Unless I am expandable, I am expendable - Robert Schuller
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France forgets freedom
THE NATION that once chopped the head off a feckless king, and whose people gallantly resisted a fascist occupation, has just seen the liberté of its people betrayed by their own corrupt, corporate-owned politicians.
The French Assembly has voted to give the music and film industries the power to switch off the Internet access of anyone who they accuse of pirating copyrighted files. No evidence will be required nor will any court of law. ISPs will be notified directly by the music and film industries. Upon the third notice Internet users will be disconnected for a year but will still have to pay their ISP charges.
It is the first time that a Western government has applied the same authoritarian powers to copyright enforcement that it had for terrorism, those of punishment without rights to trial.
What is even more scary is that France has delegated that power to a private cartel rather than the civil authorities. A person does not have to be a found guilty of anything under French law to be disconnected from the Internet, Big Entertainment has merely to make an accusation.
The move, which tosses hundreds of years of constitutional freedom away, was made at the order of French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
The National Assembly, which is dominated by Sarkozy's right-wing party, passed the bill by a vote of 296 to 233, and the measure was set to go before the Senate for an anticipated rubber stamp of final approval today.
Philippe Gosselin, a deputy from the governing UMP party said that "even if" Internet access were a basic right, it must be reconciled with other fundamental rights including respect for intellectual property.
The law requires a state agency known by the acronym Hadopi to be established to track and punish those accused of illegally trafficking in music and movies on the Internet. However these copyright cops will operate at the beck and call of the content providers, not civil authorities. They will have power over Internet service providers to order warning letters and shut downs.
Socialist deputy Patrick Bloche, who voted against the bill, called it a "law of intimidation" that amounted to "a lose-lose situation for artists and for Internet users." He intends to ask the Constitutional Council, France's highest legal authority, to rule on the constitutionality of the law.
The law is also likely to conflict with superceding European Union law which requires that the basic rights of Internet users cannot be restricted without a court order.
Similar plans in New Zealand were derailed by public protests earlier this year. Britain, Germany and Sweden have decided against such so-called 'three-strikes' Internet cut-off measures.
The French are thought to be about ready to take up pitchforks and torches, as well they should. µ
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I'm not happy... Before to continue, I want to tell you that I'm a frenchman.
The ministeress "Christine Albanel" which is the main leader for the Hadopi law said that "OpenOffice has got a Firewall inside"... yes yes...
I don't understand how such of stupidity can pass and why my government has followed this woman...
Everyone here in France is laugthing because we know that this law can't be validated by the european commission.
Anyway, be sure that people will not follow this law !
I'm French and I just want to explain something. Furthermore a lot of people don't care about this law, our governement has a real powerful weapon : TF1, our biggest TV Channel. The guy that runs this channel if one of the greatest friend of Sarkozy, our "president".
As everyone in France is a dumbass happy to watch crappy programms on TV, a lot of people watch UMP Propaganda alla day long.
And the governement can do what he likes.
i assume you mean sit and wait for Americans to save you. but its a sad day when a goverment decides to give such a power to violate someones free will and rights. if this is not rebuked i think the internet in france will be delt a huge blow. not from pirate's but from themselves. you should all watch the movie, Horten hears a Who, the 3d one.. just cause someone didnt want to loose control they outcast and rained terror down on someone that didnt deserve it... ring a bell.
The saddest thing is that it was just a massive mind manipulation.
The only people who realised what was really going on with this law was the Internet people, those who actually has the good knowledge. But we aren't enough and our voice isn't powerful enough.
So was voted the law. But you all must know that we are aware, we are angry, we will make them pay for that.
We are just patient cause right now if we do something, agressive or not, we will be seen as criminals. The time to rebellion is just on its way.
HADOPI will fall apart because you know and I know that those who will pay won't be the original target.
They just want to play unfair ? We're ready.
Except with "French President Nicolas Sarkozy."
You should say "French king N. Sarkozy"
...and there is one !
In order to prove that you didn't "break the law" and save your internet access, you can pay for a "state spyware" to install on your computer "to securize it".
If you have the "state spyware" installed and running on your computer, you'll not be prosecuted ... for your mp3s...
