[ILUG-Social] Legislative Alert

[Niall Walsh]

Now that the debacle of the abortion "referenda" is gone out the window 
and the Act is no longer going to be a prime canvassing topic for the 
politicians don't forget to ask every canvasser you see if their 
candidate supports "the proposed protections of the software market by 
the EU"!   I can only imagine the answers we will receive (I imagine we 
will all have to explain it every time).   But if we all hound them 
perhaps they will carry the message back to their "boss".   I know I 
will have a nice large list of questions for the poor canvassers on this 
and the other issues that concern ME!

Now does anyone else think that perhaps the time has come for us to hold 
a/some demonstrations while the iron is hot pre-election?

Niall


Edward Humphrey wrote:

>Legislative Alert
>----------------------------------------
>According to Eurolinux, on Thursday Feb. 20th, the European Commission 
>published a draft for enacting software patents in Europe similar to
>the U.S. system. The draft was authored by a director of the B.S.A. 
>(the Business Software Alliance is an anti-piracy alliance dominated 
>by Microsoft).
>http://petition.eurolinux.org/pr/pr17.html
>
>The proposal:
>- Introduces unlimited patentability on *all* abstract ideas, especially
>those of the Amazon "One Click" and BT "Hyperlink" type
>- Legalizes 30000 patents on "computer-implementable inventions"
>(i.e. abstract rules disguised in computing jargon)
>- Undermines the copyright property on which the European software
>industry has been thriving
>- Allows standards to be monopolized, denying Open Source software, 
>shareware and SMEs entry to markets, charging "per-use" fees even from
>creators and users of multimedia content (MPEG 4 will cost 0.02 EUR
>per hour)
>- Erodes software innovation in Europe
>- Transfers several billion euros from the software industry to the
>people in charge of the directive proposal in Brussels
>- Weakens elementary rights of citizens in the information society
>
>This far reaching maneuver in Brussels deserves everyone's attention.
>Please take a moment to sign EuroLinux's "Petition for a Software 
>Patent-Free Europe", and also warn your local government, elected 
>politicians, and journalists about this dangerous proposal.
>http://petition.eurolinux.org/
>
>
>
>