Comments on: Europeans! You've got 48h to contact your MEP and demand a free, open and fair Internet! http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html Brain candy for Happy Mutants Sat, 25 May 2013 09:37:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.1 By: meeware http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-484610 meeware Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-484610 I didn't have an opportunity to phone my MEPs (plus, I have LOADS of them- EU level representation is a cloud lke affair). Anyway, of the seven I emailed, I received three responses: Nigel Farage of UKIP (a rather fringe party who want to disband the whole EU) was wholeheartedly in support of the ammendments and sent a brief, but clearly personal note. Which is nice. Caroline Lucas of the Green party sent a detailed response today, via her assistant which gave a detailed response outlining the current state of play as of tuesday, and making clear their party's commitment to the principles of free and equal access to the internet. And finally Sharon Bowles of the Liberal Democrats gave an update on the voting process and indicated that she felt it was going to be necessary to put pressure on national governments not to wheedle their way out of EU wide commitments to net neutrality and access rights. All three of these groups seem to be strongly in favour of the approach advocated on these pages. I should make clear that I am in no way affiliated to any of these political groups, but that these are my representatives in the European parliament. I didn’t have an opportunity to phone my MEPs (plus, I have LOADS of them- EU level representation is a cloud lke affair). Anyway, of the seven I emailed, I received three responses:
Nigel Farage of UKIP (a rather fringe party who want to disband the whole EU) was wholeheartedly in support of the ammendments and sent a brief, but clearly personal note. Which is nice.
Caroline Lucas of the Green party sent a detailed response today, via her assistant which gave a detailed response outlining the current state of play as of tuesday, and making clear their party’s commitment to the principles of free and equal access to the internet.
And finally Sharon Bowles of the Liberal Democrats gave an update on the voting process and indicated that she felt it was going to be necessary to put pressure on national governments not to wheedle their way out of EU wide commitments to net neutrality and access rights.

All three of these groups seem to be strongly in favour of the approach advocated on these pages. I should make clear that I am in no way affiliated to any of these political groups, but that these are my representatives in the European parliament.

]]> By: Antiqueight http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-482838 Antiqueight Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-482838 Done - I even got a couple of replies from MEPs saying they agreed and would vote it down - I will be watching. Done – I even got a couple of replies from MEPs saying they agreed and would vote it down – I will be watching.

]]> By: Alex_M http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-481819 Alex_M Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-481819 Even the compromise proposal is a heck of a lot better than the state of affairs in the USA. France is not going to get their 'three strikes' rule on internet disconnection. It will require a court order. Even the compromise proposal is a heck of a lot better than the state of affairs in the USA.

France is not going to get their ‘three strikes’ rule on internet disconnection. It will require a court order.

]]> By: coffeemoon http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-482631 coffeemoon Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-482631 silly. I sent a link and warning through about this three days ago, more people could have read this. Nevermind. silly. I sent a link and warning through about this three days ago, more people could have read this. Nevermind.

]]> By: Anonymous http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-481642 Anonymous Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-481642 For those with a short attention span and in need of some motivational peptalk for this: Here's a quick snappy video to explain it to you! (complete with usable e-mail template and all) http://bit.ly/oEAW3 For those with a short attention span and in need of some motivational peptalk for this: Here’s a quick snappy video to explain it to you! (complete with usable e-mail template and all) http://bit.ly/oEAW3

]]> By: cleepa http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-481936 cleepa Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-481936 I find it disturbing that the public never seems to have more than a couple of days to contact MEPs on issues like this. There have been so many posts Cory has made like this one that urge people into frantic last minute action. By contrast, the recording industry corporations (or whoever is championing the latest law) seem to have months and months to submit their arguments. This is unbalanced and wrong! The goverment exists to serve the people, not the corporations. I find it disturbing that the public never seems to have more than a couple of days to contact MEPs on issues like this. There have been so many posts Cory has made like this one that urge people into frantic last minute action. By contrast, the recording industry corporations (or whoever is championing the latest law) seem to have months and months to submit their arguments. This is unbalanced and wrong! The goverment exists to serve the people, not the corporations.

