Slashdot Mirror
CBDTPA Finds A Champion In the House
pshoemaker writes: "Wired is reporting that House member Adam Schiff of Burbank is seeking a co-sponsor for his House version of Hollings' CBDTPA. His 'Dear Colleagues' letter lays-out the same inspired thinking: that without copy protection there can be no broadband entertainment." Another reader suggests: "Be sure to also check out who's been paying him just so you know who it is he's representing..."
Perhaps it is time to start sending dt-mail. If they already have people in both houses, count the days of freedom...
Does downloading porn and watching people's webcams count as entertainment? ;-)
--
Jay
http://freshmeat.net/projects/eddie42
Oh, so THAT's why every single new movie release has its own full multimedia web site to promote it.
And here I thought they were hesitant because the uneducated are typically afraid of what they don't understand.
He looked at me and said, "Kid, we don't like your kind, and we're gonna send your fingerprints off to Washington."
...to my representatives on this one. Long, detailed letters, in fact. I encourage everyone else to do the same. Make sure that they're well and fully aware of how their own constituents feel on the issue.
Send a letter to the editor of your local papers, letting them know how bad this bill is.
I did, and they actually printed it. Of course, I have the (mis)fortune to be in South Carolina, the state that Hollings represents. And I would gladly help un-elect him, if I wasn't moving to California in two weeks...
I like you, Stuart. You're not like everyone else, here, at Slashdot.
Is this really a surprise, then?
Most of the time, I'm against representatives doing things like this, but I think he's one of the rare few who can claim he's representing his constituents...
When encryption is outlawed, ?o'AZ-,++o+i++##4AoA+-/-C++bI+/.+~
"Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost. --Thomas Jefferson "
Did you choose that just for this story?
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
if it does pass, expect a mass exodus of EEs, CEs and CS from this country, and whatever tech boom is occuring or about to occur, will slip. No self-respecting computer engineer or coder will not permit himself/herself to be in a place where they will not be able to innovate, as this law will discourage it and destroy it
Slashdot Hypocrisy at work?
Every day, they seem to be pushing this more and more.
People if you are going to stop this you better act FAST!!! we DONT have much time.
I listed ways to stop this in a previous slashdot post
Its time to take action, meaning schedule a mass protest, not a petition, but protests, on many college campus's, highschools, and online.
If this law passes we are fucked, open source will be killed, the internet will be practically killed, broadband wont be adopted, and neither will digital tv, people will be busy using VCRs, and busy on their 56k to check their email since besides trading files theres no reason to ever upgrade to broadband.
Previous post on slashdot, FOLLOW DIRECTIONS!
INFORM --- Tell the public what the SSSCA is!
Explain ---- Tell the public whats wrong with the SSSCA
Results ---- Tell them what will happen if the SSSCA passes, and what kinda society it will lead to if the trend continues
Solution ---- Tell them how to stop the SSSCA, tell them a msg similar to what I'm telling you, explain to them not to just stop the SSSCA, but to promote absolute freedom of speech online, meaning no one can control what you do with your computer, if the RIAA and MPAA does not want us to pirate stuff, they should make it impossible to pirate or undesirable to do so, if this means lowering the price so its not worth buying a CD or DVD burner, or if this means locking the DVD up, they have options, what they shouldnt do is take away our freedoms, its like saying you cant use your hands to draw a copy of a picture you like.
If you use Linux, please help development of Autopac
Only 60,000 of us would have to pitch in $5 to make our very own pro-digital consumer senator a reality.
Matt
When will people get it through their thick skulls that petitions dont work.
Lets look at DMCA, did petitions stop it? Hell no.
Lets look at Napster, did petitions save Napster? Hell no.
Why isnt marijuana legal? People have been petitioning for it by the millions for 20 years or more now.
Face it, Petitions have never solved a thing.
