Not really. Once a bill is tabled in Canada, it's essentially a matter of time until it gets passed. There's no real veto anywhere in our parliamentary system; the Senate and the Governor-General have one, but the system has evolved in the direction of those being reserved for matters of national survival.
The problem is that the Neocons have been making every vote a confidence vote, meaning that if the vote goes against them it triggers an election. So unless the Liberals feel like fighting an election on this one…
That's why it's important to talk to MPs besides Conservatives about this. They're afraid that if an election is called, they Conservatives will gain power, not lose it. So if there's a Liberal or NDP in one's neck of the woods:
1) Let them know that you'll back them up if they bring the government down over this. If they hear that enough times, they'll act.
2) Let them know that if they don't vote against the bill, you'll remember that when the next election does get called -- as it must at some point, votes or not votes.
As I suspect you already know, I agree with you 100% on all points. The bill, as proposed, is worthless and is blatantly a concession to American big media interests.
And my opposition to the bill is not solely as a consumer of media. I feel teachers and many other rightful and legitimate users of content will be hamstrung by this legislation, should it pass into law. On so many levels, this bill is horrid.
I have already written my MP (Stephan Dion...) and I hope he'll receive more and thus take a stand against this bill.
I do hope you are correct - it is an attempt to tell America "we tried" without actually giving them what they want. I hope the bill was designed to fail...
I bought some BBC documentaries in China because they came with Chinese subtitles. (I have a lot of Chinese ESL students.) They don't play in North American DVD players. And BBC won't sell me a DVD that will play here that has Chinese subtitles, because they "aren't set up for that".
Censorship in the name of commercial convenience. And no out in this bill, because the educational exception doesn't cover circumventing the technological DRM (ie. region coding)…
A perfect example of what I mean. You bought the content but can't use it. You should have the right to use it as you desire. Any law that prevents that is a bad law, imho.
Just because Big Media (tm) wants to sell us the same movie or song or whatever eight times in different formats does not mean government should aid them in that goal.
Protecting creators' works is one thing. Bill C61 is something else entirely.
In the old, inconvenient days of VCRs, at least you could get the tape cued up to to the right spot ready to go, then plug it inand show just the clip you wanted. Now, you have to put in the DVD, wait for the commercials to finish, wait for the menu (up to five fornicating minutes gone on some DVDs) and then you can jump to the scene you want. If you want to show 3-4 clips from different DVDs (comparing, say, cinematography in different films) you've spent 10-20 minutes futzing with the player, even if you had the first DVD set up before the class started. And while all the ads are playing the kids are forgetting what you wanted them to see…
And this bill does less for creators than what we had before. It does a lot for foreign-owned publishing corporations.
When are MPs back in their offices? I may be able to hit three, if I time my visits right on my vacation.
Boing Boing has several excellent articles describing the bill and providing contact info and suggested actions for fighting it. I'm not Canadian, but I'm cheering from the sidelines.
I've dropped off a letter at my MPs office, a Conservative. If the bill doesn't appear dead by the summer recess, I plan on dropping by his constituency office for a personal meeting -- MPs usually work there when Parliament isn't in session.
I've sent a letter to the editor in rebuttal to Prentice's published letter in yesterday's Star. Even if they don't publish it, I'm hoping that it's one of a sufficient number that they'll feel obliged to publish *someone* calling his shenanigans.
It's also important to point out some of the absurdities of the bill to as many people as possible. I've picked section 41.27(1), which appears to ban Google.
The basic problem is that electronic distribution methods operate in a flatly incompatible way with the mass-production model of monetization. At this point, most solutions will be a continuing technological arms race between people who want cash from the act of selling and the people who want to take advantage of the way electronic media exits...
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The problem is that the Neocons have been making every vote a confidence vote, meaning that if the vote goes against them it triggers an election. So unless the Liberals feel like fighting an election on this one…
Reply
1) Let them know that you'll back them up if they bring the government down over this. If they hear that enough times, they'll act.
2) Let them know that if they don't vote against the bill, you'll remember that when the next election does get called -- as it must at some point, votes or not votes.
Reply
And my opposition to the bill is not solely as a consumer of media. I feel teachers and many other rightful and legitimate users of content will be hamstrung by this legislation, should it pass into law. On so many levels, this bill is horrid.
I have already written my MP (Stephan Dion...) and I hope he'll receive more and thus take a stand against this bill.
I do hope you are correct - it is an attempt to tell America "we tried" without actually giving them what they want. I hope the bill was designed to fail...
Reply
Censorship in the name of commercial convenience. And no out in this bill, because the educational exception doesn't cover circumventing the technological DRM (ie. region coding)…
Reply
Just because Big Media (tm) wants to sell us the same movie or song or whatever eight times in different formats does not mean government should aid them in that goal.
Protecting creators' works is one thing. Bill C61 is something else entirely.
Reply
And this bill does less for creators than what we had before. It does a lot for foreign-owned publishing corporations.
When are MPs back in their offices? I may be able to hit three, if I time my visits right on my vacation.
Reply
Reply
I've sent a letter to the editor in rebuttal to Prentice's published letter in yesterday's Star. Even if they don't publish it, I'm hoping that it's one of a sufficient number that they'll feel obliged to publish *someone* calling his shenanigans.
It's also important to point out some of the absurdities of the bill to as many people as possible. I've picked section 41.27(1), which appears to ban Google.
Reply
Reply
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