]]> By: Michael Leung http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-481689 Michael Leung Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-481689 Wow, the evilness of the government about the Intertubes spreads everywhere. Wow, the evilness of the government about the Intertubes spreads everywhere.

]]> By: annoyingmouse http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-483499 annoyingmouse Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-483499 I've just spotted that the supposedly neutral European Parliament June 2009 elections <a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/elections2009/default.htm">information site</a> has today put up an <a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/elections2009/welcome/headlines.htm;jsessionid=93585923DF17F350CA5E225AF4E50AF9.node1?language=EN&ref=20090504STO54873&secondRef=0">utterly biased article</a> where Conservative British MEP Malcolm Harbour is given a platform with which to voice his rubbish. The article couldn't be more unbalanced in it's "think about the children" and anti-<a href="http://www.blackouteurope.eu/">Black Out Europe</a> lies. It is a laughable article that I would have almost ignored if it hadn't been on the main page of this information site. I’ve just spotted that the supposedly neutral European Parliament June 2009 elections information site has today put up an utterly biased article where Conservative British MEP Malcolm Harbour is given a platform with which to voice his rubbish. The article couldn’t be more unbalanced in it’s “think about the children” and anti-Black Out Europe lies. It is a laughable article that I would have almost ignored if it hadn’t been on the main page of this information site.

]]> By: Anonymous http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-481755 Anonymous Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-481755 You can send a message to your MEPS in the website http://xmailer.hacktivistas.net/en/message You can send a message to your MEPS in the website http://xmailer.hacktivistas.net/en/message

]]> By: Anonymous http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-481757 Anonymous Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-481757 Mass mailing campaign is at work to let MEPs know: http://hacktivistas.net/content/open-letter-to-meps http://digg.com/d1qGZs isaac Mass mailing campaign is at work to let MEPs know:
http://hacktivistas.net/content/open-letter-to-meps
http://digg.com/d1qGZs

isaac

]]> By: agger http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-482015 agger Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-482015 #3 Cleepa, one of the reasons for this is the difference of means: The industry - indsutry of all kinds, recording industry, telcoms, software & hardware industry (e.g., re: software patents and surveillance, which could yield big contracts), pharma industry - maintain a heavy presence at all times. By contrast, there's only a small handful of activists representing the other side, and a similar small handful of "progressive" MEPs. So in situations like this the industry gets to write the main papers, and the activists and minority MEPs have to appeal to common sense and public outrage to get through amendments. So when sometimes dates are fixed or moved in the last minute, civil rights suffer, not the industry; and the industry doesn't need public support anyway, it uses euros instead. #3 Cleepa,

one of the reasons for this is the difference of means: The industry – indsutry of all kinds, recording industry, telcoms, software & hardware industry (e.g., re: software patents and surveillance, which could yield big contracts), pharma industry – maintain a heavy presence at all times.

By contrast, there’s only a small handful of activists representing the other side, and a similar small handful of “progressive” MEPs. So in situations like this the industry gets to write the main papers, and the activists and minority MEPs have to appeal to common sense and public outrage to get through amendments. So when sometimes dates are fixed or moved in the last minute, civil rights suffer, not the industry; and the industry doesn’t need public support anyway, it uses euros instead.

]]> By: LX http://boingboing.net/2009/05/04/europeans-youve-got.html#comment-482288 LX Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 #comment-482288 Sorry, us Germans are already busy almost DDOSing our governments petition server to stop the plans of the family minister to censor the Internet to allegedly stop child porn (will not work, says sweden). Greetings, LX Sorry, us Germans are already busy almost DDOSing our governments petition server to stop the plans of the family minister to censor the Internet to allegedly stop child porn (will not work, says sweden).

Greetings, LX

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