The RIAA Sucks.

[fafalone]

In the latest atrocity, the RIAA busted a piracy ring that had "the equivalent of" 421 CD burners. In reality, there were actually only 156 burners, however the RIAA declared that fast burners, up to 40x here, counted as multiple burners.

What's even worse, the raid was conducted by RIAA investigators and Secret Service agent. So, the RIAA now has police power and controls a agency in the government whose role is supposed to be to protect high ranking politicians.

 

In other RIAA news, Hillary Rosen (CEO) lost a debate about P2P networks being evil in the Oxford Union, a debate club for high ranking politicians. Lost is an understatement, the vote was 256-72.

 

Add this to all the previous things... such as endless lawsuits against P2P networks, lobbying Congress for the right to legally DoS the computers of MP3 sharers, their piss-poor treatment of the artists they're claiming to be protecting (if the artists aren't making money, it's because of the disproportionately large chunk you take), and especially it's ordering the Navy to confiscate computers of cadets sharing MP3s-- a blatant act of subordination to a large company BY THE UNITED STATES MILITARY WHICH DISGRACES OUR ARMED FORCES, ... and we get one evil megacorporation that basically has the powers of all the branches of the government.

[fafalone]

Ok so this isn't exactly science news, but it affects every freedom loving American (if you don't live in the US, it's only a matter of time before the long, oppressive arm of the RIAA smacks down your country). Story is of interest to our audience.

 

Plus I'm an admin, I can post whatever I want

[Radical Edward]

well this is pretty interesting. As your friendly Johnny Foreigner (no, I don't come from a country called England where yearly we stone a family to death ) sadly alot of the time America doesn't really look like such a good place. I've never had a conversation about this kind of thing with any intelligent, non extreme right wing budding NRA member, but when it comes to 'freedom' the US often seems to be one of the most un-free western countries around. It is not so much the fundamental day-to-day things that I am really talking about here, but the government and also the media. A prime example of this sort of this thing is Michael Moore's recent book, 'Stupid White Men' which is a fascinating insight into why the US Government (regardless of who is actually in charge, I would suspect) sucks, and corporations have too much power, not to mention Bush's proposed all seeing eye, that would watch over your bank accounts, transactions, movements and very existances. Now I'm not getting at the American people, so please don't think I am, and nor am I saying that my, or for that matter, any other country is better. the US has alot of good stuff going for it, but the sort of thing that is mentioned in the leader to this article, and alot of the stuff that I have read, concerns me greatly when this is the country that is in effect the leader of the free world.

If anyone wants to discuss this, I'd like that, as I say, it's not a conversation I've had with an intelligent American.

[fafalone]

In one of the greater acts of oppression that the US government has perpetrated, FoxNews was set up to do a story outlining how Israeli companies (both private and ones with ties to the Israeli government) basically run our domestic intelligence operations. Makes you stop and reconsider our stance over there. Just be the report was about to air, the government intervened and stopped it from being aired; however the report leaked out into the hands of people like me: http://fafalone.hypermart.net/israel.txt

[Radical Edward]

this is really shocking... someone should do some research into how much of this goes on, and write a book on it...

[fafalone]

Now the RIAA wants to charge ISPs for people using P2P, rofl. So now all the users will have to pick up the increase for those of us who do use it.

 

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=582&e=3&cid=582&u=/nm/20030118/wr_nm/tech_internet_music_dc