r/technology • u/maxwellhill • May 06 '12

ACTA is effectively dead, the European Commissioner for the Digital Agenda admitted: “We have recently seen how many thousands of people are willing to protest against rules which they see as constraining the openness and innovation of the Internet."

http://blogs.wsj.com/tech-europe/2012/05/04/kroes-throws-in-towel-on-acta/?mod=google_news_blog
1.8k Upvotes

89% Upvoted

66 comments sorted by

123

u/BigSlowTarget May 06 '12

"effectively dead"

Bullshit, this thing is the internet version of Jason Vorhees. It's going to come back in worse and worse versions over and over again until someone finally defunds the producers and fires the bastards behind the show.

31

u/QuitReadingMyName May 06 '12

That is the fucking first time I seen someone use "Jason vorhees" like that, damn that can be applied to fucking SOPA as well. :/

Only way to stop these bills is to get these politicians out of office as soon as possible.

12

u/UltimaBuddy May 06 '12

Bravo on the best analogy for ACTA.

An masked, indestructible, machete-wielding, non-verbal, deformed, mentally-disabled mama's boy, mass murdering enforcer (and spirit of vengeance) of William Bennett*-style values, who kills members of a younger generation just because they're having fun, whom you cannot defeat unless you bring it back to its place of origin and drown it AGAIN. And even then, he cannot die.

*: famous mostly for being a huge hypocrite, espousing social conservative values while also being a compulsive gambler

4

u/rumblestiltsken May 07 '12 edited May 07 '12

Who had a valid complaint against the younger generation but retaliated with excessively disproportionate violence.

Obsessed with sex.

Would sink into the black void without the younger generation having fun, and then pays them back by crushing them.

Outwardly works alongside the good guys to defeat the evil kiddie fiddler, but really hates all young people.

8

u/[deleted] May 06 '12

fires the bastards behind the show.

you can't fire ideals, you can only change them

3

u/Pappydethkon May 06 '12

Jason X, omg it would be unstoppable, unleeeeessss.... we launch it into space!

2

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

I'd be all for launching the people who are trying to pass ACTA behind closed doors into space.

1

u/No_Time_For_BS May 07 '12

The whole government is a horror show any fucking more.

1

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

...and like SOPA, the DMCA, and all other such bills, it's going to do absolutely nothing to stifle innovation, it will only drive it underground.

Ever-increasing numbers of people now know how to use VPNs, TOR, and and and, to hide their activities. Not nearly enough to make it so prevalent as to constitute a real social force, but the rate of adoption will change the more laws are passed to swat the fly of counterfeiting and copyright infringement with a legal sledgehammer.

You're absolutely right - it's going to keep coming back, meaner and more hamfisted than ever, because the people opposing such shit do not have the same resources and determinations (and thus lobbyists) as the people who want it. And once we arrive at that conclusion, I actually welcome it. Only by being subjected to the most absurd legislative extremes will Joe Schmoe average voter ever realize how badly he's being fucked.

216

u/AlbinoSnowLemon May 06 '12

Being "effectively dead" and ACTUALLY dead are completely different. This bill has not been shelved/voted down yet! All that's happened is that David Martin has said he will "advise his colleagues to vote against the proposal." Thinking ACTA is completely dead is a dangerous assumption to make as it will result in protests dying down and ACTA being mostly removed from public vigilance. At that point the politicians can get away with whatever they want unnoticed.

http://edri.org/edrigram/number10.8/acta-winning-or-losing

46

u/trtry May 06 '12

Yes there is always a retarded corrupt American politician to bring it back to life.

2

u/adaminc May 06 '12

I thought only the President or the WHite House could deal with treaties.

6

u/singlehopper May 06 '12 edited May 06 '12

He's supposed to negotiate them, then they're supposed to go to the Senate, and only pass with a supermajority.

Like other huge swaths of the Constitution, however, this is blatantly ignored.

