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Congressional Anti-Piracy Caucus Formed
questionlp writes "News.com reports that three members from the House of Reps has formed a caucus that aims to stop piracy and make for stronger IP laws. One of the members of the caucus: helped author a note last fall to 74 fellow Democrats assailing the Linux open-source operating system's GNU General Public License as a threat to America's 'innovation and security.'"
200 years after people stop raiding other people at sea, they try to put a stop to piracy. Next they'll be cracking down on cattle rustlers...
oh wait.....
Congressman Wexler has added to his holdings, having purchased a yacht to go along with his mansion.
Where is the Fair Use and Consumer Rights Caucus?
Oh yeah, there is none.
Please email all complaints to root@127.0.0.1 and the issue will be dealt with in due time.
- "It's the end of the world as we know it."
Contact Me (got tired of viruses emailing me).
a note last fall to 74 fellow Democrats assailing the Linux open-source operating system's GNU General Public License as a threat to America's 'innovation and security.'
Turn it all off then. Vast portions of the Internet run on Linux, FreeBSD (even though it isn't GPL) and especially Apache. Maybe we should all pick a day and turn it all off, at least in the US it would probably bring traffic to a halt. THEN maybe they will reconsider making stupid laws regarding the choice of one's operating systems!
The Anti-Blog
These men have just become my three favorite people to hate, along with our non-president Bush.
Here's some addresses for you to do with as you please; normally I'd recommend writing them as I usually do, but their corrupt stupidity compels me to not care if you DDOS them, spam them, or whatever:
Rep. Robert Wexler
Rep. Adam Smith
Rep. Tom Feeney
Oh, and if you haven't already, try joining the EFF.
Corporatism getting way out of hand. It's getting scary as hell if you ask me.
...Let them do whatever they want to IP laws here. Shut down every server that hosts MP3s and DIVX movies. I'll just go to Korean / Dutch / Nigerian Servers and download the stuff. And I don't care what kind of copy protection they mandate. There's always a way through the analogue hole. Great waste of my tax dollars.
In fact, Smith's main single contributor was Microsoft!
If The Simpsons have taught us anything it's that Caucases are nothing more than a bunch of poorly inked drawings who congo line around a mountain lodge yelling "caucas caucas caucas!"
Just like congress too.. always resting on their laurals.
A Democrat leading the charge to outlaw Linux and open source AGAIN! I am saying this as a registered democrat before someone marks this as flamebait. And I note there is at least 1 republican involved in this my point there really is no diffrence between the major parties.
Just dont know what to do... EFF ACLU all good and well but there is no way in hell they can ever match the funds that MS MPAA RIAA et al have...
I guess its true if voting really made a diffrence it would be illegal.
What about my up time on Netcraft!!!!
This is a secret ploy to get all those 600+ day people to reboot. Well I'm not buying.
Adam Smith 1700's: "Letting people choose how to spend their money is the way to stimulate the economy."
Adam Smith 2003: "But we can't let them choose Linux."
In the absence of an opposing view, your representatives believe what they are told. Tell them differently.
/. a website we should be able to make a point in DC.
Be concise, polite, and specific. If we can
Contacting your Representative -- The Easy Way
Don't wait. Do it now or don't whine about it later.
Think, write, think, edit, think...then post.
[...] three members [of] the House of Reps has formed a caucus that aims to [kill open source software and fair use in the name of "stopping piracy"]
Hurrah!
Up to now the RIAA/MPAA/Microsoft/etc.-corrupted congresscritters have been pretty much anonymous. When they weren't actually introducing a bill you couldn't tell them from the general crowd of congressional dupes.
Now we will have an explicit way to track the congressional ringleaders and target them for defeat - in primaries and general elections.
Hot DAMN!
(Ask anybody who helped take out Roberti, Roos, or Foley how a grass-roots movement works.)
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
- AOL-Time-Warner
s oft Corporation
He's taken money from the very people that his legislative plans will benefit. Can any sane, rational person honestly believe that this is not a conflict of interest? This is not right, and it's symptomatic of the legalized bribery that is the core problem of the American political system.ASCAP
MediaOne
Micro
Fox
RIAA
Sony
Walt Disney
Furthermore, the contributions from the PACs listed above don't constitute anywhere near the majority of his campaign funding. He's a democrat, and most of the PAC contributions are from labor unions. The larger part of his campaign expenditures were thus paid by organizations that purport to represent workers - sometimes also known as consumers. Despite this, he is acting as the lapdog of the content industry. As Mark Twain said, an honest politician is one that stays bought.
