aaron c beals

back in November, i wrote my local representatives asking them to stand against SOPA/PIPA. the senators (Kerry and Brown — i’m a lifelong MA resident) were quick to respond, or at least their offices were.

from the office of John Kerry:

Thank you for contacting my online office. I always appreciate hearing from you, whether you’re getting in touch with us for help on a constituent matter or weighing in on the issues being debated right now in the United States Senate — whatever the reason for your email, please know that we read these emails diligently and please be assured that our office will work in a timely manner to respond to your comments and concerns. If this matter is time sensitive, I’d encourage you to also call my offices in Massachusetts or Washington and speak with a member of my team so there’s no waiting and we can begin to help you today. DC 202-224-2742. MA 617-565-8519.

A couple of quick notes:

First, this email account is not technologically able to receive a response to this email, it is only an outgoing account — so please submit any additional comments through my website at www.kerry.senate.gov — I always want to hear from you, and I always want to make sure that your feedback and comments are properly received here.

Second, if you are contacting me regarding casework because you need assistance in resolving an issue or filing a complaint, I ask that you go to my website www.kerry.senate.gov/services and download the privacy disclosure form and fax or mail a copy of your email and form to my Boston office. Once we have this information we can begin to process your case.

Lastly, please sign up for my electronic newsletter by visiting www.kerry.senate.gov/newsletter — it’s free, it doesn’t cost the taxpayers a dime, and it doesn’t waste paper — but it’s another way for us to stay in touch and for me to update you on the work I’m doing and all the issues that affect Massachusetts which are being debated and voted on in the United States Senate.

for those keeping score, i didn’t actually get a response about SOPA/PIPA here, nor did i receive a real reply in a “timely manner”… unless that translates to “February”.

from the office of Scott P. Brown:

Dear Aaron,

Thank you for contacting me regarding the Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property (PROTECT IP) Act (S. 968). As always, I value your input and appreciate hearing from you.

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced S. 968 on May 12, 2011. The PROTECT IP Act aims to provide law enforcement with tools to stop websites dedicated to online piracy and the sale of counterfeit goods, which range from new movie and music releases to pharmaceutical drugs and consumer products.

I understand your concerns about online information sharing and censorship. On May 26, 2011, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, of which I am not a member, approved S. 968, and it now awaits further action by the full Senate. As the legislative process moves forward, I will keep your thoughts in mind.

Again, thank you for sharing your views with me. Should you have any additional questions or comments, please feel free to contact me or visit my website at www.scottbrown.senate.gov.

Sincerely,
Scott P. Brown
United States Senator

Please visit my website and public pages:

To sign up for my e-newsletter, click here. Next time you’re in Washington, plan to attend my monthly constituent coffee, RSVP here.

*** Please do not reply directly to this message as this mailbox cannot receive inbound messages. Should you have any additional questions or comments, please visit my website at http://scottbrown.senate.gov. ***

in other words: “i hear you, but… this is out of my hands.”

what i actually heard was “i agree with this bill for political reasons–the movie industry is giving us all boatloads of cash–but i also can’t lose you and the many tech-savvy constituents in Massachusetts, so… here’s a vague response that i hope absolves me of responsibility in case this thing passes.” well, at least he mentioned the issue at hand in his response.

also, it’s clear that senators like e-newsletters.

[ LONG PAUSE ]

in late January, long after SOPA and PIPA had been beaten into submission by an irate tech industry and tech-savvy consumers, i received this.

from the office of Scott P. Brown:

Dear Aaron,

Thank you for contacting me regarding the Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property (PROTECT IP) Act (S. 968). I am strongly opposed to this legislation.

As you know, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced S. 968 on May 12, 2011. The PROTECT IP Act aims to provide law enforcement with tools to stop websites dedicated to online piracy and the sale of counterfeit goods. However, many Americans feared that S. 968 would stifle freedom of expression and harm the Internet.

The Internet has been a source of dynamic growth in our economy and is responsible for employing many people in Massachusetts. I have very serious concerns about increased government interference in this area and the effect of the PROTECT IP Act and the Stop Online Piracy Act (H.R. 3261, House companion legislation) on the Internet. On January 18, 2012, I announced my opposition to the PROTECT IP Act. You will be pleased to know that with opposition to the bill mounting, on January 20, 2012, the Senate Majority Leader announced that the scheduled vote on the PROTECT IP Act has been indefinitely postponed.

Again, thank you for sharing your views with me. As always, I value your input and appreciate hearing from you. Should you have any additional questions or comments, please feel free to contact me or visit my website at www.scottbrown.senate.gov.

