

3)Socialism (Not bad on paper, but losing 70% of my paycheck to taxes doesn't sound fun, not to mention, that most of the stories I've heard, put the social services in such states as almost completely lacking.)

4)Les Faire Capitalism(sp?)(We gave this a good go here, got us the Rockefellers, and oppresive work conditions.)

5)Pure Democrocy (Logisticlly impossible, and can easily cause oppression of the minority. Not to mention.)

That leaves us with what we have left, a corrupt, money driven govenment, with loads of self-serving representative. The only way we can control it, is by banding together as needed and giving the politicians a reason to do, or not do, something.(i.e. Small Business Association.) Its not great, but at least it forces the politicians to hide what they are doing, and lets me be responsible for my well being.

Of course, we have ended up with some bad laws, but what govenment hasn't? But at least we have a mechanisim in place to get rid of them. And failing all else, we have the ability to preform a bloody revolt, as last resort.

But this is just my view of home.

Re:not the status quo

[czardonic]

why hasn't there been a greater effort to stop or get rid of this?

There has, but the people with the most money won.

The problem with our system (with any system, really) is that it has gradually become a perversion of what it was intended to be. Consider the paradox that is the American political system: In order to serve the people, politicians need votes, and in order to get votes they need publicity, and in order to get publicity they need money, and in order to get money the need the support of monied private interests, and these private interests have no allegiance to the people that the politicians represent. In order to serve the people, politicians must peddle influence to parties that dissserve the people