Questions for Town Meeting with Congressman?

tongue asks: "I have the opportunity tomorrow to go to a town meeting with my Congressman, Gene Taylor (D, Miss.). I'd like to be able to ask several (preferably intelligent) questions regarding issues facing the technology industry today, on bills like the DMCA, SSSCA, etc; but I'm having trouble narrowing down the field. The research I've been able to do so far indicates a fairly conservative voting record, although I haven't had much luck finding a good site that summarizes a bill-by-bill voting record along with a synopsis of the bill." We did a similar question, last month about the CBDTPA which dovetails nicely with this issue. What questions about these and other questionable electronic laws passed over the last few years, would you like tongue to ask Senator Taylor?

Comments

Keep it simple

[ColGraff]

Senator, what do you believe constitutes "fair use" of an intellectual property product, such as a DVD, computer game, etc. Do you believe people should be able to make back-up copies of such products?

For a conservative, call for "conservative" action

[Howzer]

Senator, since the main effect of lengthening the period of copyright and patent protection seems to be to stifle competition, when do you think we will see a move back to the principles established by the framers of the constitution and a _shortening_ of the protection period?

Someone can write this question better and more accurately than me I am sure, but a question to that effect might be interesting to hear answered.

General mood of the questions

[jonman_d]

I had a chance to "shadow" ( read, "follow around" ) a senator for NYS a few months ago. Basically, my advice to you is: be very specific with your questions. Do this for two reasons: it assists with their answer, and if a question is broad, they won't answer it. From what I gather, politicians don't like to say anything broad, unless they're trying to get out of a sticky situation. So give a specific question, and demand a specific answer.

Also, don't insult the man. Believe it or not (don't listen to most Slashdot readers ;) he does have a tough job. Even if he is as currupt as Swiss Cheese, show him some respect. He deserves it.

And lastly, if he does refuse to answer a question, find out why. If he's got a good reason, move on - don't try and punch the heck out of him, or he won't be forthcoming in the future. If he constantly refuses to answer questions, however, politely show your displeasure and remind him that he works for you.

Hope that helps - good luck!

Bad news

[Pomme de Terre!]

If you think these townhall meetings are forums to pursuade or convince your Congressman of *anything*, you will be pretty disappointed.

These things are primarily designed to get a nice story in the local paper, and maybe help a few people with "The road near my cousin's house is falling apart" or "I'm getting the runaround from can you help?"

If you are serious about garnering insight or pursuading your congressman of anything beyond the superficial, you need to set up a private meeting with him or one of his staff. (This is not a difficult thing to do, and contrary to the press, you do not need to be a millionaire contributor to do it.)

At the said meeting, you need to have a concise argument ready, provide facts, figures, and documentation. ("I hate Microsoft and think everyone should use BSD" will not cut it.)

Please be knowledgable about your subject. The fact that you're dredging Slashdot for talking points is not a good sign, and will likely do more harm than good when the conversation gets into specifics and fine details. Remember, the idea is to convince, not just spout off your opinion.

Technology issues are a huge body of legislation, and you will more than likely find at least somebody on his staff with experience in such matters, who will be the true path to action. (Staffers are the key to power.)

I can promise you that any townhall grandstanding about any substantive issue will result in a noncommittal "That's really good point, and there are a lot of people who agree with you. Let me look into it."

Pomme de Terre

The good questions...

[greygent]

"Mr Senator...boxer or briefs? Choice of cigar?"

Really, can these recently-submitted "Ask Slashdot" questions get any sillier and unimportant? Probably.

ACLU Voting Record

[Peridriga]

Voting record of Mr. Taylor on ACLU issues

ACLU's Voting Record

Figure out who sponsored his campaign

[Jeppe Salvesen]

Before you go, you should figure out if he received money from any special interest group or corporation. If he's been bought, a good followup question could be "Do you feel that there is a conflict of interest in making a statement on this issue, when you received $xx.xxx from yyyyyyy inc?".

some starters

[Alan Cox]

1. What is the US doing about the terrible state of computer security (one to get him happy and talking)
2. What is the US government planning to do about the consequences this terrible security and lack of privacy laws is having on identify theft and the risk of terrorists using stolen identity (technique 2 - link two things in one question and make it hard for them to give answers heading in a direction away from you)
3 - The DMCA is supressing important research into security technologies, given the lack of security how do you justify this (get him on what he has admitted then force answers)
4 - What plans does the US government have for laws to prevent abuse of end user license agreements, digital rights management and other new technologies (note - you dont ask if there is a problem you state it and ask what they will do. a) this lets you make a point to him about what you see as important b) puts him in a position where he has to justify the position and explain it - the more you can keep them talking on such questions the better 8)
5 - Software patents, meritless lawsuits, high taxes and complex restrictions on exports are making it ever harder for business to justify remaining in the USA and not moving elsewhere. What are you doing to simplify it (same theory as above, and the word 'tax' requires an answer 8))
6 - Copying a protected ebook, even to help a blind user read it now carries a typical sentence higher than that of assault and many other acts of violence against the person. In these times of rising violent crime isn't it about time the US government got back to the needs of the people not the needs of large corporations.

