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Colorado Denied Its Citizens the Right-to-Repair After Riveting Testimony:
Colorado’s proposed right-to-repair law was simple and clear. At 11 pages, the legislation spent most of its word count defining terms, but the gist was simple: It would let people fix their own stuff without needing to resort to the manufacturer and force said manufacturer to support people who want to fix stuff.
“For the purpose of providing services for digital electronic equipment sold or used in this state, an original equipment manufacturer shall, with fair and reasonable terms and cost, make available to an independent repair provider or owner of the manufacturer’s equipment any documentation, parts, embedded software, firmware, or tools that are intended for use with the digital electronic equipment, including updates to documentation, information, or embedded software,” the proposed bill said.
Right-to-repair is often spoken of in the context of broken phone screens, but it doesn’t just affect people’s personal devices. Agricultural and medical equipment are increasingly impossible to fix because manufacturers want to maintain a monopoly on repairing the product. These issues can make the right-to-repair literally life and death.
The Colorado House Business Affairs & Labor committee met to consider the law on March 25. Twelve legislators voted to indefinitely postpone considering the bill. Only one voted for it. “I still have a lot of questions. I still have a lot of concerns,” Rep. Monica Duran (D) said at the end of the committee hearing. She voted no on the bill.
[...] It was a stunning statement given just how many people testified on behalf of the right-to-repair legislation and how few questions the committee asked them.
Here's just the first of the many cases cited:
Kenny Maestas, who uses a wheelchair, drove this home in his testimony before the committee. Maestas spent a long time in the hospital and when he came home, his mobility was restricted. An electric wheelchair helped him get around, but it was broken. The right arm of the chair was broken and the battery would no longer hold a charge.
“Both my son and brothers were capable and ready to do whatever needed to get done...I called on the 14th of December,” he told the committee. “I was told the next time a tech would be in my area would be the 18th of January. As a rural resident of Colorado I’m used to a regional delay, but 35 days seemed excessive.”
Maestas said that the electric wheelchair company had the battery and spare parts on file to fix his chair, but the company’s procedure required a technician to first inspect the chair before making a repair. It was another 28 days after the tech first arrived before Maestas was mobile again. It was more than 60 days before his chair was working again.
“It’s never appropriate to make a human being with a critical care need wait over two months for a repair that could have been completed in two days,” he said. The committee asked Maestas no questions.
The story concludes:
[...] Bill sponsor Brianna Titone (D) told Motherboard she plans to keep fighting.
“I was particularly frustrated by a committee member who said they had ‘so many unanswered questions’ yet didn't ask any during the committee,” she said in an email.
[...] Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Washington are also considering right-to-repair laws. Colorado’s fight is a preview for what to expect as legislators prepare to consider those bills.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 07 2021, @06:25PM (10 children)
How about you tone down the violent rhetoic? We all know you mean to inspire violence on these pols, but that is psychopath behavior of lazy twits who can't be bothered to do the hard work of spreading a political message. There is a reason violence is supposed to be the last resort, go pick up a history book sometime.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 07 2021, @06:37PM (3 children)
French Revolution? The aristocracy was uncontrollable. Do you have control over our own ruling class?
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 07 2021, @06:58PM (2 children)
I think we are at the knitting stage right now. Just write the names down in code.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 07 2021, @09:29PM (1 child)
At last, someone else who gets the "knit their names in scarves" reference!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 08 2021, @03:02PM
That was well worth the wait.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Ethanol-fueled on Wednesday April 07 2021, @09:31PM (5 children)
Fuck off, you smarmy faggot. Crybullying (a Jew tactic) to suppress free speech is worse than being actually violent, but if you want to talk actual physical violence and voter intimidation I'd be more than happy to tell you about who was breakin' shit, murdering children, and beating up old ladies last summer.
And when Chauvin gets off scot-free you and your Jew buddies ain't gonna do a goddamn thing this time around. Or maybe you will, in which case I'll grab the popcorn. Ain't my city you'll be lighting on fire.
Finally a joke:
Derek and the Chauvenist Pigs! Nyuk nyuk nyuk!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 07 2021, @09:47PM (4 children)
> when Chauvin gets off scot-free
Time for a wager? I think Chauvin gets manslaughter. If I'm wrong, I'll post under my user name a few times (I'm logged in, posting AC). What's your bet?
(Score: 2, Touché) by Ethanol-fueled on Wednesday April 07 2021, @10:06PM (3 children)
Your manslaughter vs. my mistrial by hung jury? Well, call me a coward, but since there's no way I could anonymously grant money to you, I wouldn't get hopes up. But if we were face-to-face at the bar when the verdict was delivered, I'd bet 20 American dollars.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 07 2021, @11:35PM (2 children)
How about going 24 hours without mentioning Jews in person or online if you lose?
(Score: 2) by Pslytely Psycho on Thursday April 08 2021, @12:54AM (1 child)
Too easy.
When he loses, he'll get so snockered that he'll pass out for two days at the minimum.
Alex Jones lawyer inspires new TV series: CSI Moron Division.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 10 2021, @05:30AM
Back for a look -- seems that e-f is ready to take the bet, although the amount isn't quite settled yet. I like the suggestion of no Jew bashing for a few days (after he recovers from the ethanol coma), that would be a nice respite.
I'm still wagering: I'll post as my login for awhile.