(and you have to let your computer running 24h a day cause if some one hack your wifi or inject your ip in p2p networks, and your spyware is not running, you're done.)
I think French need the help of everyone..
We should be together to fight against the corrupted governments...
Hi,
I'm French and our government doesn't care about europe and poeple... and just serve the rich firms/jetset ppl...
But HADOPI could be an advantage for us... when they will see that nothing will change, we could laugh and see that the government is just a group of lyer.
I'm French, and the problem could be explained that few french really realize what that laws'll cause; :(:(
When they'll have no more internet, because the music compganies 'll ask for they are cut, without evidence, I think lot of them 'll wake up, but it'll be too late :(:(
I still don't realize that in a country some laws like that could be taken
Incredible :(:(
The only hope could come from Europa. Hope it will continue to fight against that law and make it illegal.
Thanks for that article that clearly talk about situation here.
teh internet has become a dirty place. Once and If I get strike 2 out of 3, Ill just cancel my subscription.
La viva el private networks without regulations and isps.
If smart, people will just link their homes with neighbours and create independant ad-hoc lans w/o any lame regulations...
Being a prisoner in a cage that you PAY for is a privilege...? Who needs it...? I dont.
Yes, the oldest profession is alive and well in French politics.
Perhaps Neelie Kroes will now sue the French Government for becoming Media-mogul patsies? Where has the "U" in EU gone?
Don't worry if the Government doesnt shut you off ....Microsoft will ! Why do you think all the DRM is in windows now especially Vista/Win7 and why do you think Microsoft is practicing shutting off your PC ? Why do you think your PC with Vista/Win7 calls home to microsoft with encrypted info on every bit of hardware and software YOU have installed on THEIR operating system .
Is that for YOUR benefit ? NO , It's so if Microsoft and buddies MIAA decide you are using your pc for illegal file sharing it will be easy to shut you down and kill your machine and your Liscense number. Then your only choice will be to buy another copy of windows (new liscense) to get back on the net. So how many copies of windows will you buy before you act right and stop sharing files they don't want you to ?
Then soon after it will be made illegal to even VIEW the illegal copied files so If you go to a country server like China (whom they are scarred to regulate)and just WATCH an illegal movie stream you could face your pc being SHUT DOWN. Boy the future of Windows controlling YOU looks grim I say.
Bring out the lorries!
Now the French will have no choice but to recognize what most Americans already have... We are nothing but serfs to the corporations, and since the corporations own the government, we are nothing but serfs to the government as well.
France was the last place I expected to enact these kind of draconian laws at the whim of the media industries. Maybe it's a good thing though, since I can see the entire country shutting down when the first incident happens. It'll be a nice example for others to follow.
The situation in France is becoming quite critical (I'm french). At this very moment, though the "Internet and Creation" law (let me laugh...) has been voted, no one knows what it will be made of, so much has been left for the government to decide. At first, the law was rejected, but (even though the urgency procedure forbids that) the government took it to the parliament again, this time ordering its party's PMs to be there and vote in its favor.
We can see at least 5 demonstrations a day, more and more people are getting mad at the government.
To answer the author of "Pitch forks or guns" : French people are not allowed to carry a gun, unless they are hunters, or shoot in a club, or are policemen, and every gun is registered. Also, policemen cannot use firearms unless they are threatened by a firearm too.
What a sad situation...
Here in Canada we have to register our guns, so if we revolt(what a laugh)the gestapo knows the addresses of the gun owners. Are the french allowed to own and use guns. Every once in awhile I see them rioting, which is good for the right cause. Do the police have the right to use firearms.
I'm french and I find the actual situation in this country absolutely scandalous. Unfortunately most people are not aware of the real issues involved in such a projet being adopted. With all this crap in our country, I have actually found myself capable of hoping in a coup d'état. The country who's philosophy inspired the rebellions throughout the world and gave countries the opportuniy to access freedom. All these people that fought for us, that gave their lives away in order for us to be able to live a comfortable life today, it should be our duty to maintain this precious jewel which is our democracy. French don't like to be taken for idiots too long, after a certain amount of time, heads begin to roll...