If you can't think of anything...

[willybur]

Though the EFF and the ACLU have *somewhat* one-sided perspectives on such legislation, they're still a great resource. The papers that the EFF produces are always highly detailed and informative in nature. Maybe just stating some choice stats or using the information as background could help you get your point across.

Process

[anthony_dipierro]

What process do you have in place to ensure that you are properly informed of the technological issues surrounding congressional bills? What initiatives are you taking to better streamline the feedback process in this increasingly digital age?

I notice your presence on the web is rather lacking. Is this due to lack of funds, lack of interest, or some other problem, and is anything being done to address this issue?

Hypothetical Questions

[cybermage]

Given an example of a real-life action that is illegal under the DMCA or SSSCA and ask whether it should be illegal. Then ask him if he's aware of the offending Act's prohibition. For example:

"If I buy a music CD, should I be allowed to copy it to tape so that I can play it in my car stereo? Or, If I buy an expensive game for my computer, should I be allowed to make a personal copy for every day use to prevent wearing out the original?"

When he agrees that you should be able, point this out:

"Both these examples are considered 'fair use' under case law but are being made illegal under the SSSCA. Hardware manufacturers will be forced to make copying for any purpose impossible without expressed permission."

If he doesn't agree, ask him to explain his reasoning.

What about our rights?

[NanoGator]

Mr. Senator, why are the rights of the corporations (who aren't really people, btw...) being considered before the rights of the voting public? The DMCA and the CBPTBPABPA (I hate that damn acronym!) were designed to take our rights away to protect the 'oh so valuable corporate property', but no legislation was placed to protect our individual rights.

Right now, it feels like the laws are specifically being passed so that we, the consumers (and tax payers) are legally inclined to pay the MPAA and the RIAA money for absurd reasons. For example, if a DVD I bought gets scratched, I am forced to buy a new one or not watch the movie, all thanks to the DMCA. There isn't a provision that declares that I, as an individual, have the right to take necessary steps to back up the products I invested in. Instead, the big corps were given the right to lock up their precious content and force me to pay again for content I already paid once for.

Why isn't the government looking to preserve our individual rights before passing laws to help out corporations? Please tell me it's not because we're not paying the gov't enough money. 30% of my yearly income goes straight to the federal government.

Re:What about our rights?

[darkonc]

First of all, what would be wanted is not to back up the DVD. 'Backing up' a dvd is seen by many as euphamism for 'pirating'. Don't shoot your self in the foot by using that phrase.

The DMCA makes it illegal for you tor RECOVER a damaged DVD using any but the most primative methods. That's more of a catcher than 'backing up' a DVD. Few people would see fit to 'back up' a perfectly good DVD, but many people might get raised hackles at the prospect of being legally prevented from recovering a damaged one.

I would also suggest a more direct question. The question that I would ask would be more along the lines of:

The DMCA has severely limited consumer rights, and the Hollings bill (CBPTBPA, or whatever) threatens to almost completely gut consumer rights.
Do you intend to vote for, or against Hollings' bill -- and what would your justification be for that vote?

I've questioned a Senator before

[globaljustin]

When I was an intern in a Congressman's office, I was able to attend a number of informal, off-the-record talks between senators, congressman, and interns (and only interns!)

At the end of the talk, we were allowed to ask questions on any topic, and I got to see first hand what questions work and what questions fail.

Your question needs to be pointed, but not too specific because believe it or not, a congressman votes on alot of bills everyday, and he doesn't have time to read all of them in depth, that's why he has a staff.

So a question like "line 2 paragraph 8 of the DMCA says this, but...." won't cut it, he won't know what the hell you're talking about. But if you are too broad, he will just ramble on about nothing for 2 minutes and then move on to another question.

The best thing for you to do is present one or two simple and well-documented problems/weaknesses with the DCMA, and then ask him how he thinks the problems could be solved.

And, damn, this is the most important of all...don't buy into the media's portrayal of all government officials being corrupt...give the man the benefit of the doubt and give him the respect he deserves