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A piece of proposed EU legislation has for many months now included drastic changes to the Union's copyright laws. Feedback from industry lobbyists looks very much like it is adopted uncritically to the exclusion of other interests. This is especially noticeable in what has been going on with Articles 11 and 13 of the Council on the European Commission's proposal for a Directive on copyright in the Digital Single Market [2016/0280(COD)]. CopyBuzz summarizes some of the more salient points regarding press publisher's rights (Article 11) and upload/censorship filters (Article 13) identified in the latest set of proposals.
Currently it is Bulgaria's turn to head the Council of the European Union, a position that rotates every six months among EU member states. One of the responsibilities of that position is to oversee the Council's work on EU legislation. However, with the recent rotation, the copyright situation looks grimmer rather than gaining a respite.
See CopyBuzz : Compromises on (c) are clearly no longer on the agenda.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Thexalon on Thursday March 29 2018, @11:40AM (26 children)
This is why the Pirate Party exists. If you're European, vote accordingly. Pirates have become a substantial force in Iceland and the Czech Republic, and there's no particular reason they couldn't elsewhere.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by loonycyborg on Thursday March 29 2018, @11:46AM (19 children)
I don't think those parties should carry moniker made by copyright fanatics for them: pirate. Mensheviks did the same(the word basically means "loser" in russian) and look how it worked out for them.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by c0lo on Thursday March 29 2018, @12:04PM (16 children)
That's part of growing up for humanity - at some moment, they'll need to learn to look beyond what's written on a pejorative label and see the reality, no matter if the label reads "bunch of deplorables" or "pirate".
Failing to do so will only perpetuate a shallow and mostly dismissive approach to solving the problems, one fraught with artificial partisanship and wasteful infighting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 1) by loonycyborg on Thursday March 29 2018, @12:14PM (8 children)
Looking behind deplorable labels isn't the same as adopting them. I would prefer if they would at least be factually correct. But it's just me. I for one think adopting a defeatist label is mostly sign of laziness, because you're not expected to expend actual effort if you're a loser anyway.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by c0lo on Thursday March 29 2018, @01:03PM (7 children)
And I think it's a sign of courage to adopt a negative label and, by the value for the society of the principles you push forward, try to turn the meaning around until it gets worth of respect.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2, Informative) by loonycyborg on Thursday March 29 2018, @01:50PM (6 children)
No courage is needed to call yourself a loser. Courage is in getting things done. And calling things how they are is required for this, because people otherwise just won't understand you and you won't be able to coordinate.
(Score: 2) by bzipitidoo on Thursday March 29 2018, @02:38PM (2 children)
I have also wondered whether the name "pirate" is a good idea, and that good alternatives might be the Sharing Party, or the Robin Hood Party, or possibly the Education Party. But I finally I decided the Pirate name is just fine. Pirates have a kind of bad boy, rule breaking coolness to them. The printing and entertainment industry has tried for centuries to smear copying as theft, and I'm pleased to note, has failed. More and more, people are seeing through their propaganda and bull. It's especially helpful when the entertainment moguls indulge in their stupid greed and go too far, angering large majorities of the public, like for instance with the unskippable commercials on optical media. The biggest indication of Pirate viability and the acceptableness of the name is that they've won elections.
One problem with a name such as the Sharing Party is that it is too easily vilified. It could be taken to mean Communism, and extreme wealth redistribution. The Pirate name is much better.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 29 2018, @02:39PM
Pirates are cool. Robin Hood Party could be read as Socialist Party.
(Score: 1) by nitehawk214 on Thursday March 29 2018, @05:07PM
"Pirates are fun!" -Robert Webb
"Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
(Score: 3, Touché) by c0lo on Thursday March 29 2018, @03:07PM (2 children)
I'll believe you when I'll see you calling yourself a loser. Come on, I dare you.
(grin)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 29 2018, @03:38PM (1 child)
Any questions? [youtube.com]
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday March 29 2018, @05:33PM
A band that... what's the word? ... bealittled themselves and called themselves losers... then went afterwards to conquer the world of music?
Ummm... please remind me, what was the argument that was made and which is supposed to be supported by the linked example?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by letssee on Thursday March 29 2018, @12:34PM (6 children)
While I agree with you that humanity *should* grow up, there are no signs that it does. Hence , it's better to pick a non-pejorative name. It might work in holland, it worked for the 'geux' once. The pirate party is not doing so well in holland though. Mainly because they seem to consist of a bunch of unsociable know-it-alls (no real surprises there, actually).
