Obama Admin's "thought crime" legislation (searching for torrents = "imminent infringement")

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Obama Administration Announces Massive Piracy Crackdown
Jason Mick (Blog) - June 23, 2010 10:37 AM



"It's smash and grab, no different than a guy walking down Fifth Avenue and smashing the window at Tiffany's and reaching in and grabbing what's in the window." -- U.S. VP Joe Biden

While they may never be able to truly defeat piracy and drive it from the lurking depths of the internet, copyright protection attack-dog organizations like the RIAA and MPAA have long dreamed of the day when they would no longer have to pay for their own copyright enforcement. Now that dream is on the verge of coming true, thanks to the Obama administration.

After countless lobbyist dollars from the music and film industry and a brief "public review", the administration rolled out its vision to fight piracy yesterday afternoon. U.S. Vice President Joe Biden -- whose blunt speech has sometime left him in trouble -- did not mince words.

He states, "This is theft, clear and simple. It's smash and grab, no different than a guy walking down Fifth Avenue and smashing the window at Tiffany's and reaching in and grabbing what's in the window."


***

Such efforts have shown mild success. After lots of threats against the Swedish government by the U.S., the European Union nation finally tried admins with the nation's largest torrent site The Pirate Bay last year and found them guilty. The trial was later exposed to be a perversion of the justice system, with the judge who gave the verdict have multiple ties to copyright protection organizations. The verdict -- $3M USD in damages and a year of hard prison time for the admins -- is currently being appealed.

The White House's vision is perhaps a prelude to the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, which will go before Congress later this year. The bill would make P2P or BitTorrent client development a criminal offense if the distributed software was used for infringement. It also implements an interesting provision called "imminent infringement", which allows the government to charge people who they think might be about to infringe with a civil offense (for example if you searched "torrent daft punk"). This is among the first official "thought crime" provisions to be proposed by the U.S. government. The bill also makes it a criminal offense to bypass DRM.

Ultimately, it should be interesting to see how American taxpayers react to President Obama's decision to spend their money on efforts to prosecute them and try to choke out piracy at home and abroad, particularly when the current evidence is inconclusive of its effects. One thing's for sure, though. Top politicians on both sides of the aisle are firmly behind the music and movie industry anti-piracy and money-collection efforts.

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=18815

[FiveGoodMen]

1. Shocked! Shocked, I tell you...

(no, not really)

[Amerigo Vespucci]

2. If Lieberman's saying we need to follow China's example on regulating the Web...

...this kind of thing is right in alignment. Scary stuff. We're in two wars and have a crap economy but let's go after that kid down the street who's looking for Pantera MP3s.

[FiveGoodMen]

17. Hadn't read about that Lieberman comment

God, what a fascist asshole.

[Uncle Joe]

20. Here is the video.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x478075

[DJ13]

3. Every day they seem to take another step towards being a Republican admin

[Bradical79]

4. Wow

What a horrible piece of legislation.

[frylock]

5. fuck. this. shit.

[kenny blankenship]

6. I wouldn't DREAM of comparing thought crime legislation to the Bush years

Because if thoughts like that crept into my dreams, I could wind up in trouble.

[Oregone]

7. "no different than a guy walking down Fifth Avenue and smashing the window at Tiffany's and..."

EXCEPT....

1.) Actual damage is caused by the window being broken

2.) Actual tangible merchandise is taken, that cannot otherwise be sold

When a movie is replicated over the internet, nothing is damaged and nothing is taken that could be sold.

So...it is *different*. Therefore, this is a lie.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

11. Well said.

[Dr. Strange]

12. I don't think it's a lie.

I just think Biden is really ignorant about what's involved in file-sharing. I get the impression that he made that remark off-the-cuff (as opposed to reading it from a prepared speech).

[corpseratemedia]

8. jobs......hello???...how about funding that program to

end chronic homelessness that this admin just came out with?

or maybe ending the wars....??

everybody should start a google bomb of "torrent daft punk"

[Catherina]

9. But when Wall Street holds an entire nation hostage by trashing pension funds

until we fork over billions that's not theft?

Bite me.

[SunnySong]

10. Does Joe Biden read his speeches before he gives them?

Honestly this is so out of touch and over the top it boggles the mind.

Joe Biden is America's answer to Michael Atkinson.


What a tosser.

[SunnySong]

13. This isn't the only Obama administration copyright crackdown.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=105&topic_id=9408973&mesg_id=9408973

[Dawson Leery]

14. Never cared for the co-author of the Iraq War Resolution.

Biden an authoritarian streak that is all too similar to his predecessor.

[Riftaxe]

15. Absolutely ludicrous!

The White House's vision is perhaps a prelude to the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, which will go before Congress later this year. The bill would make P2P or BitTorrent client development a criminal offense if the distributed software was used for infringement. It also implements an interesting provision called "imminent infringement", which allows the government to charge people who they think might be about to infringe with a civil offense (for example if you searched "torrent daft punk"). This is among the first official "thought crime" provisions to be proposed by the U.S. government. The bill also makes it a criminal offense to bypass DRM.

