Now Senator Hatch Says P2P Software Companies Like Tobacco, Asbestos Firms

from the corrupting-our-youth dept

Senator Orrin Hatch certainly has the ability to say noticeable quotes about file sharing. He’s the guy who asked if it was possible to destroy computers of those who used file sharing to access works illegally. Later, he flipped a bit and said he thought the RIAA was going too far with their lawsuits. It’s a little tough to figure out what world view makes it okay to destroy computers of certain users, but not okay to sue them. Anyway, his latest target is the P2P software makers themselves. He’s warning them that if kids download any pornography, trial lawyers are going to sue them out of existence. He compares them to tobacco and asbestos companies – though, he clearly says he doesn’t believe they should be sued. It reads like a typical organized crime offhanded threat: “I’m not saying I would do anything to you, but, if you don’t play ball, I can’t guarantee that someone else might not take a bat to your kneecaps…”


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Comments on “Now Senator Hatch Says P2P Software Companies Like Tobacco, Asbestos Firms”

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2 Comments
Anonymous Coward says:

Mike has an epiphany

> […] It reads like a typical organized crime offhanded threat: “I’m not saying I would do anything to you, but, if you don’t play ball, I can’t guarantee that someone else might not take a bat to your kneecaps

I believe this is what some people call “a moment of clarity”.

Perhaps the realization that the US government is not *that* far displaced from organized crime is but a step on the road to maturity, none the less it is good to see that the realzation being made.

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