[Year 12 IPM] music copyright

Wed Nov 15 16:54:36 EST 2006

It's about information which makes it more central to our profession than
drugs or alcohol prohibition.

In this thread people are saying that they will break the law because it is
an ass and turn a blind eye to students breaking stupid laws. Fair enough.
However, I feel we have a broader social problem which requires political
action when copyright laws exist which turn citizens into criminals.

To look at the US experience:
"According to the NY Times, 43 million Americans downloaded music in May
2002. According to the RIAA, the behaviour of those 43 million Americans is
a felony. We thus have a set of rules that transform 20 percent of Americans
into criminals ..." Lessig, Free Culture, 199

It's not going to go away. Copyright law is being strengthened in Australia
as we speak.

How do teachers feel about the ethical dilemma of teaching copyright law in
our courses and encouraging or turning a blind eye to students breaking that
law when our employer has a clear expectation that we, as teachers, will not
indulge in criminal activity and we can be sacked for doing so. Wouldn't
happen you think? Check out some of the things that have been happening in
the USA which is a bit further down the track on this issue than us. eg. a
young student, Jesse Jordan, prosecuted for $15 million dollars damages for
wilful violation of copyright law in 2002

I've recently joined the pirate party of australia, which is ridiculously
small at the moment, but, nevertheless, I feel obliged to become political
on this issue, based on my understanding of the information wars, which have
already started, and which will intensify in the future.

The pirate party originated in Sweden and obtained 34,918 votes, or 0.63% of
the popular vote. It's platform is reform of intellectual property laws -
copyright, patent and the closely related issue of privacy

Information wars: commons v. proprietary, well, isn't it natural for
teachers to support the maintenance or expansion of the commons (and not
their restriction which is the way the Law is going), since our profession
is based on the free and generous sharing of information?

Nor would it be wise IMO to just assume that the side that supports the
maintenance / expansion of the commons will  just win  because that is
"sensible"  and the other side is ridiculous and laughable.  It is laughable
but common sense does  not always  win.

my blog post on the pirate party, as I said its ridiculously small in
australia, but I feel that some action is better than none and hopefully
this group or similar groups will grow
http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2006/11/pirate-party-of-australia.html

my blog post on information wars:
http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2006/11/battle-for-freedom-of-information.html

"happy birthday",
- Bill

-- 
Bill Kerr
http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/
http://www.users.on.net/~billkerr/
skype: billkerr2006

