[Ti] [OT} All this 'anti-piracy' stuff

[Roger Snyder]

On 5/3/03 22:54, "Steve Wozniak" wrote:

> At 5:09 PM -0400 2003.05.03, b wrote:
> 
>> I cannot speak for those outside America, but here, in that part of the US
>> where we take the Constitution seriously, it is our duty to disobey the
>> 'convention' of the latest law, when it is morally wrong to obey blindly. Not
>> a 'right', a duty. ... [snipped]....  But where collusion exists between the
>> 9th circuit, the Supreme Court, regulators in the bureaucratic Gov't, the
>> bought-and-paid-for-Congress, and Industry, well, the table is set for civil
>> disobedience.
> 
> People who practice civil disobedience do so openly and expect to pay fines as
> the price charged by society for those infractions. In other words, it's a
> contractual trade. Parking overtime falls into this category. You can say
> "I'll pay the $25 this time." The equivalent would be to openly call to the
> attention of the record companies that you steal their product, and tell them
> why they should be paying you for it, and take the consequences.

    I just got to this topic, and I see it has gotten hot and heavy in
places. (And I know I'm going farther off topic here in some ways, but it is
very important to me.)

    I've done a number of nonviolent Civil Disobediences, studied CD, and
I've held training sessions for CD participants, and while I'm not sure
parking overtime is usually done as a CD, :) I'm glad Steve clarified Civil
Disobedience as being open and expecting consequences (though I always ask
the police to join rather than arrest, and do appeal to judges also).

    There is a statement of conscious in a CD. One problem we always have
with lawyers who help us, is that they are trained to get people off in any
(legal) way possible, and we did not want to get off by any means. We want
to change the system, not get away with it.

    Stealing music in secret is hoping _you_ don't get caught, not trying to
change that system.

    This is similar to the boycott idea raised elsewhere on this list.
Getting masses of people to refuse to buy products, has and will result in
change, but of course only if done openly.

    I admit I believe in the tactic of CD to work against injustices, and
while I see the problem of corporations, I don't see the price of music as
the major injustice today. However, I would certainly respect those that
used the tactic of nonviolence Civil Disobedience to make changes in that.

-- Roger