Battleangel

Just a little update …

(1) A number of cases against so called “file sharers” or “pirates” have been dropped. The initial success of the anti-piracy and media organizations has levelled off at about zero. As could be expected. After giving the law enforcement system time to ponder the issue, it was realized that no sentence in any case against “pirates” could amount to more than a modest fine. As opposed to a prison sentence. Lets remember that we’re referring to private citizens who do not in any way profit from this “copyright violation”. I’m sure you’ve seen considerable fines in cases against commercial resellers of “pirated” material in the past but that is not exactly the same thing. That is basically where the line is drawn.

It’s one of those rare occasions when the government branches think before acting. And in such a situation, when the penalty is minor, the police obviously is reluctant to offer any further assistance in terms of special search orders or violating personal integrity. It’s ironic because I never expected that the Personal Registry law would ever do me any good, on the contrary. I have to assume that it is Sweden’s overly draconian implementation of that European Directive that saves the day.

The Personal Registry Law, together with the Criminal Defamation Law and the The Principle of Publicity, are things that one should know of. One should also, again, note what is NOT going to work here, namely inciting criminal activity. Such cowboy stunts are not going to charm the public, let alone the legal system.

At any rate, IP addresses are considered just as much personal information as someone’s home address or mugshot or whatever. They can’t be tossed around, abused or traced via an ISP. And that is why the buck will stop here. And the entertainment industry will continue banging their heads against the wall. No doubt they wont give up just like that but this is nevertheless what they are up against.

(2) Three minor political parties have officially declared that they will vote against the new amendments to the Swedish copyright law, which is slated for implementation on July 1st. The interesting thing to note here is that these parties (Greens, Christian Democrats and the Center Party) have since been under heavy but discrete criticism. The verdict seems to be populism. Ok, lets see what my Princeton dictionary has to say about that ..

Noun: populism
1. The political doctrine that supports the rights and powers of the common people in their struggle with the privileged elite.

Can you see now from where said criticism is originating? Obviously the privileged elite, which among other things control the media industry. Again, one has to put file sharing in the actual context and grand scheme of things to begin to understand what is at stake here. Control over the masses. Real or imagined losses is besides the point, at least to the ideologists behind the curtain. Those that, like me, are very aware of how the world works but choose to devote their talents to subjugating the rest of the mankind and lining their pockets. The very idea that political parties would listen to what people have to say has long since been ridiculed and slandered. To the naive observer, such openness would constitute the very basis for democracy. But it is not, as we all well know, an integral part of the system within which we exist. Powerful entities are fighting relentlessly against any such progress.

(Also …) One also cannot help but wonder about the indoctrination that must be going on from early childhood in terms of socialization for future citizens to accept such intangible concepts as copyright (and other intellectual properties). The other guys are just as aware of this of course. More than once have various fear campaign and stunts been directed at children. Sometimes the other side claims to admit their mistake. But we both know better. Within the minds of our children rests the only sure way to change the future and to break the thrall of the privileged elite (the political and corporate strata).