On 11/15/06, Stephen Digby <digby.stephen.p at edumail.vic.gov.au> wrote:
>
>  As Dicken's noted, the law has always been an ass.
> When you sit down to Monopoly you sometimes renegotiate a rule or two by
> mutual agreement, but most of the rules are set by the manufacturer.
> Society is a bit like that - we didn't get to make the vast complex web of
> rules that govern us, we just get to tinker democratically with a few things
> at the edge while the manufacturers continue to make most of the important
> decisions.  Most people just ignore the rules that they do not agree with
> and hope that they do not get caught.....  unfortunately, as with drug laws,
> if there is a significant minority that does not agree with the law, these
> people begin to collect to gether and separate from the mainstream in many
> other ways creating what we often call a "subculture".  Thus the drug
> subcultures, the peer to peer subcultures etc.  that danger for society is
> that many other influences and opportunists also work within these
> subcultures and the outcomes are often unpredictable and socially divisive
> and damaging(e.g. crime, lack of compliance and trust of police etc, lack
> of regard for other laws etc).
> Thus the need to work to oppose laws that are flouted openly (and has
> socially accepted) OR to change the social acceptance (as has been done in
> my generation with drink driving).
> I think that the possibly of changing the social acceptance of music
> sharing is very unlikely..... sounds more like alcohol prohibition than
> drink driving.
>
>
> ======================================================================================
> Stephen Digby, Learning Technology Manager
> mailto:admin at cheltsec.vic.edu.au <admin at cheltsec.vic.edu.au>
> Cheltenham Secondary College www.cheltsec.vic.edu.au Ph: 613 955 55 955
> Fx: 9555 8617
>
> ======================================================================================
>
>
> The only way to have a friend is to be one.
> Ralph Waldo Emerson
>
>
>  ------------------------------
> *From:* ipm-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:ipm-bounces at edulists.com.au] *On
> Behalf Of *Roland Gesthuizen
> *Sent:* 14 November 2006 11:23 PM
> *To:* Year 12 Information Technology Processing and Management
> Teachers'Mailing List
> *Subject:* Re: [Year 12 IPM] music copyright
>
> An Age newspaper report
> <http://www.theage.com.au/news/phones--pdas/soon-recordings-will-be-a-crime/2006/11/14/1163266532880.html>has
> briefly discussed some of the changes to Australian copyright legislation.
> Police would be able to go to a market, find people selling pirated CDs and
> issue fines on the spot.  Internet Industry Association has stated that
> these changes have gone too far and activities that could attract fines
> include playing a radio in the park or even recording a group of students
> singing a song then sharing it online. It is an interesting issue that can
> be discussed in the classroom.
>
> You need written permission from Time Warner<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_Warner>to sing Happy Birthday, the copyright will expire
> in 2030 <http://plakboek.livejournal.com/55478.html> and if I am correct,
> there will be no fair-use provisions in the legislation as it is currently
> drafted. Singing Happy Birthday at a restaurant, a party or any gathering is
> considered to be a public performance, even humming the tune will become a
> criminal offense.
>
> When you sing Happy Birthday, close all the curtains and darken the room
> except perhaps for the light from a candle. Wear masks and hats to protect
> your identity, perhaps helium to disguise your voice. Making humorous
> additions and satirical modifications to the lyrics may provide further
> legal protection from prosecution. Of course it is best to not take the risk
> and enforce the singing public domain folk tunes and birthday melodies such
> as German volksleiders, hymns or gospel <http://ingeb.org/> in your
> classrooms.
>
> Perhaps it would be best if we all agree kept our mouths firmly shut?
>
> Regards Roland
>
> PS: My saxophone playing isnt great so perhaps nobody would recognise the
> tune ..
>
>
> On 05/11/06, Jeffrey Lynn <jslynn at optusnet.com.au> wrote:
> >
> > The copyright issue is legally quite clear: you can make one copy of a
> > computer program disk (CD or DVD) for backup purposes but it is illegal
> > to
> > copy music CDs or DVDs for any purpose. Technically, the copies of CDs I
> >
> > have in my car so I don't damage or lose my originals are quite illegal.
> > As
> > I have discussed with my students (and as Mark says), there is no logic
> > to
> > this, just law. However, the chances of my being prosecuted for having
> > such
> > copies are fairly remote - as the copies are not for resale,
> > redistribution,
> > or profit, the law is not too interested in wasting time and money
> > prosecuting. The real villains they are after are pirates churning out
> > illegal copies for sale and profit. That does not alter the fact that my
> > copies ARE illegal!
> >
> > Note too that the copyright laws are in the process of being changed and
> > are
> > expected to be enacted in 2007.
> >
> > Jeff Lynn,
> > Yeshivah/Beth Rivkah Colleges
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: ipm-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto: ipm-bounces at edulists.com.au]
> > On
> > Behalf Of Mark Kelly
> > Sent: Sunday, 5 November 2006 17:45
> > To: Year 12 Information Technology Processing and Management
> > Teachers'Mailing List
> > Subject: Re: [Year 12 IPM] music copyright
> >
> > Nick Axaris wrote:
> > > I was always under the understanding that you can make a copy of a
> > music
> > CD for backup purposes and not to share or sell it.
> > > There should be no issue copying a song for the purpose of a
> > presentation
> > as the student is not profiting or sharing that song with anyone else.
> > > When the presentation is over then the network manager can delete it
> > from
> > the network.
> > > Whilst on the network just ensure that it is only accesible by the
> > student.
> >
> > What is legal and what is logical is - as usual - mutually exclusive.
> >
> > --
> > Mark Kelly
> > McKinnon Secondary College
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > http://www.edulists.com.au - FAQ, resources, subscribe, unsubscribe
> > IPM Mailing List kindly supported by
> > http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au - Victorian Curriculum and Assessment
> > Authority
> > and
> > http://www.vitta.org.au  - VITTA Victorian Information Technology
> > Teachers
> > Association Inc
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > http://www.edulists.com.au - FAQ, resources, subscribe, unsubscribe
> > IPM Mailing List kindly supported by
> > http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au - Victorian Curriculum and Assessment
> > Authority and
> > http://www.vitta.org.au  - VITTA Victorian Information Technology
> > Teachers Association Inc
> >
>
>
>
> --
> Roland Gesthuizen - ICT Coordinator - Westall Secondary College
> http://www.westallsc.vic.edu.au
>
> "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can
> change the world; indeed it is the only thing that ever has." --Margaret
> Mead _______________________________________________
> http://www.edulists.com.au - FAQ, resources, subscribe, unsubscribe
> IPM Mailing List kindly supported by
> http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au - Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority
> and
> http://www.vitta.org.au - VITTA Victorian Information Technology Teachers
> Association Inc
>
> *Important - *This email and any attachments may be confidential. If
> received in error, please contact us and delete all copies. Before opening
> or using attachments check them for viruses and defects. Regardless of any
> loss, damage or consequence, whether caused by the negligence of the sender
> or not, resulting directly or indirectly from the use of any attached files
> our liability is limited to resupplying any affected attachments. Any
> representations or opinions expressed are those of the individual sender,
> and not necessarily those of the Department of Education &
> Training._______________________________________________
>  http://www.edulists.com.au - FAQ, resources, subscribe, unsubscribe
> IPM Mailing List kindly supported by
>  http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au - Victorian Curriculum and Assessment
> Authority and
>  http://www.vitta.org.au - VITTA Victorian Information Technology Teachers
> Association Inc
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://www.edulists.com.au/pipermail/ipm/attachments/20061115/43b0eb71/attachment-0001.html