FC: New site launches to oppose Rep. Berman's anti-P2P bill

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

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Date: Wed, 04 Sep 2002 22:49:32 -0400
From: Holympus () aol com
To: declan () well com
Subject: Tell Rep. Berman to Respond to This: www.opposesection514.com

Declan,

I am responding on behalf of the people to the slew of bad legislation 
Congress has recently presented, specifically H.R. 5211, the so-called P2P 
Privacy Prevention Act. Since Representative Berman's "Frequently Asked 
Questions about the P2P Piracy Prevention Act" attempts to create 
misimpressions about the bill among the people, I ask that you extend me 
the customary courtesy of the freedom to respond...a freedom that Rep. 
Berman, it seems, would like to see taken away from me.  I welcome all 
discourse on this issue--feel free to show my email address.

Stephen Conn
A concerned but well spoken and somewhat knowledgeable kid

What appears below is an excerpt from my new website, 
www.opposesection514.com.  If you like what you read please give it a look 
and consider emailing your Representative the form letter I provide at the 
bottom of the page.  Thank you very much for your time.

rep. howard berman maintains a page of frequently asked questions about 
H.R. 5211 on his website. A question and his response appear below:

"Does the P2P Piracy Prevention Act authorize copyright owners to do 
illegal things that no one else can do?

H.R. 5211 simply ensures the law treats copyright owners just like other 
property owners by correcting an unfair and unintentional byproduct of 
current law. Satellite companies face no liability when they use electronic 
countermeasures to stop the pirating of their signals and programming. 
Banks face no liability when they repossess automobiles for delinquent loan 
payments. A bicycle owner faces no liability for grabbing his bike from a 
thief’s yard. A victim of a pickpocket faces no liability for tackling 
and taking back his wallet from the pickpocket. Similarly, copyright owners 
should face no liability for stopping the online theft of their copyrighted 
works."

Representative Berman cites various actions that he feels are analagous to 
those that H.R. 5211 would permit. In each of these analogies, it is clear 
that one party has committed a crime. What Representative Berman has 
apparently forgotten is that H.R. 5211 does not require that a crime be 
committed by a so-called "file trader" for a copyright holder to place 
malicious files on the file trader's computer. The file trader could be 
using his or her files completely within his or her rights of fair use. The 
copyright holder need not present any evidence that his or her copyright 
has been violated. Here is a truly analogous situation: a record store is 
shut down because their placement of CDs around the store could allow a 
criminal to steal a CD, thus violating an artist's copyright.

Head to www.opposesection514.com now.  Thanks.




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