Tabacco was made Legal because people didnt obey the laws, civil disobedience by the millions, and there arent enough jails to enforce it, alcohol? Alcohol was illegal once, it took the mafia and illegal activities, corruption and control of the government through the mafia, essentially terrorism tactics to make alcohol legal.
SSSCA, you arent going to stop this unless you fight, you dont have to be violent to fight, you can fight with your intelligence, programmers should write unstopable programs like freenet, rich people should support lobby groups on our side, people who are good writers should write books, articles, editorials, and give as much media attention as possible to this, public speakers should host rallies along with musicians at local colleges where other intelligent people are. Contact churches, libaries, civil rights groups, and convince them how important it is to protect our rights. Contact patriotic groups, anti government groups, and anarchist groups and explain to them how the government is trying to control them not just offline but online as well.
Contact the elderly, contact teachers, and highschool students, explain to all of these groups whats going on, hang posters in front of highschools, near libraries, near sam goody and HMV, Blockbuster and other stores which tell people about the SSSCA, use clever images, such as comparing the SSSCA to Nazism, Explain how unfair it is, use images of jail and rich CEOs, show images of locks on their computer.
If all of the people reading this did this in their towns seperately, meaning true activism on a LARGE scale, Well its simple to break it down into parts.
INFORM --- Tell the public what the SSSCA is!
Explain ---- Tell the public whats wrong with the SSSCA
Results ---- Tell them what will happen if the SSSCA passes, and what kinda society it will lead to if the trend continues
Solution ---- Tell them how to stop the SSSCA, tell them a msg similar to what I'm telling you, explain to them not to just stop the SSSCA, but to promote absolute freedom of speech online, meaning no one can control what you do with your computer, if the RIAA and MPAA does not want us to pirate stuff, they should make it impossible to pirate or undesirable to do so, if this means lowering the price so its not worth buying a CD or DVD burner, or if this means locking the DVD up, they have options, what they shouldnt do is take away our freedoms, its like saying you cant use your hands to draw a copy of a picture you like.
If you use Linux, please help development of Autopac
I dont see you guys trying to stop this.
I dont see you all protesting in the streets on a massive scale, because thats what its going to take. Once it passes your protests wont work, it will be War on Sharing.
If you use Linux, please help development of Autopac
What are we to do? SERIOUSLY? Well, there's that thing... in the constitution.. you know... *cough* the second amendment *cough* you know, it's there for a reason... for cases like these...
No $hit nothing happens, because we haven't been sending them checks in our letters asking them not to screw us over.
In this country you have to BUY a Senator before they give a rats a$$ about what you think.
"There are laws that enslave men, and laws that set them free. " - Sean Connery as King Arthur
From what I have read, he doesn't understand this bill fully. He's just taking it on fait that it will do what the movie companies tell him. If he actually read it and saw that it would not only be impossible to enforce, but it seems morally inexcusable from a business sense to force the technology sector to come up with methods to save content from the evils of the consumer. Then again, he may have read it and just truly agrees with the movie companies. Coming from that area in CA - I guess I could understand that. +sigh+
But I'm preaching to the choir...
There were 60 million users of napster, 80 million users of fasttrack, and most likely hundreds of millions of file sharing people from hundreds of countries.
Do you think it matters? EVEN if 90 percent of the people on the net share files, and even if 90 percent of the people who got broadband got it so they could share files, THEY DONT GIVE A DAMN
These guys just want to pass the law because it benifits them, disney and others have bribed them with money or gifts, most likely enough money to ruin their polticial career and they obviously dont care.
IF they cared, they wouldnt be changing the name of the bill and using weird names to make it difficult for you to protest.
You act like this is a democracy, as if every voice counts, surprise this is a republic, if every voice counted, BUSH would not be president right now, after all he didnt win the popular vote, and he didnt really win the recount either, but the electoral college (THE JUDGE) and the system made him president.
Its not what the people want that matters, its what the special interest groups, politciians, court system, and powerful elite whats that matter.