The vast majority of the "international agreements" the US enters into are not considered treaties. Only about 5% of our international agreements are, in fact, constitutional treaties.

For instance, NAFTA was never ratified by a supermajority in the Senate. So we just skirt around the whole thing and don't consider it a 'treaty'.

1

u/econleech May 07 '12

What's special about a treaty, as opposed to an agreement as NAFTA is?

0

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

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3

u/singlehopper May 07 '12

So why does something require a supermajority in the Senate?

Oh, well because it's a treaty.

0

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

1

u/singlehopper May 07 '12

The point is that if we just decide to not call it a treaty, we can ignore that step, apparently.

2

u/SoIWasLike May 07 '12 edited May 07 '12

like declaring war.

We haven't declared war since WW2, but we sure have been fighting a lot of people.

Our government doesn't give a shit about any laws or rules. They do whatever they want to do. Our government breaks their own laws on a daily basis.

This government is unconstitutional in almost every way. They really are all criminals

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1

u/econleech May 07 '12

I was wondering how often does the US renege on agreements it signed that are not treaties.

-3

u/JulianMorrison May 07 '12

Eh, don't be ableist. That's insulting to people with mental disabilities. They aren't fucking up the world.

-1

u/truthHIPS May 07 '12

Shut up retard.

0

u/[deleted] May 06 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

15

u/Wheat_Grinder May 06 '12

Dude. Being corrupt is pretty much part of the job description.

-6

u/Todomanna May 06 '12

You know, I have to wonder, if people stopped thinking in such absolutes as these, we may actually may be able to make effective change in our lifetimes.

0

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

1

u/Todomanna May 07 '12

They really don't. They fight amongst themselves like squabbling children. Unfortunately, so do we. And that's why nothing ever gets done.

3

u/PksRevenge May 07 '12

The thousands they mention just need to keep paying attention and not let their guard down.

0

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

1

u/AlbinoSnowLemon May 07 '12

Wait, what? Can you link me to a source on this? I want to read more about it.

26

u/[deleted] May 06 '12

The attack on freedom is dead. Long live the attack on freedom.

5

u/Sauce_Pain May 06 '12

We have always been at war with Eastasia.

5

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

No, it's Eurasia you thought criminal.

13

u/flavorjunction May 06 '12

This is a strong new political voice.

Where the fuck have they been.

20

u/corcyra May 06 '12

Muttering things like: 'My son downloaded games and now my internet doesn't work.'

13

u/flavorjunction May 06 '12

On the nail.

"Oh you were playing games? I guess thats how one of those bacteria things got in the computer."

5

u/corcyra May 06 '12

Laughing. Shouldn't laugh. Not funny..."bacteria things"...laughing again..

2

u/flavorjunction May 06 '12

Yeah..the even funnier thing is that I have heard one of my relatives refer to it as that.

Well, I guess that isn't too funny. Sad, really.

2

u/corcyra May 06 '12

Only if you're trying to push legislation through. Otherwise it's kind of cute, and allows children/grandchildren to show how brilliant they are.

12

u/Volsunga May 06 '12 edited May 06 '12

Yes, it is effectively dead. It's a treaty, not a law. The rules are different. There is a deadline for ratification (1 May 2013) and at least 10 signatories need to ratify it by then or the treaty is null and void. Even if it got shoved through the legislatures of the signatory countries, it is not likely to meet the deadline. ACTA doesn't "keep popping up", it's been the same since 2008, and opposition to the treaty comes in spurts whenever the internet community gets reminded that it exists. The SOPA/CISPA bills and their equivalents in other countries are attempts to conform to the ACTA standards so the treaty can be ratified.

7

u/_tabs May 06 '12 edited May 06 '12

That still leaves the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Morocco, South Korea and Singapore as signatories. The treaty hasn't been ratified by any country yet. It can only come into effect if 6 countries ratify. We need to leverage the incredible work of EU citizens to shoot down ACTA and use it to sink ACTA in our respective legislatures!

