Gonzales proposes new crime: 'Attempted' copyright infringement

[FourScore]

"Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is pressing the U.S. Congress to enact a sweeping intellectual-property bill that would increase criminal penalties for copyright infringement, including "attempts" to commit piracy...

...The Bush administration is throwing its support behind a proposal called the Intellectual Property Protection Act of 2007, which is likely to receive the enthusiastic support of the movie and music industries, and would represent the most dramatic rewrite of copyright law since a 2005 measure dealing with prerelease piracy..."

SNIP

* Criminalize "attempting" to infringe copyright.

* Create a new crime of life imprisonment for using pirated software.

* Permit more wiretaps for piracy investigations.

* Allow computers to be seized more readily.

* Increase penalties for violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act's anticircumvention regulations.

* Add penalties for "intended" copyright crimes.

* Require Homeland Security to alert the Recording Industry Association of America.

http://news.com.com/8301-10784_3-9719339-7.html

[Az]

1. How dare any human dare infringe upon a corporation

We shall make those pitiful humans pay.

[TheWatcher]

2. The Burgeoning Police State Continues.

It's a pretty simple question America.....

Is this truly the way you want to live your lives?

Honestly?

You will, and you will continue to be subjected to nonsense like this, and it will continue to get worse, and worse, and worse.

Until they are stopped.

The only bigger threat than the people who are in charge is the rest of the population, who cannot seem to muster the courage to inform their would be masters, that enough is indeed, enough.

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Mixed feelings here

as a PRODUCER of Popular culture I can see why this is needed (at least some of them)'

On the other... bush is proposing it... there is more than meets the eye

And of coruse jail for software, what they are going to place the whole of China and other major areas of the world behind bars?

For crying out loud one reason people feel they need to do that is the cost fo the damn software (why I use Linux in many cases)... and Microsoft wants to crush Linux right at the moment

[lovuian]

5. so they can control all programs and media

noone will be able to do anything for fear of jail time

[nadinbrzezinski]

8. I know what they are tyrying to do

but I fear a revolt, it is coming, serious... and that day these assholes will be sorry

[lovuian]

4. well that is the death sentence to You Tube

and all other media

lets put everybody in America in prison meanwhile China can do what they want

[Phredicles]

6. My first reaction is, No way could Gonzalez of all people get such a

thing passed.

But I've learned never to underestimate the dicklessness of our party.:banghead:

[illinoisprogressive]

7. And make goosestepping manditory

[Selatius]

9. This is just a form of corporate welfare and another example of capitalism in action.

This is a prime example of corporate entities lobbying the government for protections against people who are chaffing at their antiquated system of control and profit generation. We know that for somebody to continue to generate a profit off a valued resource, he must maintain control of that resource by any means necessary up to and including the use of state force because if people could get at that resource from a position where one doesn't have to pay a social rent to the owner, then they won't pay the rent.

The DMCA was signed into law by Bill Clinton, and I doubt Bush will be any different with the IPPA of 2007. The only difference is Congress is Democratic and the White House is Republican instead of the reverse.

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. Fascism I get tired of pointing this out

but this is fascism in action

[Selatius]

11. At this point, I don't think it's possible to deny that capitalism led to fascism in America.

Open up any free market and let the competitors come. In the end, one or a few companies will dominate the market, and they will use their wealth to lobby government seeking subsidies, preferential treatment, and barriers against would-be competitors coming into the market. Paradoxically, it is supposed to be the government that guarantees the functioning of the market.

[nadinbrzezinski]

12. perhaps it is me

but when I think of what Marx defined as Capitalism, it is so different from what Smith forewaw

After all Smith believed in tarifs and hated monopolies...

But in its mature form, what Marx defined as capitalism might be fascsim, and this is NOT the first time in US history, the 1880s have way, WAAAY too many paralels

[Occulus]

13. First, the RIAA does not deserve to be included as a beneficiary to legislation

Second, I think I'd like to illustrate the sort of content that could become illegal:

The ever-so-beloved DeCSS Haiku Epic Poem

The song Oh Nine, Eff Nine

In other words, two legitimate works of art which are in theory protected un the First Amendment. Parse that, and get back to me.

x(

I'll be adding what I think in a little bit. It's my own work of art in the fight to stop the mafiAA.

Made with Blender, no less. Gimme a few here, I'll be back....

edit: render now. Goodness, Blender is cool. Get it at www.blender.org. It's small. You''l have fun with it.

Also, while you're at it, grab the yafray rendering engine: www.yafray.org

edit #2: nevermind. I'll post what I want to tomorrow. It's going to take too long to even render the single frame I want to render. It's worth it- don't get me wrong- and this video proves Blender is capable of absolutely incredible effects for a free 3D application], but it's just going to take too long to post here on this thread tonight.

I'll let it bake while I sleep, and post the picture tomorrow.

[aquart]

14. So wife beating gets less time than using bootleg Photoshop?

I want billboards with the name of any ass who votes for this crap.

[nadinbrzezinski]

15. or worst

the GIMP

If yuo know the history of the program, you know why I wrote this

[JCMach1]

16. Why don't we just end proprietary property PERIOD!!!

AT all levels... Music, video, writings, software, etc.

[nadinbrzezinski]

17. Am afraid we are moving towards that

de facto....

if not yet de jure

That is why they are trying so hard to stop it

[Donald Ian Rankin]

23. Because it would massively stult your artistic and scientific output.

If you don't want to limit creating and discovering things to people who are making a living some other way and only doing it as a hobby, you need copyright laws to enable people to make a living by doing so.

[entanglement]

18. This is like the DMCA on steroids n/t

[Loge23]

19. Destroy=protects

a la Vietnam: In order to protect a free market economy, they will destroy the free market economy.
I recently heard a local (for me) story about a successful "legal" campaign by a huge multi-store grocer in preventing a warehouse-club chain from building nearby one of their stores.
Another bug-a-boo for me is non-compete "agreements" between an employer and employee. Will the company pay the salary of the employee in a separation until the damn thing expires??
Now, in order to prevent "piracy" they will arrest for even thinking about it!

[panzerfaust]

20. Thoughtcrime, crimethink, thinkpol

This is a wonderful proposal from a great legal mind: LIFE imprisonment for some users of pirated software; punishment of "intended crimes", more wiretaps, property siezure ... We continue on course to Oceania.

"Thoughtcrime does not entail death: thoughtcrime is death."
Winston Smith

"They Hate US for our Freedom(TM)" W

[mainegreen]

21. There should be a law against passing dumb ass laws.

It'll be a one strike law, and the punishment will be death by weasel.

[FourScore]

24. LOL

[Donald Ian Rankin]

22. Isn't attempted copyright infringement already illegal? It certainly ought to be.

My belief is that under American law copyright infringement is a crime, and attempting to commit a crime is itself a criminal act, so attempted copyright infringment is already a crime.

Either way, it certainly ought to be - copyright laws are vital to artistic and scientific endeavour, and failure ought not to be a mitigating circumstance for criminal behaviour.