Wexler thus fails both the idealistic and pragmatic tests for honesty. I submit that he needs to be tarred, feathered, and run out of town on a rail.
So where's the caucus to keep these "watchdogs" from over-abusing their powers, jailing kids who accidentally mention the words "Harry Potter" somewhere online, or threaten to shut down universities' internet connections during finals because one of the professors may have a file that might be illgal according to some law.
You know, protection from overbearing abuse, the rules that this country is based on... where's the caucus to protect people and their rights?
Since when did people only apply to people who were located in large office towers and made millions a year, scamming average people for all they are worth.
SecondPageMedia - Wha
With all the non-sense laws that our government comes up with regarding technology, wouldn't it make sense to form a group of knowledgable and experienced individuals to lobby against these laws?
;). We all know that our normal politicians can't get it right. I think we can!
I'm sure that slashdot can bring a real life political slashdot effect. Maybe it's something worth thinking about, or perhaps starting
- Howard Berman, Representative
- Barbara Boxer, Junior Senator
- Dianne Feinstein, Senior Senator
All three are 0wnz0r3d by the RIAA, MPAA, and Big Media.No, I didn't vote for Berman in the last election. I swallowed hard and voted for the Republican candidate, because he seemed to be genuinely concerned about eroding Fair Use rights.
I don't know what's going to happen when Berman, Feinstein and Boxer are up for re-election again. Usually the Republicans run Religious Right-sponsored, Orange County-friendly candidates at the Senatorial level here in California. I can't support someone like that. But Feinstein and Boxer make me sick. Berman does too, but I think he's gotten enough heat from geeks in his district (they do exist) to where he's not going to try anything so stupid as a "Son Of Berman Bill".
I live close enough to Hollywood to where it's a lot like living in Adam Smith's district in Washington State. This is a company town and Big Media is the company. Resistance, it seems. is futile.
Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.
Looks like the Crongressional Dip$hits are at it again.
Perhaps they'll decide to save on legislature time and just try to roll the DMCA and the Patriot Act into one and just go ahead and lock up anyone with any sort of recording device as a Terrorist Threat.
Ya ya ya... I have zero faith in our government to ever not have it's head so far up it's ass when dealing with anything that is even remotely related to the tech sector or individual rights as opposed to corporate self interests.
Somehow, I have a feeling I'm not alone there.
Anyway, time to toss some moolah to the EFF, because they're gonna need it.
Pass the hat.
Is M$ starting some sort of a campaign against Linux?
Or, is it just other's paranoia about U.S. security?There is no spoon or sig.
Headline: "'Open Source' Hackers Shut Down Internet, Demand Control of Congress"
I can't imagine Congress ever outlawing Linux, but if there was anything that could bring that day closer, this is probably it.
... should have a little sticker on the side that says "Hollywood Inside".
i think its funny how a rep from wash, whose district includes ms headquarters, comes out in favor of ip laws and against linux. i wonder how much that cost balmer.
That RMS is the next Osama bin Laden? In that case, he's already got the foot-long beard down.. Now all he needs is a turban.
Adam Smith (L-ECON) would not be happy with Adam Smith's (D-WA) manipulation of the free market through the passing of artificial governmental regulation.
Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government.
http://uptime.netcraft.com/up/graph/?mode_u=on&mod e_w=on&site=www.whitehouse.gov&submit=Exam ine
When will you people grow up?
Copyright protection laws (including Anti-Piracy) are great for Free Software!
Is copyright law was enforced 100%, 80 percent of the world's computer users would have been Free Software users by now.
$600 for MS Office? I don't think so.
If you don't like paying for music- don't support corporate artists.
Form a band of your own, for daemon's sake!
I've been generating my own music (i'm a techno freak) for years. And guess what, ambient music is easy easy easy to make on your own.
Breaking rules is for kids, Making rules of their own is for adults.
The more you rant about Freedom and Piracy, the more power to the establishment to link Free Software and Piracy.
