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U.S. Sides with Record Labels Over DMCA Subpoena Powers
Injektilo* writes "The Washington Port is reporting
that the U.S. government sided with the recording industry in its dispute with Verizon Communications Inc. on Friday, saying a digital-copyright law invoked by
record labels to track down Internet song-swappers did not violate the U.S. Constitution." We've been following this case.
Warning, the Washington Times link actually takes you to the Washington POST.
Not as bad as goatse... but still a phony link!
Its not the Washington Times its the Washington Post.
This is not a ruling, it is an amicus brief filed by the justice department. Essentially it says that they support the DMCA and the powers given under it - it just shows their position on the issue. The DoJ can "rule" all they want on this, but it wont be any more effective then me going outside and "ruling" that my neighbor has to give me his car.
Amicus briefs are filed every day by the DoJ.. so this is nothing extraordinary. Move along, nothing to see here except utter confusion generated by the poster of this topic.
This case isn't even about piracy or copying, it's about the ability of anyone who claims to be a copyright holder to subpoena information about anybody who they claim is violating their rights.
It's a privacy issue, and a major one at that.
While I accept that sometimes, in serious cases, courts should be able to rule that an ISP must divulge information about a customer, the DMCA seeks to make this routine.
Even without something like the DMCA, in countries much less friendly to abuse of courts, bad decisions are made - IMO scientology vs. anon.penet.fi was a disaster, as exposing scientology as the abusers they are should fall under fair use.
Well, first off, correct me if I'm wrong, but the RIAA isn't a monopoly - simply because they aren't a company. They are a whole bunch of companies all joined together for the "common cause". Second - the statement that $10 cd's would sell better then $18 cd's isnt true, unless the quality of music (or sex appeal) of the $10 is the same or better then the $18 Also, a note on prices: I used to work for Circuit City and they had some reasonably priced CD's - in comparison to chains that specialize in music. Sam Goody and similar stores are usually about 5-6 dollars more then CC was. CC usually had new releases for $11.99 when the same CD sold at SG for $16-18.
[sig]www.masterslate.org[/sig]
The purpose of the executive branch of US government is to enforce the law, and not to judge its constitutionality. If you're going to blame someone, blame congress for passing this law to begin with. This law will eventually be visited by the Supreme Court, at which time it will decide its constitutionality.
The real problem here is that it is far too easy to enact laws and far too hard to repeal or overturn them.
A Government Is a Body of People, Usually Notably Ungoverned
You're right. The RIAA isn't a monopoly. It's a cartel.
Fascism starts when the efficiency of the government becomes more important than the rights of the people.
You forgot that Bush respectfully exempted himself from the Geneva Convention. He wages wars without an UN mandate. And he forbids the International War Crimes Court to try American Citizens.
If you're the strongest military power on the face of the earth, you get to rewrite International Law.
You're correct, the Supreme Court has the final word on whether something is Constitutional. However, it is a long slow process. The Supreme Court does not take a case unless a Consitutional question is an issue. And they don't take it until it is "ripe." That is, it has to have been through all the various levels of courts beneath the Supreme Court, and the specific Constitutional issues identified. Things that tend to bring the Supreme Court into action are instances where courts in different parts of the country interpret an issue differently. So if an appeals court on the west coast and an appeals court on the east coast come to different conclusion on Constitionality, the Supreme Court is more likely to step in and settle the issue. What this question requires is a little more riping.