ACTA and Internet Censorship

[Emong]

Not to get offtopic too much so I'll just say:

pfff..such a puritan

[KingRoyMustang]

...I should point out that I have my share of issues with Occupy also. Although most of them are the same issues as that poster that I jumped on - a lot of sloganization and hyperbole as opposed to addressing the central issues. The '99%' slogan, if anything, probably cost the Occupy movement my support (not that anyone is crying over it, I guess). I'm still sympathetic, but I would be more so if it was aimed at the consumer lifestyle lived by far, far more than 1% of people which is the real problem.

A good man tried to do that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbJ-GpE_EEQ
But the American people didn't like it and elected greedy Ronald Reagan.

[Otohiko]

pfff..such a puritan

Heeeey, don't go pfffing me.

What's the point of having principles if you're not gonna follow through with them, anyway? Good critical thinking cuts both ways, and using it selectively is what politicians do well. What politicians also do well is sloganize, and that is something I'm hypersensitive to, regardless of where it comes from. Bourdieu's perspective on sloganization and what it does in terms of delegation of power might be useful here. When you sell out to slogans - particularly those based on misleading premises - you're delegating your right to think and speak to other people, and falling into terministic screens that put the world into convenient boxes that reflect little of the messy, inconvenient reality of things.

But back to topic, what happened with ACTA is a huge shame. I just wish that the whole Megaupload thing - which is messy, problematic, and only tangentially related here - didn't enter the discussion. IMO that's a great decoy to keep the debate away from the real issues here.

[NotFound404]

^ I don't think its wrong that company's want what they are legally entitled too. If I was an artist with my work being put out all over the place I would want it stopped too.

I don't think so, if you are an artist you don't have more rights about your work than others, because that's what exactly censorship is. I could use your stuff to say that it's good or it's bad, I could use it to create something different, Andy Warhol did not pay Coca Cola nor Mao Tse-Tung however it cannot be denied that he is the original creator of his works.

If you agree that the Internet is a mean to spread information, whatever they may be, you should also accept the fact that someone can use your material in a way that you do not like.
Obviously you should be the only one who earns money with it, but this is false too. The only one who really earns money with your art is your publisher, often imposing clear limits to it. If you want my opinion, what they're trying to do with all SOPA, PIPA, ACTA etc is bring back people where they can control them, if you want news read my newspaper or watch my Tv, if you want a book go to a bookstore and buy what I'll make you find on the shelves and so on, for movies and other stuff. What we're really seeing is a corporation that breaks the competitors taking advantage of the legal limits of copyright laws, no one would accuse the owner of a car-rent, because some of his cars have been used in a robbery, but it's acceptable that they can close the file-hosting sites because the way users make use of them.

[Emong]

I certainly did not say that

[chronosek]

In my country is Zaiks company for protect artists rights ... And they get even 3% from selling any data carriers, artist get paid even if they not crated anything within 30 years. But not every artist can get to Zaiks. So it is like a elite, and all rights protect only elite ... And if ACTA will be signed that company will have more rights , not artists.
But ACTA is not only for music and video, it is for all cargo, for me it is like a tool for big companies to destruction of competition. Like in SuperBowl, FBI closed 300 sites cause of only suspection ... That 300 sites was typed by TV company what wanted streaming exclusivness. 70 spots for several advert each about 3,5 mln $ ..... And that services even if legal they have to prove innocence and with that time they lose income from SuperBowl ... So it is tool for companies to destroy others ... And it is not only internet , all cargos can be banned on border... It lokks like America wants to close china market in EU, or give new market for companies what do only courts lawsuit. They want to be pay for all.
And government will sign, cause they will get surveillance and censorship under the guise of caring about the rights of authors.

For me rights of authors grow to much - in my country artist have rights to 70 years after death, and if he sell rights to Zaiks , rights never ends ....
It is good to be paid for what they do, but that should not be reason for consolidation companies rights.
Btw , in 2003 they discovered how to produce free energy with magnetic engine ... Patent have some oil company and project is closed deep in the drawer....

[aesling]

Btw , in 2003 they discovered how to produce free energy with magnetic engine ... Patent have some oil company and project is closed deep in the drawer....

[chronosek]

Hmm I wonder, are some vids or mep's by amvmakers about stop acta? It is not ratified yet.

( BTW , some music for Polish ppl : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hndbBZhLhS0 )