I didn't go to see the Matrix. I haven't bought a Music CD in 5 years. Grow up and Fight!
--- Nothing but Blood and Kosmos
Trickle-down intellectual property law?
Trickle-down freedom?
[cough]
Remember that politicians are people. President Bush raised far more money than the Democrats in 2000 because he targetted middle income families, and didn't spend as much time as he normally would've contacting big businesses.
YOU do make a difference. The reason why the democrats are consistently coming out pro-big-business lately is because the grass-root democrats won't support them. Ask a democrat, "When is the last time you gave a buck to a candidate?" Then ask the same question to a republican. Which party do you think is eating from the hands of the constituency?
I'll admit, the Republican Party doesn't do what I wish they did 100% of the time, but they are aiming in the general direction. Deregulation, lowering taxes, beefing up our borders are all things I feel are important. You'll find me and millions like me are going to put a couple bucks into our republican candidates. That is going to sway them away from big business, and more towards our interests.
Washington State Republicans have broken completely from Boeing -- one of the reason why Boeing is leaving -- for this very same reason. They don't need their cash anymore. The republicans in WA are more than willing to pop out a $20 bill to support their own candidates as long as they do what the supporters want. (HINT: This next budget coming down is pretty much what we wanted. Expect a big republican win next year.)
As long as you are giving a buck or two to your candidate, and millions of you are doing the same, you will have bought their vote. You get to write a letter to them that starts: "Dear Representative, I gave $20 to your campaign last year, but I will be giving $50 to your opponent this time unless..." which always gets more attention than "Dear Representative, I am a whiny brat who will never give a dime to your campaign."
Remember, Big Business lives off of our buck. We can strangle them with boycotts if we so desire. (You ever notice how whimpy the business people get when they are faced with consumer outrage?) There is no way someone as dependent on our cash, and who can only turn a couple of percentage points on it for profit, can every compete with our cash going directly into the pockets of our representatives. We really do have the power. We really do control the game -- but only if we get in the ring and fight!
So if you want to start a "Fair Use Consumer Advocacy Group", give a couple of bucks to your favorite politician who is generally going in your direction, and tell them where you want them to go. Convince others to do the same. A couple of thousand dollars and a couple of hundred votes later, you will have them eating out of your hand. They will come to you and ask, "Which way should I vote to get your help in next year's campaign?"
If you don't know where to start, start small. Look for state representatives or city council members you want to support. Check out their record. Call them up and ask them how you can help. When you get to know them, and you begin to trust them, and they you, give them your money. Trust me, it works, and it is really simple. And as long as enough people are doing it, we'll keep the government in check.
The radical sect of Islam would either see you dead or "reverted" to Islam.
The problem I have with this kind of argument is this: You want to labnel me as "liberal" or "conservative". Guess what? I'm one of those "middle of the road" people that extremists hate. I make decisions on my own.
:)
Yup I disagree with conservatives. I disagree with liberals. I agree with conservatives. I agreee with liberals. What this ammounts to is: I think Ann Coultier and Bill O'Reilly are idiots who make good arguments at times. Same with Bill Clinton and Barbara Streisand. Sometimes, though, they say stuff that actually amounts to an intelligence behind their ideologies. It's rare, but it happens.
Now, to go back on-topic...
What do I think of this action by these folks who are claiming that Open Source is a threat to National Security(tm)? Nothing. I clicked on the comments here to see what people are thinking about this matter on an intellectual level. NOT an ideological level.
So, some people are raising a raucus in Washington. This happens all the time. Heck, it wasn't a few years ago when Microsoft faced a fate worse than this. In all honesty, I think Open Source got off lucky politically speaking over the past dozen years or so. And I'm glad to see it. Proprietary software needed its kick in the pants. That's not to say the Free Software movement (and its corporate-friendly equivalent, Open Source) needs the occasional kick too. But for these folks to be taken seriously, more than well-paid lobbyists will be able to make a difference.
Ideology goes three inches and a neutrino's width with me. Case closed.
(P.S. back from 3 years away from Slashdot, BTW... hoo-yeah
--- Journals are boring; Go to my web page instead
If you want people to listen to the EFF, start becoming memebers. Let EFF say that they represent a million people who would be very upset if a law that introduces stronger IP laws that affect fair use.
sri
This discussions seems to be more or less wrapped up and writing your Congressman and / or voting different seem to be good options. So all that's left for me is to throw in some comment.
