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April 13, 2004
Support Our Troops: Legalize Music Sharing
Posted by Jason Schultz
According to the RIAA, music sharing of thousands of songs is piracy. So why aren't they suing the troops?
From the NYTimes via BoingBoing:
At the Kirkush Military Training Base in the eastern Iraqi desert less than 15 miles from the frontier with Iran, an hour's wait for a helicopter was spent listening to Marilyn Manson, Eminem and Shania Twain before the Black Hawk fired up its turbines and somebody back in the barracks, as if on cue and with a dark sense of irony, cranked up Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven." The songs came from a European satellite music channel and a communal computer where 12.8 gigabites of tunes had been downloaded for sharing on MP3's. The rule was simple: Take some music, add some music. "Any time anybody on the team gets a new CD, they load it in, so we stay pretty current," said Sgt. Thomas R. Mena.
As the new CD from Tool blasted in the barracks, Sergeant Mena scrolled through the computerized music library, which ranged from Abba and AC/DC, through Limp Biskit and Metallica and on to Van Halen and ZZ Top. Emigres from West Africa who joined the Army for citizenship and career training arrived with the latest Nigerian pop CD's. Chinese-Americans hauled along hot Hong Kong video imports.
Comments (3)
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1. AdamThomas on April 13, 2004 6:13 PM writes...
Good article. Please link to the 'Printer Friendly' versions
Thanks
Permalink to Comment2. Kop on April 15, 2004 3:17 PM writes...
Maybe the title was suppposed to be rhetorical, but... in addition to obvious political problem, soveriegn immunity might be a legal obstacle.
Permalink to Comment3. Jason Schultz on April 15, 2004 6:23 PM writes...
The US government has explicitly waived sovereign immunity for copyright infringement, at least as to damages.
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