[free-sklyarov] Taking a step back.

xyz at kalifornia.com xyz at kalifornia.com
Fri Jul 20 11:48:10 PDT 2001


To all who are organizing protests, rallys, letters, sit-ins, sick-outs,
etc.  I support you %100 and will be contributing to the protest in
Washington DC as soon as I get more information about it.

However, what needs to be addressed here is more than just getting support,
but giving solutions.  Most everyone knows that the DMCA is overly broad and
in that illegal by the U.S. Constitution.  Just saying that, doesn't do
anything and doesn't get Sklyarov out of jail, but it can be used as
amunition citing other lawsuits.  In addition, a petition against the DMCA
and getting some senators and governors to agree that the DMCA is a Bad
Thing(TM) would also assist.

When coming at these issues full force demanding an immediate solution, the
first thing you will get is full force resistance.  Getting together several
senators and governors to write a letter saying "This is bad, we need to
release him" would be good, even getting a release in which he cannot leave
the country.  However you will probably find it more difficult to get him a
phone call, then to get a full release.  It's just how the U.S. is.

Lastly, when making banners and posters and bumper stickers, remember to
give some place for these people to look at for more information.  Yes, put
it in their face, put these everywhere and even start making random calls to
people, but make sure that there is a way that they understand that it does
affect them.  Half of the U.S. still thinks Russia is a super power that is
here to destroy the U.S. you have to get through that twenty-year ideology
and make people realize that this guy is not a spy, dirty diplomat, or
illegal alien but someone who Mrs. Robinson would have over for dinner and
apple pie and coffee the next day.

To summarize, put on his picture, make people realize this is a human being
who was hurt by an unfair law that in turn will hurt book sellers.  Which in
turn will hurt America raise prices on books and hurt the next eGeneration
of kids because someone might hack their eBooks and put in a pornographic
picture.  When doing this, don't let people forget that Mrs. Robinson likes
books and that if she ever made a copy of I Love Lucy then she could be in
violation of the DMCA.

-D






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