Everytime I read about Big 'Cons heavily influencing laws that undermine basic human rights and invalidating democratic structures, in order to grow bigger and bigger, I only wait for the awakening of magic in 2012.
It's as if everyone in power in this world read the shadowrun books and thought "wow, thats a great world to live in".
The US needs to reform their electoral and governmental system fast or they'll be run down the drain by all these corporate whores.
That's what bothers me most with the eff and aclu: they just take the conservative approach of "everything has to stay the way it is" instead of calling attention to the things that IMHO need serious fixin.
If you look at the eff's site, the news section is just full of battles in jurisdiction but on the legislation side of things, it's just "state has passed this, congress has passed that".
Where is the support for a legislative proposal that actually strengthens consumer/citizen/human rights?
Where is the proposal for a system that allows for more than two parties to gain power?
Where is the continous lobbying effort to keep the politicians in line with common sense?
Code is Speech. No to Censorship.
"...blamed P2P networks for spreading..."
I always thought that in US, in general the argumentation was, for example, "guns doesn't kill, people do". So how come when it comes to copyright infringement and such, it is always the tool that is the cause, and not people.
From the article:
What about the concerns of millions of Americans whose livelihoods depend on free access to technology? Open source software creates jobs, because it creates the opportunity for someone with an idea to build a business without having to have hundreds of thousands of dollars to invest in software. For instance, I have started a software development business that I would not have been able to afford to start without free software:
I am sure I could come up with a couple hundred thousand more if I really thought about it. The point is that I don't have the money for any of that. If things go well I plan to hire several developers over the next year or two. That's as many as ten jobs that wouldn't exist if it weren't for free software.
Seriously, the argument that free software is "A threat to America's innovation and security," makes about as much sense as the one that says that giving rich people a tax break will lead to more jobs. They neglect to mention that the vast majority of the jobs are with large companies that already pay almost zero taxes. Most of the tax cut goes to rich people who will stow it away so that they are richer rather than companies with any significant number of jobs or middleclass taxpayers who do the bulk of the consuming that drives the economy.
What these people need to do is get a clue. The record companies are going to go out of business if they keep doing things the way they have always done them. Since when is it good business to whine and moan until someone legislates away our freedom rather than innovating and coming up with a viable new way to make money? The reality is that these businesses have to change their way of thinking or they will die. The only real question is how much pain can they put the rest of us through before they do finally die. Can they successfully destroy the American way of life first? They're trying.
These sorts of articles are coming out faster and faster everyday. I never used to worry about it but now I am really starting to sweat. Its not just in the US where they are doing it. A lot of comments here say we will move offshore. Where are you going to go. ITs ahpopening in Australia and in Britain. While the majority of the population sleeps throuugh life, getting their news from sources that don't report things like this, they are tightening the screws. 1984 should be mandatory reading.
BTW Guns are not the answer. Peacefully protest is. Do you really think that the citizens of the US could beat the US Defence force.
-- Karma Karma Karma Karma, Karma Chameleon - Boy George
I guess we always needed a luddite caucus. If you can't beat the Unibomber, join 'em, I suppose. Congressmen calling for the stunting of technology -- how quaint.
I suppose they would have opposed the invention of the piano roll, too -- and that victrola, what a threat! The audio tape, the video tape and now the P.C. Ironically, it was these technologies that made the companies that build these Congressmen's campaign warchests.
At the end of the day, the market does a far better job of deciding what technologies the world need than does the Congress. Amazing how supposedly "conservative" congressmen don't think twice about regulating industries they don't understand to protect the interests of businesses they do. Alas, the one being regulated by them is the one driving our economy.
Distinguishing between the technologies and those who exploit them wrongly is the identifying feature of these doofuses. These guys would ban credit cards as forms of lockpicking tools because they can be used to jimmy open some old doors. We already have laws making copyright infringement illegal -- we don't need new ones to make criminals of other people who don't infringe and who make useful, important technology, just because some special interest group doesn't want to be vigilant or change business models to one that can succeed in the twenty-first century..
Luddites unite! Since we are already going to double the debt in the next few years, why not also wreck the economy?