[lug] SSSCA, may not pass a court test

[Tkil]

>>>>> "Rob" == Rob Mohr <robmohr at earthnet.net> writes:

Rob> I have not read all posts in this thread, but not all laws signed
Rob> pass a court test.  And given our Bill of Rights, I expect a
Rob> quick challenge, if it comes into law.

that's what we said about the DMCA, too.  but it's still stifling
research, getting foreign programmers landed in jail, and similar
trouble.

the problem is that going to court is expensive, and not everyone can
afford it; even groups like the EFF can only help so much, when it's
trying to deal with cases where their opponents are funded by the like
of microsoft, sony, aol/tw, and disney.  even if they're losing, they
can keep people tied up in court for so long that they've "won",
either by bankrupting the opponent, or by getting so much money and
market share in the meantime that it's basically a moot point.

the spirit of the law (in the sense of the constitution) is a good
one, but the current system tends to enforce the golden rule ("whoever
has the gold, makes the rules") almost as a byproduct.

ever the optimist,
t.

p.s. the other side of this is how even the threat of unfavorable laws
     or lawsuits, combined with a small number of global suppliers,
     will make certain hardware completely unavailable: remember DATs?

p.p.s. the third place to watch out is vertical suppliers: any company
       that supplies both content and hardware will tend to build
       their hardware to protect their content.  don't believe me?
       try using a sony CD-RW drive to back up a sony playstation
       game.