Anti-DMCA Petition in Canadian Parliament

Matthew Skala writes "Last month we heard that the Canadian government is rejecting some of the worst features of the DMCA (more analysis here), but with Heritage Minister Liza Frulla parroting the media-cartel lobby with a promise to "give the tools to companies and authors to sue" and persuade children that downloading music for free is morally wrong even though it's presently legal in Canada, the battle is far from won. Yesterday, Member of Parliament Peter Julian (Burnaby-New Westminster, NDP) introduced the first batch of signatures on Digital Copyright Canada's Petition for Users' Rights. This isn't just a Web click-through petition that politicians can freely ignore; more than a thousand real hardcopy signatures have already been collected from Canadian residents opposed to further expansion of copyright privileges, and the campaign is hoping for many more. Additional coverage on p2pnet.net."

Comments

Teaching right from wrong

[TripMaster Monkey]

From the article:

She [Liza Frulla] said she wanted to make it her mission to persuade children that downloading music for free is wrong.

Mabye she could start up a hip, happening new ad campaign like the SPA's Don't Copy that Floppy.

Mabye it will be just as effective, too.

Mabye I'm a Chinese jet pilot.

Re:Teaching right from wrong

[01000011011101000111]

Even better - persuade all music ever released to carry a little black and white warning label saying "Parental Advisory - Listening prohibited" :)

Here...

[Anonymous Coward]

let me save you guys some time.

• Why cant the USA be more like Canada?
• Why do all the places with the best governments have the worst weather?
• You like Canada so much, go move there!

Enjoy.

Signatures

[Shadow Wrought]

more than a thousand real hardcopy signatures have already been collected from Canadian residents

Shoot, that's half the country right there alrady opposed to it!

Re:I'm downloading the petition now.

[ShaniaTwain]

See this just doesnt seem right. Canadians are supposed to be passive and polite to a fault. Americans are supposed to be Freedom loving individuals that hate big government interfering in their life. Where am I? bizzaro world?

Ah well, at least the Canadians aren't burning down the white house anymore..

Re:Legal vs. moral

[camkind]

As Rev. Lovejoy once said to Marge

"Once something has been approved by the Government, It's no longer immoral."

Laws based on Morals.

[ShaniaTwain]

All laws should be based on morals. its the moral thing to do. otherwise the cavity of immorality will rot away the molars of our morals.

Re:Laws based on Morals.

[Anonymous Coward]

> I find that morality seems to always infringe on a person's rights and freedoms.

I find also that my morals are always infringing on my own rights and freedoms. Which is weird, because they're my morals, so they're right, but also they're wrong.

> So you see, you can't simply force a set of moral upon an entire population.

Not simply. It takes a lot of weaponry and planning.

> Morality is a personal choice.

OK.

> If someone chooses not to be moral,
> well there's no way you're going to force them to have a sense of
> morality.

Wait. So morality exists, and people choose to be moral or immoral? If morality exists absolutely, then how can you force morality onto someone? They either choose to be moral, or not.

> Part of freedom is being free to choose

All of freedom is being free to choose. That's it.

> and in this case being free to choose what you think is moral and immoral.

So if I choose to have no sense of morality, then what have I chosen?

You're confusing me. Stop it.

I hope America decides to butt in...

[Atroxodisse]

I hope the American lobby tries to butt in to get Canada to make more severe copyright laws because speaking as a Canadian, nothing makes us more stubborn than when America tries to make us do something we haven't made up our minds on. End result, no additional copyright laws.

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:I'm downloading the petition now.

[maxpublic]

Ah well, at least the Canadians aren't burning down the white house anymore..

And this is a good thing???

Max

Ive done it

[crabpeople]

Just printed off the petition, passed it around the department to sign and then gave it to the shipping department to mail out.

Total time: 25 minutes
Cost to me: 50cents (postage)

Feeling empowered istead of victimized: Priceless

theres some laws you cant buy, for everything else theres internet petitions

Re:Canada Rocks

[saforrest]

Lots of French people in Canada.

For God's sake, they've been here for four hundred years!

At this point they're about as French as English-speaking North America is British, no matter what Triumph the Insult Comic Dog says.