Download music and your computer gets destroyed??

[KatWoman]

What do you all think of this? My personal opinion is that the goverment needs to find more serious issues to worry about.....

Senator Takes Aim at Illegal Downloads
Wed Jun 18, 4:29 AM ET
By TED BRIDIS, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Illegally download copyright music from the Internet once, or even twice, and you get a warning. Do it a third time, and your computer gets destroyed.

That's the suggestion made by the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee (news - web sites) at a Tuesday hearing on copyright abuse, reflecting a growing frustration in Congress over failure of the technology and entertainment industries to protect copyrights in a digital age.

The surprise statement by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, that he favors developing technology to remotely destroy computers used for illegal downloads represents a dramatic escalation in the increasingly contentious rhetoric over pirated music.

During a discussion of methods to frustrate computer users who illegally exchange music and movie files over the Internet, Hatch asked technology executives about ways to damage computers involved in such file trading. Legal experts have said any such attack would violate federal anti-hacking laws.

"No one is interested in destroying anyone's computer," replied Randy Saaf of MediaDefender Inc., a secretive Los Angeles company that builds technology to deliberately download pirated material very slowly so other users can't.

"I'm interested," Hatch interrupted. He said damaging someone's computer "may be the only way you can teach somebody about copyrights."

The senator, a composer who earned $18,000 last year in song-writing royalties, acknowledged Congress would have to enact an exemption for copyright owners from liability for damaging computers. He endorsed technology that would twice warn a computer user about illegal online behavior, "then destroy their computer."

"If we can find some way to do this without destroying their machines, we'd be interested in hearing about that," Hatch said. "If that's the only way, then I'm all for destroying their machines. If you have a few hundred thousand of those, I think people would realize" the seriousness of their actions.

"There's no excuse for anyone violating copyright laws," Hatch said.

Some legal experts suggested Hatch's provocative remarks were more likely intended to compel technology and music executives to work faster toward ways to protect copyrights online than to signal forthcoming legislation.

"It's just the frustration of those who are looking at enforcing laws that are proving very hard to enforce," said Orin Kerr, a George Washington University law professor and former Justice Department (news - web sites) cybercrimes prosecutor.

Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the committee's senior Democrat, later said the problem is serious but called Hatch's suggestion too drastic.

"The rights of copyright holders need to be protected, but some Draconian remedies that have been suggested would create more problems than they would solve," Leahy said in a statement. "We need to work together to find the right answers, and this is not one of them."

Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., urged Hatch to reconsider. Because Hatch is Judiciary chairman, "we all take those views very seriously," he said. But Kerr said Congress was unlikely to approve any bill to enable such remote computer destruction by copyright owners "because innocent users might be wrongly targeted."

A spokesman for the Recording Industry Association of America (news - web sites), Jonathan Lamy, said Hatch was "apparently making a metaphorical point that if peer-to-peer networks don't take reasonable steps to prevent massive copyright infringement on the systems they create, Congress may be forced to consider stronger measures." The RIAA represents the major music labels.

The entertainment industry has gradually escalated its fight against Internet file-traders, targeting the most egregious pirates with civil lawsuits. The RIAA recently won a federal court decision making it significantly easier to identify and track consumers — even those hiding behind aliases — using popular Internet file-sharing software.
___

On the Net: Sen. Hatch: http://hatch.senate.gov

Discuss.

[Sean]

lol, what is he planning on doing? installing a little axe in every computer that hacks down (wait, cant use the word hack) at your harddrive when you download music?

they can't do something that would violate the anti-hacking laws... oh wait, their the goverenment and they are above the law

[taranaki]

Orrin Hatch,you can take my mp3's from my cold,dead hand.

[SHOtough]

looks like hes watching out for his own ass, doesn't want to lose his 18 g's a year. destroying someones computer for downloading music, yeah right buddy

[BLU CIVIC]

so lets say i download this music at a friends house or at a library and their machine gets fried.....could they legally blame me or the government

[taranaki]

The online community were skilled enough to develop peer-to-peer file sharing,I'm sure that they could develop a program that would identify and neutralise any malicious code added to mp3's.

What I find disturbing is the 'big brother' attitude.Orrin Bitch thinks that he has the moral authority to release the equivalent of a computer virus across the world as a means of enforcing an otherwise unenforceable law in his own country.WHAT AN ASSHOLE.

It is dogshit in a suit such as mister Hatch who cannot seem to comprehend that while their actions may achieve the objectives that they require for America,they have a moral obligation not to interfere with the rest of the worlds' legislation.The Senate is responsible for AMERICAN law,not global cyber-vandalism.

Fuck you,Orrin Hatch!

[SHOtough]

what are you going to do
hes an old guy who doesn't quite fully understand that the net is something very international, and just wants to make sure he still gets his money (like anyone is downloading his "compositions" anyways )i doubt anyone in the senate is going to take this that serious and i'm sure your mp3s are safe

[TheNotoriousMogg]

What is this asshole doing?? I cannot believe what he is trying to do this!


It will never pass though I almost gurantee that


Well well Orrin Hatch

[YogsVR4]

While the thought is good about people being able to protect their work. And lets face it, copying music that we haven't purchased is piracy. The solution being bantied about is neither workable and is way past overkill.

[tomlong]

I am going to write his office a dirty email.

[jon@af]

Wow, that guy is a total
I should think that anyone who heard that at least laughed to him/herself after he said "I will destroy them". Oh well, some people dont know their own ignorance.

[KatWoman]

I'd like to have someone go inspect his own personal computer at home and see just how many MP3s and pirated software programs HE has running

I believe that those that are screaming the loudest against something are perpetrators of the crimes they cry out against and worse. Kinda like the preacher who screams out against pre-marital sex during his sermons on Sunday, yet is cheating on his wife with a cheerleader.

[taranaki]

Originally posted by KatWoman
Kinda like the preacher who screams out against pre-marital sex during his sermons on Sunday, yet is cheating on his wife with a cheerleader.

Dammit,I deny that one completely........how did you find out?

[KatWoman]

Originally posted by taranaki


Dammit,I deny that one completely........how did you find out?

I am the cheer squad captain!

[taranaki]

Originally posted by KatWoman


I am the cheer squad captain!

oh goody! SEND PICTURES!