[free-sklyarov] Hometown newspaper takes Howard Coble to task...

[H. Wade Minter]

...and suggests a internet-wide email campaign to get Coble to change 
his mind.

http://www.news-record.com/news/columnists/staff/cone04.htm

The usual caveats apply - be polite and direct when you email them, 
stating your opposition and why you feel this is a bad bill in a 
reasonable manner.

EXCERPT:

Already Coble's office has received a trickle of complaints from 
constituents who feel the bill gives too much power to the entertainment 
industry. "We have heard from people who say that this gives companies 
access to their PCs. People resent that and don't want it," says 
McDonald.

What if that trickle turned into a flood, not just from the North 
Carolina Piedmont but from all around the country? It would be a 
watershed moment in the Internet's rise as a force in American 
democracy. (And the Web is all that democracy has going for it just now 
in terms of putting the heat under Coble and Berman, who are both 
running unopposed by major-party candidates this year.)

Doing this campaign right will be a test for the Internet community, 
which tends to flame first and ask questions later. Anyone who sends 
e-mail to Coble (howard.coble at mail.house.gov), Berman 
(howard.berman at mail.house.gov) or other members of the committee should 
be respectful and aim to educate, not harangue. Just explain why the 
powers granted under this bill are creepy and invasive and unfair to the 
average person, and request that Congress seek a better way to fix the 
problem of copyright protection.

There is plenty of time for action. Congress is in recess, and the bill 
won't be considered until September. Meanwhile, Howard Coble has shown 
himself to be willing to listen and learn, and even to revise his 
opinion in public. The corporate hacking bill needs to be changed, and 
you have the power to help change it.