Opinion Page
To the RIAA: Can you hear me now? Verizon, in what is even better than pure publicity, is challenging the subpoenas issued by clerks in D.C. The reason? The DCMA of 1998 allowed the RIAA to go to a D.C. court and get a clerk to sign off on subpoenas, without going to a judge, or getting clearance from a judge that this didn't violate people's rights to privacy. This means that you can live in Georgia, use a Georgia company for your ISP, and they can go to a DC clerk and get the right to access your identity without the benefit of a judge. This is the type of crap that people like to pin on Ashcroft and his "USA Patriot [missile] Act". The best part was that it was Clinton, not Bush, who signed this into law. And the same people who gave us this Orwellian nightmare now want to put a chip in your computer that will automatically delete any software that Microsoft and/or another vendor deem to be not licensed, without telling you and without your permission. The criteria are determined by the vendors, and you are not notified in advance. Fritz Hollings is the main proponent of this intrusion, and they have nicknamed the technology the "Fritz chip" in his honor.
Why should you care? After all, you obey every law, all of your software is licensed, and you never speed. Well, it's not this particular law that you need to be worried about. However, it is the EFFECT of this law that should worry you. Once you let the government control the contents of your PC, there is no limit to what they can determine "necessary" to keep you in legal compliance. For example, in Georgia they wanted to pass a law that would make it a driving offense for anyone to ride in an automobile without wearing a seatbelt. Privacy advocates warned that this was an intrusion on basic personal rights. Government officials, seeking to soften the blow, promised to keep it as a "secondary offense" only, meaning that you couldn't be stopped for not wearing your seatbelt, but if they stopped you for something else, they could write you a ticket for the seatbelt also. Cops immediately began pulling people over for things they never used to, like failing to use a turn signal, (something that BMW owners can't seem to figure out) and then they'd ticket you for not wearing your seatbelt. So, people were a little more cautious. Then, the government re-negged on their promise and change the law so that it was a primary offense, and now they can pull you over for not wearing your seatbelt. Why is this a big deal? After all, you should wear your seatbelt. Well, in Georgia, your car is considered an extension of your home, and in Georgia your home is your castle. That's why it's fully legal to carry an loaded weapon in the console next to your seat (think about that when you go to car-jack someone in Georgia). Well, if the government can regulate your behavior within your car, they can legislate any changes they want to your behavior.
Another question in the RIAA case. Whether or not the RIAA are major ass-clowns, I'm more interested in the settlement for $2000 with the parents of a 12-year-old girl who lived in public housing. I'm curious about a few things. Number one, did the parents know the girl was breaking the law on their computer? Did they act to stop her? How could people living in TAXPAYER-FUNDED housing afford a $2000 settlement? If they had $2000, why are WE paying their rent? Even more to the point, if they can afforda computer, why the FUCK are we paying their rent? I say we kick their sorry asses to the curb. Let them get an apartment like the rest of us. If they can't afford a computer, tough shit. There's no right in the country to a computer. Sorry. There's no right to healthcare paid for by someone else, either. If you are too lazy and/or unmotivated and/or stupid to make enough money to pay for your own rent, you shouldn't own a computer. And you should be more careful than the rest of us, and avoid needless injuries. There's no excuse for anyone in this country to go without housing. Well, there's one - they're lazy.
Previous day's
rant
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