NZ Pirates better than US pawns
When the USA just about invents the bulk of today's technology, you might think it has a right to say how it should work; however, the amount of US government involvement over copyright legislation is disturbing.
This week, we have seen how the US Government offered to "help" the New Zealand Government write its "three strikes" Bill.
It follows similar pressure from the US on Canada and comes as Britain has also adopted a Digital Economy Bill, with "three strikes" legislation just like that in New Zealand.
It all seems somewhat uncanny that Britain and New Zealand produce similar clauses to the same legislation as we see Uncle Sam exposed for bullying its next door neighbour.
I remember when the old Labour Government under Helen Clark would attack the then National Party opposition for having "policies written in Washington" when it came to the nuclear-free New Zealand issue.
It seems interesting to see that, according to Wikileaks, when Labour adopted copyright legislation far more stringent than National eventually did (if its policy was not written in Washington), it was because the US ambassador actually sat in the Beehive dictating it word for word.
None of the main political parties come out of it too well. This includes the Greens, whose MP Gareth Hughes submitted a last-minute amendment to the recently passed Bill opposing any disconnection to the internet for repeat offenders.
Wikileaks cables say that Green Party leaders met with top US government officials and enjoyed much hospitality, leading to accusations that the party was bought off by Uncle Sam and toned down its anti-Americanism.
It all seems very suspicious and very interfering of Uncle Sam. But who is pulling Washington's strings?
You might recall I said last year that in any scandal we have to "follow the money".
Maybe we have to go all the way to big Hollywood.
As I said then, how soon before that big donation to the Obama campaign becomes a US government policy to push copyright law globally?
If all our main parties are the pawns of overseas interests, we just might well have to turn to the Pirate Party.
Like in Sweden, we have anti-copyright Bill "pirates" planning to stand in our upcoming New Zealand general election.
I am not sure if these "Pirates" have the answer, but the Copyright Bill shows a great failure in the mainstream political parties of New Zealand if they really were pawns of Washington and Hollywood in such a big way.