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Canada's Music Lobby Buys Government Access
An anonymous reader writes "Copyfighting law professor Michael Geist, who previously uncovered financial links between recording industry lobbyists and Canada's Minister of Canadian Heritage Bev Oda (who is responsible for copyright policy), has now identified what big cash donations will get you. He reports that Oda met with the President of the Canadian Recording Industry Association on a monthly basis last year just as the government was preparing copyright reform legislation and Canadian artists were calling for an end to P2P lawsuits. Is it any wonder that Canadians seem likely to lose
their fair use rights?"
http://www.bevoda.ca/contact.htm Contact Bev: Bowmanville Office: 68 King Street East Bowmanville, Ontario L1C 3X2 Phone: (905) 697-1699 Fax: (905) 697-1678 Ottawa Office: House of Commons Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6 Phone: (613) 992-2792 Fax: (613) 992-2794 Email: Oda.B@parl.gc.ca From her own website....
It's just a branch office of the American RIAA. The group that represents Canadian artists is the Canadian Music Creators Coalition.
Actually in Canada it is illegal for businesses,trade unions etc to donate any money to political campaigns. Also individuals are limited to donating $1100. Unluckily this only came into effect on Jan 1,2007. See http://www.elections.ca/content.asp?section=gen&do cument=ec90557&dir=bkg&lang=e&textonly=false
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_totalitarianism
For your information -- this same minister is in bed with CanWest Global (our largest news service) and even had one of their employees planning fundraisers for her. She is also the same minister along with Maxime Bernier that is responsible for Net Neutrality in Canada. If you're Canadian and want to help -- check out Charlie Angus's three-point-plan to ensure the ethical sobriety of the heritage minister. Mp3 here If you want to help the Net Neutrality movement and are a Canadian you can sign the petition at neutrality.ca These cabmins that take money from industries they oversee need to be held accountable for their actions.
Don't forget to email her too: Oda.B@parl.gc.ca Maybe add a little note in your email pointing her to the article and ask her how much you have to "donate" to get fair treatment.
The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you're still a rat." Lily Tomlin
They were correct for modding you flamebait for an anti-Conservative tirade. This is not a partisan issue. Bev Oda's predecessor in Paul Martin's Liberal government Sam Bulte was just as guilty of accepting money from the music lobby. The content industry will throw money at whoever they think can deliver copyright "reform", regardless of what party represent.
Support Right To Repair Legislation.
Actually this isn't really new. For those that don't follow Canadian politics, the record industry has bought out the last 4 heritage ministers (the last three were Liberals). Nice to see they have reconciled with Bev Oda, because the they we financing her Liberal rival during the election ... when the Conservatives won, they dropped the Liberal like a stone and started bribing Oda instead. The Liberal Heritage ministers were even approaching the record industry looking for the bucks, rather than waiting for the industry officials to approach them with offers. What chance do Canadians have under such circumstances? None. We'll just have to ignore the resulting laws like everyone else.
Quebec is terrible with rights. It is illegal in Quebec to put a sign outside your business in anything but the official language, French. Even if you live in a town where everyone speaks English, you HAVE to use French signs. If you want an English sign too, it's writing must be half the size of the French sign.
You cannot get a job as a civil servant unless you speak French, even if it's a job where no French is required. It is very difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get government forms in any language but French, despite the large English population. If you are an English family, you must send your kids to a French school, unless you went to an English school in Quebec as a child.
It goes on...
Quebec supports rights, my ass!
Really? A lot of people don't realize that The Corporation was a Canadian documentary. I think most of that is a consequence of the WTO which we are a part of as well.