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RIAA's Elementary School Copyright Curriculum

selven writes "In a blatant campaign devoid of any subtlety, the RIAA is fighting for the hearts and minds of our children with its Music Rules, a collection of education materials on how to respect copyright. The curriculum includes vocabulary such as 'counterfeit recordings, DMCA notice, "Grokster" ruling, legal downloading, online piracy, peer-to-peer file sharing, pirate recordings, songlifting, and US copyright law.' There is no mention whatsoever of fair use. Compounding the bias, it includes insights such as that taking music without paying for it is 'songlifting,' and that making copies for personal use and then playing them while your friends come over is illegal. On the bright side, it includes math showing that the total damages from copyright infringement by children in the US amount to a measly $7.8 million."

10 of 507 comments (clear)

  1. Fair use? by DaveV1.0 · · Score: 0, Troll

    There is no fair use involved in making unauthorized copies of a work. I don't care what you call it. If you start with one copy of a copyrighted work and end up with n copies of a work, where n is greater than 1, in the hands of m people, where m is greater than 1, without the permission of the copyright holder, then unauthorized copies have been made. There is no fair use defense, because there is no fair use for that situation.

    --
    There is no "-1 offended" or "-1 you don't agree with me" mod options for a reason.
    1. Re:Fair use? by DaveV1.0 · · Score: -1, Troll

      You fail at "parody, artistically arranging, education and research purposes".

      Personal use does not fall into any of those categories.

      --
      There is no "-1 offended" or "-1 you don't agree with me" mod options for a reason.
    2. Re:Fair use? by DaveV1.0 · · Score: -1, Troll

      Let us examine your post:

      You do not address my argument that there is no fair use involved in "sharing" songs on the internet. Instead you try to change the subject.
      You personally attack me rather than making any argument
      You make unsupported claims about the RIAA, it's members, and corporations in general
      You state that I am harming myself but provide no proof of same
      You advocate destroying those you disagree with, but put forth no argument or evidence supporting such action
      You claim that I am on the "wrong" side of the argumen

      So, you post is a red herring, an ad hominem attack, a straw man combined with an appeal to fear and ridicule, a false dilemma combined with an appeal to consequences of a belief, begging the question, and two wrongs making a right.

      Your entire post is one fallacy after another. You apparently have no concept of how to argue. And, judging from the style of the post, I bet you are under the age of 23.

      --
      There is no "-1 offended" or "-1 you don't agree with me" mod options for a reason.
    3. Re:Fair use? by DaveV1.0 · · Score: -1, Troll

      Apparently you are too stupid to read, so I will not bother with you anymore.

      --
      There is no "-1 offended" or "-1 you don't agree with me" mod options for a reason.
  2. "In a blatant campaign devoid of any subtlety" by bonch · · Score: -1, Troll

    In a blatant campaign devoid of any subtlety

    Yeah, Slashdot sure isn't guilty of that when it takes every pro-piracy position possible.

  3. Re:Okay, You Have the Floor by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    "Oy vey... haven't ve suffered enough?"

    The Jew cries out as he strikes you.

    The RIAA is run by JEWS for JEWS. We are their 'cattle'. They will happily put your children in prison for downloading a f**king SONG, that's what the Jews think about you and your family...

    Who is running your government? You, the people?
    No, the JEW is running your government.

    The JEW just stole two trillion dollars from you, and you aren't allowed to know where it went. (i.e. to which JEWS it went...)

  4. Re:Public Schools Taking a dump ... by jmerlin · · Score: 0, Troll

    Quite "obvious." I mean aside from the continual push of "standardized" tests which amount to trying to set a standard on how intelligent a child SHOULD be, making no means to mention that oh my FUCKING god we're not all the EXACT SAME -- because that would be politically incorrect?

    Oh and the fact that every subject is being dumbed down more and more with ADHD friendly books that contain 50% of each page with lots of pictures, unnecessary commentary, web references, song references, etc etc with the content becoming less and less important.

    And nay, I should not even need to mention the constant never-ending drive of large corporations trying to indoctrinate children into thinking THEIR way or being hooked on their products with the assistance of local and state govt.!!!!

    No, obviously this person has no kids in school. I was in "school" (I'm assuming you don't mean college because heaven forbid it's not really a school, right!?) 4 years ago. It was that way then. My brother was in "school" 7 years ago.. it was that way then. My youngest sister is STILL in "school" and it is STILL THAT WAY NOW, only becoming increasingly worse and worse.

    What is clear here, however, is that you lack any insight whatsoever into the public education system. It's full of corruption and ridiculous horrible "standardized" curriculum to the brim along with lobbied indoctrination. In short, I will not be totally shocked if within the next few decades the walls in every public school in the USA are covered with corporate advertisements nor if big brother, obama's huge government machine, doesn't eventually, hand-in-hand with his corporate bedbuddies have every say about what is taught, down to the very specifics, in such public schools -- even though the parents themselves pay for their children's education. It's already clear that these schools only buy state mandated, big name publisher books that come in edition X (where X >= 7) which costs $200/ea while a book from 30 years ago, with MORE content, and a better presentation (with real insight!) may cost $20/ea. Why do you think this is fact? Because these books teach things like what students *NEED* to "pass" "standardized tests" -- because a math book, for instance, with only figures where figures make sense and with small borders and lots of words and symbols and numbers.. oh no.. that CANNOT POSSIBLY prepare our students for anything. That's just WRONG! They must be taught to take a word problem, convert it to an english problem, find the nouns and verbs, write them down, draw a picture, then apply 10 formulas they've been forced to memorize rather than conclude via some basic common sense a single linear equation and solve using elementary algebra!