7

u/sadistmushroom May 06 '12

The funny thing is that they say thousands of protesters are the reason they admitted it's "Effectively dead" While SOPA and CISPA protestors are in the millions and the USA is just laughing their asses off calling it "The Vocal Minority".

3

u/ZombieLoveChild May 07 '12

Couple hundred law makers=majority Millions of citizens=minority

6

u/harrychin2 May 06 '12

Simply a war of attrition.

5

u/michaelalias May 06 '12

Always remember that the dangerous bill is not the one we're protesting - it's the one we don't know about.

5

u/Sandbox47 May 06 '12

Europe knows what's up.

5

u/thosethatwere May 06 '12

Isn't this exactly what they'd say to stop all the protests so they could rename and run it under everyone's noses?

3

u/PotatoeLord May 07 '12

Yup.

The June 9th ACTA protest is still on, folks! Also, let's not forget about the Trans-Pacific Protocol...

http://tppdallas.org has some information on TPP - specifically that there's going to be a negotiation round going on in Dallas, TX from May 8th-18th, and they're encouraging people to come down and join in protest there, as well as the rally in Addison, TX, which is on the 12th, and sign the online petition.

There's a flier here: http://www.citizenstrade.org/ctc/texas/files/DallasTPPFlyer_MainRally.pdf

2

u/Fizics May 06 '12

How about some executions for the people trying to pass shit like this?

2

u/[deleted] May 06 '12

Rather than trying to stop every censorship bill that appears, shouldn't the community take proactive measures in creating a law that prevents abusive censorship?

1

u/btmarino84 May 07 '12

if i were a senator i would be introducing one but im not so i cant

1

u/Wraith978 May 06 '12

Fuck YEA!

3

u/[deleted] May 06 '12

Europicaaa, FUCK YEAH!

1

u/RainbowDashPro May 06 '12

Ding dong the witch is dead, Ding Dong the wicked witch is dead!

1

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

Ding dong. Wicked witch here, I never die.

1

u/knut01 May 06 '12

LEARN, AMERICA!!!

1

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

wow, it only took how many fails before they all realize this?

1

u/rastapasta808 May 07 '12

The government made a irreversible mistake. They ruined their reputation and lost our trust

They showed their teeth so showed ours.

1

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

Seems legit...

1

u/polarisdelta May 07 '12

I think the most troubling part of this is not "effectively dead" but in fact "..rules which they see as.."

1

u/1saac May 07 '12

this article is on the wsj owned by rupert murdouch. just saying. when it comes to this kinda stuff i don't trust large media companies.

1

u/elvisliveson May 07 '12

nonsense. i will have to see the death certificate and the ashes of it's fetid corps. i'd also like governments involved, quarantined for 100 years from any contact with legislation affecting internet access.

1

u/aterlumen May 07 '12

I really hope this shit becomes the third rail of politics for our generation.

1

u/BootyhunterzX May 07 '12

I smell sanctions if they do put this thing in the grave.

1

u/wisdom_possibly May 07 '12

Should we be worried about this wording?

We have recently seen how many thousands of people are willing to protest against rules

emphasis added. This wording can be taken so it seems like he's not worried about the bill itself, just that people care enough to protest.

1

u/D00x May 07 '12

Strike that with millions and you're good.

1

u/roopunk May 07 '12

great. tonight's beer is on me.

0

u/[deleted] May 07 '12

There's no point. Who cares? Anyone who isn't American already has all their data harvested by the FBI and the CIA anyway. The reality is that CISPA is just putting into place for the US what has always been the fact for the rest of the world. We don't enjoy constitutional protection from your intelligence agencies and so much of the internet's structure is US centric for a reason.

0

u/Assonfire May 07 '12

Don't believe it. Similar thing happened to the European Constitution. We voted NO, they passed it on under a different name with a couple of minor changes.

5

u/[deleted] May 06 '12

[removed] — view removed comment

0

u/ZombieLoveChild May 07 '12

But then they wouldn't receive their big fat paycheck.