How do I get the government to stop helping me?
Friday, December 7th, 2007 01:25 pmIf members of the House Judiciary Committee have their way, there will be far fewer vendors hawking illegal copies of your favorite holiday blockbusters in Times Square this time next year.
Several members from both sides of the aisle – including Chairman John Conyers of Michigan and ranking member Lamar Smith of Texas – on Tuesday introduced a bill, H.R. 4279, that would further crack down on intellectual property violations, and create several new government positions with the power to enforce the new law.
Here's the rest of the story, including such gems as:
A provision in the bill allows the government to seize "any property used, or intended to be used, to commit or facilitate the commission of a violation … that is owned or predominantly controlled by the violator or by a person conspiring with or aiding and abetting the violator in committing the violation."
A spokeswoman for the Judiciary Committee said she was looking into whether that would allow authorities to seize a family's computer in a download case.
But, hey, the RIAA loves this thing, so it must be Good, right?
Right?
Several members from both sides of the aisle – including Chairman John Conyers of Michigan and ranking member Lamar Smith of Texas – on Tuesday introduced a bill, H.R. 4279, that would further crack down on intellectual property violations, and create several new government positions with the power to enforce the new law.
Here's the rest of the story, including such gems as:
A provision in the bill allows the government to seize "any property used, or intended to be used, to commit or facilitate the commission of a violation … that is owned or predominantly controlled by the violator or by a person conspiring with or aiding and abetting the violator in committing the violation."
A spokeswoman for the Judiciary Committee said she was looking into whether that would allow authorities to seize a family's computer in a download case.
But, hey, the RIAA loves this thing, so it must be Good, right?
Right?