    You, my friend, are one hell of an ignorant person. Wake up and smell the bullshit.

  5. Re:How about rewards? by westlake · · Score: 0, Troll

    Surely the riaa can take a lesson from the war on drugs and get the children to turn in their parents and friends for dmca violations!

    When a kid reports a drug violation in his family it is most likely because he sees someone in danger.

    Metro kids can be 1st to report threats via text

    It is an extension of the national Speak Up campaign begun in other cities in 2002. It will also be initiated in New York City this fall.

    Texters and callers will be able to notify trained counselors about guns in school and other threats of violence, "without being tagged as a snitch," said Julie Young-Burns, Safe and Drug-Free Schools coordinator for the Minneapolis Public Schools.

    Students also may use the tip line to report threats of suicide, domestic violence and substance abuse.

    This is the real world of drug abuse:

    Inside the Levi King Courtroom: Day 9, Police make arrest in shooting that narrowly missed two small children.

    I don't have sympathy to spare for the geek who expects his kid to be a silent accomplice.

    You want your free movie fix?

    The warez game that retails for $60?

    Fine. But don't put the heat on your kids. Don't expect them to take the fall for you.

    If anyone rats you out, it's your tough luck, Charlie.

  6. Re:Okay, You Have the Floor by commodore64_love · · Score: 0, Troll

    >>>While what the RIAA curriculum is teaching might be counter to your moral beliefs (i.e. you may believe that all information should be free and copyright laws are an abomination), unless it is factually inaccurate it doesn't matter.
    >>>

    So you have no objection to RIAA or Coca-cola or the Communists or any other group coming into a school and brainwashing your children to ignore what daddy/mommy taught them (and maybe even turn them in, if they spot mommy/daddy with illegally-copied CDs or other warez).

    Got it.

    It's interesting that people are so casual about giving-up freedom and tying chains around their ankles. Maybe people feel more secure living as Serfs than as liberated individuals.

    --
    "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
  7. Re:Is it like Sex Ed can I opt my Kid Out by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    Really? Seriously? So everybody who doesn't have kids can opt of school taxes too, right?

    Yes.

    Since we shouldn't have to pay for what we're not using? Also, can I opt out of police taxes?

    Yes. You should be able to choose a private security company instead.

    I don't really like laws, and I don't want to pay for their enforcement.

    They will still be enforced. If you violate the law, against someone who does pay police taxes, the police will come and arrest you.

    Oh, if I promise not to drive can I opt out of road taxes?

    Hopefully, some day roads will be funded only by a massive tax on license plates. Roads are very expensive, and I'd prefer not to pay for them, since I don't have a car.

    If you were advocating vouchers to defray the cost of private school, I could at least see where you are coming from, but exemption from certain taxes? How do you know what taxes pay for schools? How do you enforce this? In most districts schools are paid for from a combination of property levees and the general fund (which comes from a combination of things: Sales taxes, fines and fees for minor crimes and government services, other property taxes, state funding, all kinds of things). Many people who send kids to school rent and only pay property taxes indirectly, how do you help them? What about general fund taxes? Can you tell stores to charge 1/2 a point in sales tax less for people who can prove their kids are in private school? Knock $10 off speeding tickets for people who can prove it? What about people without kids at all? Do they get the same treatment? Are you going to raise the taxes on people who choose to use public schools? You'll have to when all this funding dries up. Again how do you handle renters? Keep track of who has kids in Public schools and charge their land lords more property taxes? That'll fly I'm sure.

    Anyone sending kids to a public school would pay extra income tax. There would be a box on the income tax form. Public schools would be funded only from this extra tax. Parents sending their kids to private schools or home schools or people with no kids would not pay this tax.

    This is the way public services work. We all pay some money in and everything the government does with it doesn't necessarily benefit everyone. My taxes go to pay for the road improvements in north Huntsville. I don't go to north Huntsville, but I don't get exempt from the taxes. Next year those same monies might be used to improve a road I do use that some other tax payer never does. I pay for a police department I've never had to call... doesn't mean I'd like to get rid of them, just I haven't personally needed them. Education of children is a service that may not benefit everyone directly (I don't have kids), but every time I go to McDonald's and the kid behind the counter knows how to make change for a ten, I can thank a school somewhere.

    This is the way public services SHOULD work: We pay money in for the things that we get something out of. If it doesn't benefit everyone, why should everyone pay for it? What if I ran the government, and I decided that you should pay some money for a service that gives me a bunch of brand new computer hardware? By your logic, you would be willing to pay for it, because it's just what you do.