GTALUG Position on Bill C11?

Anthony de Boer adb-SACILpcuo74 at public.gmane.org
Fri Dec 16 19:58:13 UTC 2011


D. Hugh Redelmeier wrote:
> Many in our community think that the right to break DRM is sufficient
> (but C-11 doesn't even allow that).  That's only true if DRM is easy
> enough to break.  I'm not sure that DRM will always be easy to break,
> nor should the obligation be on the users.

On the one hand, it's the creator's content to create and release as they
see fit, and if they want to release it only in DRM'ed format that's
their preogative.

However, the fact that this pushes the user into an overly-simplified use
model, and the fact that they assert that anyone whose needs go outside
the walled garden _must_ be an Evil Pirate and couldn't possibly have any
good purpose is odious.  Entrenching anti-circumvention into law merely
adds teeth to what is already an ugly monster.

Although I have a fairly good opinion of my technical skills and could
likely breach DRM if I turned my mind to it, I choose not to do so.
I have better things to do than dig through arbitrary roadblocks, would
not enjoy "entertainment" from people I disrespect, and have a 
limited discretionary budget that could go instead toward unlocked
content, woodworking tools, outdoor gear, a bottle of good Scotch, or
whatever.  

Buying DRM'ed content sends the makers a message that it's good and they
should do more of it; this is an especially stupid thing to do if you're
going to break that DRM.  I'd rather simply boycott such products, ignore
them and consider their cultural memes irrelevant, and counsel others to
do likewise.

-- 
Anthony de Boer
--
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