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ASCAP Declares War On Free Culture, EFF
Andorin writes "According to Drew Wilson at ZeroPaid and Cory Doctorow, the ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers), a US organization that aims to collect royalties for its members for the use of their copyrighted works, has begun soliciting donations to fight key organizations of the free culture movement, such as Creative Commons, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and Public Knowledge. According to a letter received by ASCAP member Mike Rugnetta, 'Many forces including Creative Commons, Public Knowledge, Electronic Frontier Foundation and technology companies with deep pockets are mobilizing to promote "Copyleft" in order to undermine our "Copyright." They say they are advocates of consumer rights, but the truth is these groups simply do not want to pay for the use of our music. Their mission is to spread the word that our music should be free.' (Part 1 and part 2 of the letter.) The collecting agency is asking that its professional members donate to its Legislative Fund for the Arts, which appears to be a lobbying campaign meant to convince Congress that artists should not have the choice of licensing their works under a copyleft license."
I'm pretty sure that protecting your God-given rights to the works you've created precludes anyone else from releasing works under a free license. People who are releasing their works under a Creative Commons are stealing from the real artists, who work so hard to earn a living. They just want to get stuff for free. Good to see ASCAP has understood this simple fact.
Can we faux with you?
Help protect civil rights from abuse by the TSA - visit TSA News Blog.
http://www.tsanewsblog.com
What part of 'culture war' didn't you hippies understand?
We've got the laws, we own your judges and politicians -why did you naive fools ever believe that the outcome would be anything else?
We will not rest until the last filesharer is strangled with the intestines of the last programmer.
it's like telling a joke! We do it to put smiles on peoples faces. I don't ask for a dollar every time I tell a joke to someone.
Well I do!
Why did the parrot wear a raincoat?
He wanted to be polyunsaturated
Anybody laughing at that owes me a dollar!
"Never let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right" - Salvor Hardin
To see the result of this equation and the totally new mathematics that were behind creating and proving it, I must as per law charge you $10.
What a bunch of asshats.
That's ass-CAPS... :)
Bow-ties are cool.
Shame it's Patent Pending.
"Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
16 bits.
They can pry the Creative Commons from my cold dead fingers
"Your proposal is acceptable."
-FBI Copyright Enforcement Special Weapons & Tactics Division
Strat
Progressivism (aka US 'Liberalism'): Ideas so good they need a police/surveillance-state to enforce.
Sarcasm detector...that's a useful invention
It does a good job of detecting an absence of sarcasm, giving a zero in such situations, but the sarcasm readout indicator gets sarcastic itself, giving a sarcastic zero when there is sarcasm. I'm beginning to think it may actually be just a "zero" sticker.
I have one, but it must be broken. Its indicator never turns off.
Take it offline, that should help normalize its readings.
Anything can be found funny, from a certain point of view.
Plus hundreds of artists trying to get known.
Yes, unlike Helen Austin, Poko Lambro, Lizzie Hibbert and Kina Grannis who are already household names. ;)
MPEG-LA beat ASCAP to the punch.. ASCAP will just have to buy up a bunch of patents. That should cover their bases
For justice, we must go to Don Corleone
Money, money, money, more people should give me more money.
I don't owe any author any amount of money, least of one of some obsolete technical manuals. Being an author usually means you've decided you have something worth while to GIVE to society. Plus you stock-pile all your cds and your parking receipts in the garage. Somehow I can't see you running around town, dodging the feds with Abbie Hoffman. Maybe ircing with Heinlein.
The American Society of Prostitutes has begun soliciting donations to fight key organizations of the free love movement, such as Marriage, Girlfriends and Fuck Buddies. According to a letter received by ASOP member Lisa Rugnetta, 'Many forces including the Marriage, Girlfriends and Fuck Buddies with deep pockets are mobilizing to promote "Loveleft" in order to undermine our "Loveright." They say they are advocates of consumer love, but the truth is these groups simply do not want to pay for the use of our services. Their mission is to spread the word that love should be free.'
http://www.mueller-public.de - My site http://www.anr-institute.com/ - Advanced Natural Research Institute