[Cdn-DMCA] TPM and the End User

[Chris Brand]

>  There are those who think the position is coming from the wrong angle,
>but I believe that starting the conversation with "places we cannot go" is
>appropriate. With these extremes out of the way, then appropriate
>discussions can have to discuss various perceived and real problems that
>changes in ICT have brought to the foreground.

My feeling is that we should have an extreme position that we know and understand.
If the opposition puts forward extreme proposals, we should be ready with our
own version "Well, if we're going to be ridiculously extreme here, we'd rather
see copyright abolished altogether, but more realistically, we'll give you X as 
long as we can have Y" is a perfectly valid and reasonable negotiating technique,
particularly if you make it clear that both proposals are ridiculous (it's actually
a way to point out the absurdity of the opposition's position). That's why you
see stuff like "well, while you're at it, how about applying the Home Recording 
Levy to paper just in case I jot down the lyrics to your song ?"
If we let the opposition propose ridiculous stuff and we only propose moderate
stuff, the result will be somewhere between the two - i.e. too near their position.
This is why the RIAA et al have got the SSSCA proposed (under its new name) - they
know that it won't get passed as is, but any compromise between the status quo
and the SSSCA is better for them that the status quo.

Chris
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