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Proposed UK File-Sharing Laws May Be Illegal, ISPs Upset
mindbrane writes "Once in a while, a sidebar will throw a lot of light on a difficult problem. The BBC has a short piece on British ISPs' anger over proposed new laws governing file sharing in the UK. The new laws would include cutting repeat offenders off from the Internet. Early response suggests such tactics would fail: 'UK ISP Talk Talk said the recommendations were likely to "breach fundamental rights" and would not work. ... Virgin said that "persuasion not coercion" was key in the fight to crack down on the estimated six million file-sharers in the UK. ... Talk Talk's director of regulation Andrew Heaney told the BBC News the ISP was as keen as anyone to clamp down on illegal file-sharers. ... "This is best done by making sure there are legal alternatives and educating people, writing letters to alleged file-sharers and, if necessary, taking them to court."' The article also mentions a statement issued by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which 'proposes that internet service providers are obliged to take action against repeat infringers and suggests that the cost of tracking down persistent pirates be shared 50:50 between ISPs and rights holders.' Unsurprisingly, said rights holders are in favor of the idea."
Yes.
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Do you really think that the postal service should be immune if they carry a package containing methamphetamine? Even if they deliver it to a 13-year-old child?
Yes. Are you honestly suggesting that the postal service ought to be liable to search every package? They weren't liable for the fools shipping around anthrax, or for the unabomber. There is no realistic (or non-Orwellian) way for the postal service to be able to control the content of packages, so they should absolutely NOT be liable (and this has been held up in court on numerous occasions). They should, however, assist the authorities in tracking down the source of the methamphetamine, in the same manner than the ISPs already respond to subpoenas from law enforcement.
Do you really think that a bus-line should be immune if they give a ride to a terrorist with a bomb in his back-pack on his way to blow up a kindergarten?
Yes. Again, are you really suggesting that the bus company ought to individually search every passenger getting on the bus? Not only would you never be able to get anywhere on time, but personal freedom and privacy would be completely out the window. Again, there is very good legal precedent for this. The bus company would be required to respond to any subpoenas from law enforcement as to assist the investigation, but they would have no liability as there is way they could have reasonably prevented the incident in question.
Do you really think that the phone company should be immune if they allow a 6 year old child to call a fetish phone-sex line?
Ok, now you are just getting ridiculous. This is stupid in too many ways for me to explain, so I will move on.
Do you really think that a gun-company should be immune if they manufacture a weapon and a child accidentally shoots his friend while showing it off?
Yes. They should be. And they are. This has (again) come up repeatedly in the American court systems and has been repeatedly shut down. The gun company has one responsibility -- they need to make sure that their products function properly and can be used safely by a responsible adult who so chooses. If you buy a gun, and it blows up in your face, the gun company is liable. If you use that gun to commit a murder, they are not.
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I suspect your trolling, but your comment floored me. Also your analogies are silly. 1. The Postal Service is a Government agent and is held to a standard of holding public interest so they are expected to watch for the stuff. Your ISP is not a Government agent. 2. Most bus-lines check for those sorts of things to protect their own buses from attack. Even then they are not caring out the act. 3. The phone-sex line should be checking to stop children from calling. It would be impossible for the phone company to know it was happening. 4. Who gave made the gun available to the kid in the first place. Seriously your basically suggesting that the electrical company be at fault for people how toaster themselves in their bathtub. You hope that scare tactic and horrific examples will impress upon people your point. The person your quoting is suggesting a commonly discussed and rather valid business model for an industry. Why should ISP be expected to act as police, judge, and jury. Citizens simple do not have the resources to defend against corporations. The Government should be watching out for its people more anything else.
In terms of social policy, Labour are very left-wing; always have been. So are the Conservatives now.
But as you very rightly say, it's irrelevant from the perspective of the ordinary person. The extreme left and the extreme right are equally harmful to individual liberty.
The tao of democracy: the government you can vote for is not the real government.