The only way to get what you want, is to fight for it, asking for it wont get you anywhere.
If you use Linux, please help development of Autopac
In a letter to the Washington Post, Jack Valenti wrote:
My unpublished reply:
Mr. Valenti's claim that "not much (legal) material is out there ... to create the need for a cable modem or a digital subscriber line (DSL)" is laughable.
Obviously, Mr. Valenti hasn't attempted to download a 650 MB Debian Linux Install CD.
Perhaps Adobe's After Effects video editing software is more his style. A 30-day trial version weighs in at a hefty 109 megabytes.
To put it in perspective: downloading this would take over four and a half hours on a "normal 56K computer modem" -- if you're lucky enough to live in a neighbourhood with good phone lines. If, like most people, Mr. Valenti is stuck at 33.6 Kbps, it would take closer to eight hours to finish. That's enough time to watch Erich von Stroheim's Greed in its entirety.
Paul
Don't be so sure about that... maybe he hasn't gotten money yet... but if he pushes this bill through, I'll wager that the entertainment industry will be lining up to hand him checks.
"You know, congressman, it sure would be helpful to us (wink wink) if you could sponsor this legislation. It's for the good of the country! Think of the children! We owe it to our ancestors!"
Slashdot comments... splitting hairs since 1997.
Where? When? Set it up! Make it happen!
"History doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme." Mark Twain
However, it misses out on one point that I think is a valuable addition to the letter. If you are going to send a letter to your reps, please consider adding this!! Here's what I wrote...
If everyone has suggestions, please post them there!
Why bother.
"This is simply because consumers can't get what they want -- high quality digital content like movies, music, and video games."
I think the consumers that want to get movies and music get them easily.
It is quite telling that Rep Schiff does not say the true purpose of the bill, but chooses instead to conceal it in a broadband promotion language.
Lay off the crackpipe.
There are no Napster people protesting anything. What you are calling a protest is, in fact, illegal copying. People know it too. They don't care. Just like they don't much care about driving 65 when the road is posted 55. But they're not going to go to the polls to get these things they see as petty crimes made legal.
Even if you *could* get the non-voting half of the nation to vote, they'd just end up voting for the lesser of two evils because they don't want the other guy to win. And in this case, they'll probably vote for putzes like Hollings, because he's a Democrat which means he is probably a feminist, pro-choice, supportive of gay rights, not fanatically pro-military, sensitive to racial issues, and says lots of nice things about spending money on schools and helping people live when they're out of work (those are just examples, real liberals aren't fooled by the Democrats, we recognize that the root of the word "liberal" is the Latin "liber", "free").
Protest away, but you're not going to be changing the world by ranting in the streets-- you're better off communicating as directly as possible with your elected officials (and don't start at the top, start at the bottom, the people at the top do go to party events, and they do have colleagues). I doubt most Americans are going to understand this one until it's too late. These are the same people who generally support the war on drugs, because how can you possibly support drugs, unless your doctor gives them to you so that you can cope with being so unhappy about your pathetic American life.
You really want to make a difference? Run for office yourself.
I do not have a signature
Well let's take this in a couple parts.
Why stay in the USA?
The best reasons I can think of off the top of my head are--
Having a job
The standard of living
The difficulty of gaining those things in a country that has anything comparable.
That's just 3 but for many people that's enough. (Yeah, you can find exceptions- I'm talking about the majority)
I'm not bashing other countries- but for instance let's say I think to myself "yeah- the US sucks I'm going to move to New Zealand. It looked cool in LOTR"
Problem is I can't just pack up, and go live in New Zealand - they wont let me. Not too many industrial nations in the world are as open as the US.
And the last part. Well I don't really need to comment on that. You obviously have no more familiarity with the 3rd world than what you've seen on T.V.
I've lived there. You can have it.
.
