Slashdot Mirror
Trick Used To Pass French "Three Strikes"
Glyn Moody writes "France's 'Loi Hadopi' — better known as 'three strikes and you're out' — was passed by the National Assembly late last night when only 16 deputies were present (the vote was 12 in favor, 4 against). Most politicians had left because it was expected that the vote would take place next week. In this way, President Sarkozy has sneaked his controversial legislation through the French parliament — and shown his contempt for the democratic process. So now what?"
While my initial thought is "Shame on those people who subverted the democratic process" I can't help but think.. "Shame on the faulty system with such a stupid loophole." Did they subvert the democratic process? Kinda. But did they do things within the boundries of their law? Apparently so.
So shame on those living in France expecting anything different from their dumb system.
It's like having an insurance policy, and when the insurance company decides to be assholes and use their technicalities to avoid paying you, well, shame on you for signing on to such an obviously flawed contract.
(Please note, I'm not claiming my country is any better.)
Belief? Hope? Preference?The Existential Vortex
It's not the end of the world, probably.
Ever heard of Quorum? The French should add that to their rules/constitution to prevent that crap Sheesh
The fault is on the current elected officials. If they were present at parliament like they are supposed too, this would not happen. We vote for them to be at parliament, not for them to go only they feel like it. Even if the vote would only take place next week, its their obligation to be at parliament. Pity its never like that, not in Portugal and not in France it seems...
Sounds like sour grapes to me. News Flash: Politicians use these procedural tricks all the time, why do you think that said tricks exist? At someone point, some other guys slid laws through on the same deal. Look at the absurd things the US does - the Patriot Act, Obama's "bailout" plans, that nobody ever reads, but people vote on.
I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
The people who showed "contempt for the democratic process" were the people who left early.
Don't forget: Shame on the worthless motherfuckers who stayed and voted aye. Sarkozy is a prick; but 12 people in that room last night were the ones who actually made a mockery of the process of representative democracy.
In a juster world, they would be hanging from the lampposts this morning.
A country with a 577-member body that allows 16 people to constitute quorum? If that's actually the case, that country deserves what it gets.
Say it ain't so.
"We reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals." --The American President (20.1.2009)
What this slashdot post needs is:
1. A description of the law that was passed. 'three strikes and you're out' isn't very descriptive. I'm assuming it has to do with file sharing and cutting off people's internet connections?
2. How many deputies were supposed to be there? 18? 100? 300?
the fallacy is in thinking that the government has any ability to enforce the laws they create on the topic of intellectual property. any law in regard to file sharing is akin to trying to herd cats two states over: does anyone really think that some chinese or russian or brazilian teenager with a broadband connection is aware, or even cares?
and if they don't, then for western teenagers in western nations with retarded intellectual property laws, its simply a matter of dipping into this transnational bounty of filesharing that is forever beyond the reach of idiotic national laws
so go ahead france, australia, the usa: pass your ridiculous 3 strikes law, dmca, whatever. who fucking cares?
intellectual property law was a gentleman's agreement from a dead era when there were only a few publishers (oh, you thought ip law was for the benefit of creators? ha!). but now ip law is now a conceptual dinosaur in the age of the internet. western nations depend heavily on the idea of intellectual property. well: get used to losing the concept
all that has to happen, all that is going to happen over the next few decades is that western nations have to get used to the extinction of intellectual property law as an enforceable concept in the age of the internet
when someone loses something dear to them, they go through 5 stages of grief. the first stage is denial. that is where western legal systems are now at in reliation to the death of intellectual property law as a valid, enforceable idea
its over
ip law is dead
everyone just shrug at france. the laws you see passed will get only more ridiculous and more desperate in the west, until finally a critical mass of legislators in western nations begin to wake up and take notice that its all just a giant fucking joke
intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
You do realize that if your suggestions were taken into account, it is likely that important bills would not get passed because it would take FAR too long to do so. For example, bills to amend the criminal code or a bill for protecting the Arctic waters from pollution.
I certainly agree with your third point however. The bill should only deal with 1 subject matter and amendments to the bill should only be related to that subject matter.
I have seen Brits and Swiss jerks leave their office at 5:00pm while I stayed at my desk until 10:00pm past.
Hmm, and who exactly is the winner here?
And you haven't read a single word of what I posted, right? Lame.
From the same article you dismissed:
Longest hours worked in Europe (31 countries surveyed)
1 Turkey: 54 hours; 29 UK: 35 hours (EU average: 39 hours)
UK is 29th out of 31 countries surveyed.
I rest my case.
The right to offend is far more important than the right not to be offended. (Rowan Atkinson)
Oh please, if this was a just law, they shouldn't have to resort to such trickery to get it passed.
The translation says, "While the vote was not expected until next week, the few members in the chamber at the end of the discussion on the Creation and Internet law ..."
Wouldn't a Creation and Internet Law be all about copyrights and author-created materials being published on the internet? I don't see where this is about "three strikes and you're out."
Surely someone out there knows more than we've been told by this article.
Does anyone find it amusing that after all the ridicule the French heaped on Americans for electing Bush that they went and elected somebody even worse?
This is exactly the reason I won't buy a house that is subject to a HOA, what part of "MY PROPERTY" do these tin dictators not understand.