Sincerely,
Scott P. Brown
United States Senator

… clap … clap … clap …

it is with that slow golf clap, dear Senator, that i mock your boldness in standing up against this bill in the 11th hour, with pressure mounting and the withdrawal of the bill a foregone conclusion. bravo, good sir. all techies in the 128 belt can breathe easier knowing that you have our backs.

but hey, at least he responded and cared enough to pretend to care. a full two weeks later, i received the following from the senior Senator.

from the office of John Kerry:

Dear Aaron:

Thank you for your letter regarding the Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act (PROTECT IP Act). I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.

I have long championed the cause of innovation and an open Internet. Firms operating on and off the Internet strongly rely on intellectual property laws to help protect their investments and ensure a just return for their goods and services. Online piracy and copyright infringement hurts our economy and costs American businesses more than 200 billion dollars a year. Many infringers operate from foreign countries in order to avoid US law enforcement. As a result, under current law, American authorities are limited in what they can do to bring these rogue sites to justice.

As you know, the PROTECT IP Act was intended to protect American businesses from intellectual property theft on foreign websites. Among other things, the bill would provide the Attorney General with the authority to seek a court injunction against a foreign website that engages in copyright infringement. The court could also require U.S. websites to block access to websites found to be dedicated to infringing activities. For example, search engines could be required to disable links to the website that is found to be violating copyright of a US company.

However, there are a number of serious and legitimate concerns regarding the scope of the legislation, as well as the potential for abuse, censorship, or other unintended consequences. The authors recognize the legislation still needs work and I will oppose any proposal that would fundamentally undermine or impede the ability of people to communicate, compete, and innovate using the Internet.

I am pleased that Majority Leader Reid has indefinitely postponed Senate consideration of the PROTECT IP Act, and I will continue to review and work to improve legislation to both protect the intellectual property of American businesses and to ensure the web remains free and open. As I consider proposals to address these issues, I will keep your views in mind.

Thank you again for contacting me on this topic. Please don’t hesitate to reach me again on this or any other issue in the future.

“I have long championed the cause of innovation and an open Internet.” apparently not enough to stand against this clearly-flawed, industry-funded assault. read the text above — other than the sentence i quoted, the rest looks like MPAA boilerplate.

my favorite part of the reply? you’ll have to check out a screengrab — the two paragraphs that talk about the shelving of the bill are a much smaller font. subconsciously less excited about these points, or just a copy-and-paste issue with the MPAA template?

screengrab:

i don’t often discuss politics, mainly because i spend a good chunk of my life at work, and it’s generally accepted that politics and religion are both off-limits in the workplace. furthermore, i find political issues pretty polarizing in most circles, especially here in New England — and charged with enough emotion that there’s no room for an open-minded discussion.

with my recent posts on healthcare, you might think that i have abandoned my libertarian leanings or conservative roots and booked a train to the far left, but the shift in my views has been focused on healthcare and has been catalyzed by my involvement in the Global Health Delivery Project and GHDonline. a shift in political thinking is never an easy or rapid change, and between this shift and the recent election, i have spent a lot of time in deep personal, philosophical introspection.

Don Miller, author of “Blue Like Jazz”, a book I greatly enjoyed, has posted to his blog a well-thought-out analysis of his transition from a Regan Republican to an Obama Democrat. while his experiences and opinions do not match mine exactly, there are enough similarities that his post really struck home for me.

my boss’ boss is none other than Paul Farmer, who recently wrote a great piece on Obama’s health care plans. he’s clearly in the pro-Obama camp (and makes no bones about it), but i think he makes some points worthy of consideration/deliberation no matter which candidate you voted for. for more facts backing up his statements about the broken US healthcare system, see my post from Wednesday.

Can Obama Solve America’s Health Care Crisis?

most people know or have a strong idea of whom they’re going to vote for on November 4th, but even if you’re 100% certain, i believe it’s important to go back to basics and make sure you understand where you stand on the issues in comparison to each candidate. there’s a non-partisan online tool that asks you to assign points to your top issues and then asks questions from each of those issues, lining you up with four candidates (Democrat, Green, Independent, Republican). the approach is refreshing in a time when we’ve been inundated with character assassination and tired rhetoric. the issues are why we’re voting for a president, not the warm feelings they fill you with.

check it out at glassbooth.org.

the exercise didn’t change my mind, but it certainly made me more sure of my decision by reinforcing that decision with facts.