It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
I've said this before, and I'll say it again. This has nothing to do with party affiliation! There are Republicans backing it and Democrats opposing it. It's all about money, not politics.
And in case anyone is wondering why this is so important, it's bacause you cannot count on one party or another to be for or against this. If you don't understand the dynamics of this, you can't fight it effectively.
That light you see at the end of the tunnel might be from an oncoming train.
instead of writing congress, try writing the media.
Media contacts
If you use Linux, please help development of Autopac
It's sad sad sad. It's like watching somone dig his own grave, but not knowing it's for him. Broadband is the very LAST thing the Distribution Industry wants, becuase it will allow non "approved" artists an easy and quick way to compete with them. What they DO want is a huge stumblng block in the computer indistry that will slow down the adoption and progress of new technology.
"Your superior intellect is no match for our puny weapons!"
"instead of writing congress, try writing the media."
I agree with you 100%. We're a small group here, and what we think will only count if we convert others to our side. Writing to the media is a great way to do that. In fact, I'd posted a list of newspaper directories to another post in this thread. Here they are again.
And I'll issue my challenge again. If everyone here will walk away from Slashdot long enough to write to your local newspaper, we can start to make a difference. No, not all letters will get published. Maybe most of them won't. But someone there has to read them, and they'll be educated in the process, so they will be more familiar with the issue when they hear about it again.
Just one letter. That's all I ask. If you want to write more, that's great, but at least write one.
That light you see at the end of the tunnel might be from an oncoming train.
You're exactly right. Although the politicians like to paint anti-globalization protesters as a bunch of troublemakers, these protests seem to have started an undercurrent of dissent about the supposed benefits of globalization. Getting an issue in the media seems to get people thinking about an issue that they never even knew existed.
What I'd like to know, and what everyone here needs to consider, is how long it was that the anti-globalization folks were discussing this on the Net before the issue went mainstream. I wasn't involved in those online discussions, so I can't say, but this is an important issue to consider. Right now, the CBDTPA isn't mainstream, not at all. Our first priority has to be to make it that way.
That light you see at the end of the tunnel might be from an oncoming train.
At least your opionion is informed (at a minimum you clicked on the links and read something) - But your interpretation is wrong. While its 1/12 of his funding, his funding comes from a wide variety of places, each wanting something in return, and there is not much if any overlap. You said it yourself, the 3 groups above #4 have nothing to do with TV/Movies/Music. Therefore no one group out there is contributing more money to Schiff and representing an opposing view. If one had, they would be above #4 on the list and he would be sponsoring a totally different bill and writing a totally different letter to his colleagues.
..is that the very products they peddle are NOT integral parts of our lives. Their output is something I (we ALL) can do without. I have more CDs and VHS tapes than I know what to do with, and quite frankly, I am ashamed I bought as many as I did. But what Valenti, Eisner and others fail to realize is, WE DON'T HAVE TO HAVE THEIR "content." It's not food, water, or shelter they are providing. They should think about this before they start trying to strangle the life out of their ONLY customer base.
...now as long as I don't break my glasses like Burgess Meredith, I'll be fine. *GRIN*
I can think of plenty of things to do which don't involve movies or music. With the books I've accumulated from book clubs and second-hand shops (the "I'm gonna get to those someday" pile of books), I could read 1 book a week and probably die before I finished them all. I have enough music that I can cycle through the CDs until hell freezes over before I listen to a CD twice. *grin*
So you see, I am certainly writing my senators, congressmen, local newspapers, and just about any person who has an interest (or even unintentional interest) in this legislation. I am not optimistic I am getting through to ANYONE , though. So, if this passes, I have my old computers, my old TV, my old VCR, my old Dreamcast, and all those "unprotected" books, CDs and classic movies. I just won't buy any more crap. So what? It's not hurting ME that I don't buy their junk.
---- James
Keep in mind that these contributions are hard monies.
"Play by our rules and we'll run issue ads and give tons more in soft money."