Cheese Eating Surrender Monkeys!
Thinking about it, what's stopping anyone who gets disconnected just getting a 3G or whatever pre-pay modem (I assume they have a similar thing over in France as what they have here in the UK?). Sods law though they'll probably be so expensive (as they are over here) that it'll work out cheaper to rent and pirate DVD box sets etc.
Rob
Just wait until the typical French nuclear family with their 2.1 children and the father of this family wakes up one morning to do his daily stock trading. Lo and behold, he has no internet connection to do his job because little Pierre, the families son, is a god damn filthy music pirate!
So little Pierre gets beat within an inch of his life, Dad has to steal Wi-Fi from the neighbor to do his job AND THE RECORDING INDUSTRY AND THE FRENCH ISP MADE NO EXTRA MONEY WHILE RUINING THIS FAMILIES DAY! Also no REAL pirates were accosted or troubled in any manner.
Sound about right?
Search on google for: "Illuminati", "bilderberg group", "CIA", "Sarkozy"
Search for the truth and thou shall find it...
...but it will shock some people...and scare the hell out of many people...
In the good ole U S of A, when we spill some blood to overthrow the goverment we don't revert back to that old goverment.
In France, they just like to line up people and cut their heads off, then go back to doing what they did before. The French are just a crazy mob full of bloodlust, and right now is the calm defore the next storm.
In France, it's illegal to send an email saying you don't like a goverment official. Some guy just got fined for it. I believe the French are LETTING things get bad enough so they can justify chopping some heads.
But Americans are the warmongers.
burning lamb I smell, guarantee you that this piece of legislation will probably be treated with the same respect that their anti-smoking laws have.
This should, if anything, exemplify the lengths to which the big content-industry monopolists are willing to go to avoid losing control.
Next month is the European Parliament election. Pirate Party candidates will be running in Sweden, Germany and Italy. Parties exist in almost every other western European country - either formed, or forming. One of the best things to do, to avoid things like this happening, is to write to your representatives (and hope you don't get fired for it) and tell them what you think. The best thing of all, however, is to hit them where it hurts - the voting booth.
The Pirate Parties are often criticised for only having a few positions, and yet, if you think about the three, they gives you most of the other positions either directly or indirectly. As well as the much publicised copyright/patent reform, the PPs stand for increased government transparency and accountability, and greater personal privacy.
So, if you want to make change, make change in the only way that will allow it to happen. Support your local Pirate Party, and help ensure more of these bribery-induced laws are not made, and the ones already bought and paid for are dismantled. Let's get back to a world worth living in, not one where we are told to live in fear under the omnipresent spectre of 'terrorism' or 'pirates'. I don't remember quaking in fear of the IRA in the 80s and 90s, even after a near miss in 93 (I passed by one of the Warrington bombs minutes before it exploded).
let us be proud of our governments again
Andrew Norton
Pirate Party International
I am simply stunned that this could have actually happened. I commented a little while ago on another post that I was sad to see the music and movie industry had more power than any government, but I never thought that laws like this would ever be passed in a democratic country(yet).This sets a very bad precedent. Why is this Sarkozy still in power, he's obviously out of his mind. Pirate party sounds like a good idea now.
France hasn't been a democracy since Sarkozy election as president. How come? well in a real democracy members of the parliament do vote for laws they actually consider good for the country (however bad you and me might consider these laws). In Sarkozy's France though right wing PMs are at the order of his excellency Sarkozy the first (his son shall take the title of Sarkozy the second in May 2017) and have to vote for his laws or get sacked. This happened the first time the law was voted (AND REJECTED!) as most right wing PMs didn't come to the vote as they didn't consider this law any good. A few reaminders that the party may well decide to support another candidate during the next elections and VOILA everybody is voting the law....
Tell me about democracy then, tell me about giving the power to the people...
Time to compromise the internet connections of those in favour of this law.
Some of them must have wireless networks that are insecure, or perhaps drop a loaded usb stick outside their residences.
Go!
I wonder how long it takes to polish a guillotine after all these years???
I wonder how long it takes to polish the guillotine after all these years???