It's a shame, because our culture get's more and more unworkable for the 'common man' and more and more turned over to the megacorps. I fear it will end in all-out rebellion, hopefully without real revolutions. Revolutions tend to be not-fun for all people involved.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday March 29 2018, @01:01PM (1 child)
"Real revolutions" might be a best case scenario. Worst case scenario involves eternally entrenched power.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday March 29 2018, @01:39PM
Let's put a label on it, shall we? Call them WeyYus [wikia.com]?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday March 29 2018, @01:20PM (3 children)
If nobody tries to break the laziness of the world in shaking bad habits, where's the opportunity for this to actually happen?
Granted, it would be easier to apply marketing and spin and look for what the world wants to hear. But this require an effort that goes in a direction different to supporting the principles you believe in.
Even more of a reason not to behave like the megacorps and adopt their spin tactics. Why should the pirate parties fight an "perceived image" skirmish when the "copyright war" is the focus?
Look at the two parties in US - both of them fell into using marketing and PR tactics, to the value of billions.
That to the point no 'common man' get to recognize any principle or value in either of the two parties.
This is why Trump won: he managed to stick the "establishment" and "swamp" labels on them and behave differently - a great magician trick considering his proposition was equally lacking value as his (both D and R) opponents.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 3, Informative) by NotSanguine on Thursday March 29 2018, @03:40PM
Here's an interesting discussion of just that [c-span.org]
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2) by letssee on Thursday March 29 2018, @04:44PM (1 child)
>If nobody tries to break the laziness of the world in shaking bad habits, where's the opportunity for this to actually happen?
Granted, it would be easier to apply marketing and spin and look for what the world wants to hear. But this require an effort that goes in a direction different to supporting the principles you believe in.
If you lose the elections because people dismiss based on your name, before they even look at your ideas, you won't be able to change copyright law. Which is after all the purpose of the pirate parties. You won't be able to do anything, actually. And it's not as if picking a bad name for your political party will really educate the unwashed masses .
Fostering intellectual discourse and battling laziness is also a good cause, but a political party is ,imho, not the best way to do that.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday March 29 2018, @05:22PM
Not the worst way either.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by Thexalon on Thursday March 29 2018, @03:41PM
I think the reason they adopted it is that generally speaking pirates are considered cool. They're cool enough that there are feature films and books about them, seafood restaurant chains named after them, etc. Just because some idiots with a lot of money tried to make it a pejorative doesn't mean it actually is one.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 29 2018, @07:31PM
"Opposition party" or "minority party" would be a more literal translation.
N.B. The Mensheviks got cozy with the Social Democrats (a Capitalist-friendly bunch) and they lost what popularity they had, way back at the birth of USSR.
The Bolsheviks ("Majority party") then ate the Mensheviks' lunch.
-- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by bradley13 on Thursday March 29 2018, @01:45PM (4 children)
I do support the pirates. However, in Switzerland at least, there is a problem: aside from technical matters, the Pirate Party here is far left: progressive/socialist. For example, totally pro-immigration. While I very much appreciate having a party with a clue about technical issues, their other positions are a problem. This isn't necessarily the case in other countries, but it definitely is the case here.
Everyone is somebody else's weirdo.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 29 2018, @02:07PM (3 children)
That's why, IMHO, future of democracy are non-participating pressure groups/movements pushing sharp-focused well-defined initiatives.
Simply,
(Score: 4, Insightful) by bradley13 on Thursday March 29 2018, @02:18PM (1 child)
I hope/wish you to be right. I see no reason why the Pirate Party should be taking positions on every issue out there. They should concentrate on the technical.
But I do see the problem: If you elect a Pirate to Parliament, they will be voting on all issues. And people therefore want to know *how* they will vote. Hence, the pressure to take an official party position.
Everyone is somebody else's weirdo.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by canopic jug on Thursday March 29 2018, @03:57PM
I liked very much how Christian Engström and Amelia Andersdotter did it when they got into the EU Parliament. They simply announced what the Pirate Party's three core issues were and would ally with any party or coalition willing to adopt their stance on technical issues. On those issues it worked quite well.
Money is not free speech. Elections should not be auctions.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 29 2018, @04:26PM
Single issue politics with referenda? Like Switzerland? [wikipedia.org]
(Score: 2) by TheRaven on Thursday March 29 2018, @02:20PM
sudo mod me up