BraveNewCheneyWorld: It looks bad when special interest groups hand out the checks.

This.  Tom DeLay's gone, right?

cman: It is possible that the reason why it is a closed session might be due to some intellectual property that, if pirates could get ahold of it, they may be able to render it useless. Of course this is pure speculation, just one idea out there.

You realize that this mostly deals with national secrets. The protection of intellectual property is just a side part.  It really should be separate issues dealt with separately, but whatever.

Your elected representatives at work, folks.

xanadian: MindStalker: cman: It is possible that the reason why it is a closed session might be due to some intellectual property that, if pirates could get ahold of it, they may be able to render it useless. Of course this is pure speculation, just one idea out there.

You realize that this mostly deals with national secrets. The protection of intellectual property is just a side part.  It really should be separate issues dealt with separately, but whatever.

Both of these.

When the final draft of the legislation gets done up, THEN we can pick it apart.

I expect to be amazed with how quickly this can go from finished legislation to passing both houses and onto the President's desk.

I'm prepared to see record speed (for this congress).

If you think it's a coincidence that everyone in government and media is all hyped-up on "cybersecurity" right now, think again.

It's an organized campaign by media-rights holders and their lobbyists to set the stage for a stupidly over-reaching new series of laws that claim to combat cyber-crime but in reality will be used to prosecute music-pirates (who I agree are committing civil offenses and are subject to lawsuits - but the public resources needed to prosecute them as criminals are a silly waste).

BitwiseShift: Tom DeLay's gone, right?

Yes, but only because he was too arrogant and stupid to cover his tracks properly.

Dimensio: BraveNewCheneyWorld: It looks bad when special interest groups hand out the checks.

For what reason is Representative John Boehner not able to hand those checks out for them?

Cuz he'd get tears all over them and make the ink all smeary.

Remember the panic over the Fritz chip?  I'm surprised they never tried to bring that one back.

xanadian: When the final draft of the legislation gets done up, THEN we can pick it apart.

they'll have to pass it so you can know whats in it

cman: It is possible that the reason why it is a closed session might be due to some intellectual property that, if pirates could get ahold of it, they may be able to render it useless. Of course this is pure speculation, just one idea out there.

I'm pretty sure nothing in that room could be labeled "intellectual".

Nuclear Monk: cman: It is possible that the reason why it is a closed session might be due to some intellectual property that, if pirates could get ahold of it, they may be able to render it useless. Of course this is pure speculation, just one idea out there.

I'm pretty sure nothing in that room could be labeled "intellectual".

Diana Degette's not present, so you're correct.

Dr Dreidel: ...because fark you that's why.

The first one brought unholy hell (and internet blackouts). The second one brought less-unholy hell, but still failed because of public outrage. This time, they're drafting, debating and likely voting behind closed doors because "national security".

And yet I doubt there will be much substantive difference between nuCISPA, CISPA and whatever the first one was called.

// and Rand Paul likely won't filibuster, also "because national security" (he's a pussy)

^ this. Not for security, but so they can work without distractions from the citizenry.

/seethe

Governments and corporations based on artificial scarcity of information see exactly what the Internet will eventually turn the world into. And they're terrified because that world has no place for them in it.

Fortunately, they will be as successful at stopping it as they've been at stopping computers from copying data.