Has America had a belly full of Orrin Hatch and his agenda?

GristyMcFisty used our news submit to tell us that people are finally waking up and smelling the coffee in the good old USA. Sen. Hatch has his Induce Act on the front burner and it stinks to high heaven. Maybe it was the fake lawsuit written by the EFF that shows iPods could be outlawed with this piece of legal code, if it becomes law. Who knows. Who cares, just write your representitives now! Unless you want a few in the government to pass this unfavorable legislation for their lobbyist pals. Here is what the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) says about this latest legal wrangling from Hatch.

The Induce Act: Innovation Under Attack

Senator Orrin Hatch's new Inducing Infringement of Copyright Act (S.2560, Induce Act) would make it a crime to aid, abet, or induce copyright infringement. He want us all to think that the Induce Act is no big deal and that it only targets "the bad guys" while leaving "the good guys" alone. He says that it doesn't change the law; it just clarifies it.

He's wrong.

Right now, under the Supreme Court's ruling in Sony v. Universal (the Betamax VCR case), devices like the iPod and CD burners are 100% legal -- not because they aren't sometimes used for infringement, but because they also have legitimate uses. The Court in Sony called these "substantial non-infringing uses." This has been the rule in the technology sector for the last 20 years. Billions of dollars and thousands of jobs have depended on it. Industries have blossomed under it. But the Induce Act would end that era of innovation. Don't let this happen on your watch - tell your Senators to fight the Induce Act.

Have you faxed your Senator yet? The opposition to Senator Hatch"s "Induce" Act may have got off to a spluttering start, but is now hitting its stride. Hatch wants to introduce a new crime of "inducement" to infringe a copyrighted work in order to close down the P2P networks. The RIAA says it isn"t designed to target manufacturers - but no one believes them.The Consumers Union, publishers of Consumer Reports has produced a very articulate sample letter to your Senator, urging Congress debate the issue. A copy can be found here . A petition by Mac fans to "Save the iPod" has also produced a sample fax, and according to the website over 2,500 have been sent.

If you oppose the course that Sen. Hatch is attempting to set for the citizens of the United States, then take a few minutes and visit the EFF, send your
representitve an email to voice your stance. We can't just set around and
complain, we have to do something and we have to do it now. Don't let this
momentum fade. We need to be able and turn on the news and see reprorts of a
public outrage at his proposals.  

It's time to pull the plug on this visitor from the dark ages. Show that he is not mirroring the concerns of the public, but merely doing the bidding of corporations that have supported his re-election with five figure campaign contributions, so he won't lose his job. He doesn't
give a damn about yours. Please, If you live in America get over to the EFF and send your email today!

Source: The Register