If this is truly the White House's Vision, it would appear that they would have arrested Jimmy Carter for adultery, just for his "I've looked at on lot of women with lust" comment.

Perhaps they just need a new optometrist? :spank:

[izquierdista]

16. Won't Joe be surprised

When no matter how much you grab out of the window, it is still there for you to grab again, and for your friend to grab, and for anyone else walking by to grab -- and when Tiffany's opens the next morning, it is still there, right where they left it.

[starroute]

18. So if you work to develop a file-sharing program...

... and just one person uses it to download a pirated item, they can throw you in jail?

And how is this different from throwing gun manufacturers or the makers of lock picks in jail as a result of their products being used to commit a crime?

For that matter, is anyone concerned that this would outlaw all P2P or torrent clients, thereby either making all legitimate uses impossible or handing yet another emerging industry over to non-American sources?

There is just so much wrong with this approach that it's not even possible to imagine it being constitutional -- at least for values of "constitutional" that don't depend on the current Supreme Court.

[Oregone]

21. How about if you develop the networks the file-sharers use?

Oh no....thats big money! We can't prosecute the huge corporations that dole so much out in donations.

[Odin2005]

19. The Corporatist Fascists don't like the free flow of information.

Shame on you, Mr. President.

[KonaKane]

22. They better read the provisions against Bills of Attainder

before they get behind something like this. It will come to no good.

[w4rma]

23. Very. Very. Very. Bad. This crap needs to be fought tooth and nail and the supporters shamed. (nt)

[jp11]

24. Well that's one way to lose even more votes.

Give the corporations what they want. CHECK

For anyone that might wonder or care I DO HATE AMERICA, everyday seems to bring more reasons why we suck, our government sucks and few if any of our officials give a damn.

[Bluebear]

25. If you listened closely candidate Obama NEVER said he wouldn't do this.

:cry:

[hobbit709]

26. I think I'll preface all searches with

"The Government thought police suck"

[Poll_Blind]

27. Makes the DCMA look like a walk in the park. n/t

PB

[Junkdrawer]

28. Go to Google and type in "pink floyd mp3"....

Fourth on the list of suggested searches is "pink floyd mp3 torrent".

So does that make Google a thought crime accomplice? Is it entrapment?

[jp11]

29. If it suggets the torrent then yes I think it is.

[boppers]

30. More "BLAME OBAMA!" fail.

ACTA isn't Obama. Learn to blame the right people, lest you look easily misled.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Counterfeiting_Trade_Agreement

[Junkdrawer]

31. Good to know that Obama opposes this. I wouldn't have guessed that from what Biden said....

Have a link showing Obama's opposition.

[boppers]

33. I wasn't the one making a blatantly false assertion.

...and I already provided a link refuting it.

[Junkdrawer]

35. If Obama doesn't oppose ACTA when it is presented to Congress...

then Obama supports Thought Crime enforcement. Obama is President. What he does and doesn't do matters. Just "sitting it out" is not an option.

[boppers]

38. Planning a murder: Thoughtcrime. Hate crime law: Thoughtcrime.

Obama already supports thoughtcrime law.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

32. NO, DailyTech's Jason Mick...the author of the piece...is the one you should be lecturing

Obama Administration Announces Massive Piracy Crackdown
Jason Mick (Blog) - June 23, 2010 10:37 AM

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=18815

And the day I give a flying fuck about how I "look" to you, look up in the air for the flying pigs.

Have a nice day, and bye now.

[boppers]

34. That's not the headline you used in the OP.

See what happens when you combine different factual pieces of information and assume they're related?

[jp11]

36. I might be wrong but I think you jumped the gun.

"The White House's vision is perhaps a prelude to the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, which will go before Congress later this year. The bill would make P2P or BitTorrent client development a criminal offense if the distributed software was used for infringement. "

The article talks about the WH's vision not the ACTA, which I don't believe has the 'thought police' aspect in it, I might be wrong as I haven't read it and searching it briefly I didn't find that.

[boppers]

37. immanent infringement is ACTA. "perhaps a prelude" does not mean Obama has thought police

This is how Faux fools people, by, say, talking about how Saddam and Osama might be somehow connected.

Say it enough and people start making the connection as if it was factual, or real.

[girl gone mad]

39. I'd like to believe you..

but you defend every single move this administration makes, which infers bias.

[boppers]

40. You should see me on a net neutrality thread, then.

A little variety is alway nice.

:evilgrin:

[JoeyT]

41. So who wants to bet they don't have any trouble getting THIS through.

Somehow the bills that help corporations at the expense of people never have any trouble sailing through.

[Poll_Blind]

42. +1 Indeed!

PB