Soothing the Savage Beast - at only $20,000 a pop

[pt_tangles]

The last few days of news coverage of the Canada's recently tabled new anti-copyright infringement legislation has really just depressed the hell out of me.

The law itself is a knee-jerk reaction to the fact that the government is behind the times when it comes to file sharing technology, and rather than think things through, and find a way to make the new world of music fair to everyone (which, if you ask me, means cutting out the record producers entirely so that artists and musicians get the income that they deserve rather than a nickel off of every CD sold), they have decided to target teenagers.

This new law proposes $20,000 fines per song against people (who are mostly teenagers) who pay to download a song, and then send it to their friends. Yes, the answer to internet piracy is to sue music fans and bankrupt Canadian families for stupid teenage tricks (I think we can all remember those years when 'it seemed like a good idea at the time' was the answer to every dumb thing you did and couldn't really remember why).

I find it darkly amusing that the recording industry seems to think that pitting musicians against their own fans is a good idea. Because, you know, it's not like the entire entertainment industry is dependant upon fans and their disposable income.  </sarcasm>

In the end, this sort of manipulation will only end up hurting the musicians. No one is as vindictive as someone who once loved you and now feels betrayed. Hell hath no fury ...

Today, I read this article from the Vancouver Sun. And I have to say that I am very glad to see that my favourite musicians are against this sort of legislation. Lawsuits are not the answer to everything. Neither is breaking privacy laws or targeting young people.

I imagine that this bill will be defeated rather soundly, especially since it is virtually unenforceable. There really is no way for them to prove where material on your computer came from (unless you save all your bit torrent files, I guess - which brings us back to targeting teenagers). It is, admittedly, a scare tactic. Dirty pool, if you ask me. No different than the environmentalists who push the fear of global warming and natural disaster on people in order to get them to recycle.

Manipulation and greed – They leave a bad taste in my mind. This is why I don't watch the news.

Today, I am going to clear off all of the blackness of crumbling communities with a trip to Granville Island. I'm going to remember that all I really want out of life is happiness. Peace, serenity, food coaxed from the earth by loving hands, beauty, inspiration, and the ocean are all I really need. And power struggles, greed, indifference and fear do not need to be a part of my life.

Oh, and on a completely different note - allow me to introduce the newest residents of Vancouver Island's Qualicm Beach:

Rare white ravens make home on Vancouver Island

Have a happy Saturday, everyone.

--Phae