EU's Main ACTA Supporter Caught Lying About ACTA
from the and-this-shocks-anyone? dept
As a few folks have submitted, EU Commissioner for Trade, Karel De Gucht -- the main EU politician backing ACTA -- has been caught lying about ACTA. As you may recall, the EU Parliament was quite skeptical of ACTA for quite some time. However, De Gucht convinced the EU Parliament to support ACTA by claiming nothing in ACTA would impact penal enforcement of intellectual property rules, suggesting that it fully complied with existing rules. The only problem? Well, this was a lie. But it was a lie of omission. De Gucht has now admitted that some countries may have to change their local laws to comply with ACTA, but tried to defend the earlier statements by saying since there are no uniform EU rules on penal enforcement for IP, it was technically correct that no changes were required to the EU-wide rules. That seems... disingenuous, at best.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Filed Under: acta, eu, karel de gucht
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
[ link to this | view in thread ]
The Copmissioner can actually be charged for perverting the cause of justice!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Evil Europe!!!
I'm pretty sure it wasn't the EU which claimed secrecy was needed to protect "national security". I'm pretty sure it wasn't the EU who illegally gave access to "national security" documents to the entertainment industry. And I'm quite sure that no politician here in the EU ever stopped in the middle of a campaign to run back to the office in order to vote against people's privacy the way some guy in Washington did when it came to FISA.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
ACTA Club
The Second Rule of ACTA is you don't talk about ACTA...
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Evil Europe!!!
also, I was under the impression that everyone just assumed the US government sucked like that as a matter of course, and thus it was not interesting to point out
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
Now get back under your bridge, troll!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
So there is only 1 EU craphead in the political structure? I bet its at least 1 for 1 in comparison. You are an idiot, even for a troll.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Lies
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Usually where there's one lie, there's a 1000 more.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Evil Europe!!!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Evil Europe!!!
It's obvious (blatantly so) to anyone who has spent even a few minutes looking at the site that Mike slams EVERYONE equally.
He is an equal opportunity slammer. I've seen him slam just about every government and country in the civilized - and not so civilized - world.
Learn to read... READ TECHDIRT... then come back and apologize and MAYBE... just maybe... we MIGHT forgive your ignorant arrogance.
"Mike, you seem inordinately pleased to slam Europe whenever possible, happily ignoring the US' transgressions on any subject. One shitball EU politician who has been outed versus the entirety of the US gubmint: president, press group, Congress, Federal bureaus and the courts. If you have a good argument to make -- and in the case of ACTA you do -- you don't need to include ad hominem attacks.
I'm pretty sure it wasn't the EU which claimed secrecy was needed to protect "national security". I'm pretty sure it wasn't the EU who illegally gave access to "national security" documents to the entertainment industry. And I'm quite sure that no politician here in the EU ever stopped in the middle of a campaign to run back to the office in order to vote against people's privacy the way some guy in Washington did when it came to FISA."
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
Learn to troll better. Most of the articles here are about the US, and most of them are pointing out something stupid that is happening or being done. Try looking back about two weeks and see how many pieces there were about the TSA screenings. And then learn to troll more subtly....
"Here in Europe it's been pretty quiet for the past 65 years."
That's true. You've calmed down the warring and look what you've achieved. The unification of Europe!
...wait, here have I heard that before?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
You need a better lead up to the troll piece ...
When I was in spain last summer I saw a whole lot of interesting architecture left over from the roman era. One in particular struck me as something you would find very homey. It was a roman arch running over a small river, and best off all its for sale, it does have one problem though it over looks an abandoned CD pressing factory ...
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
THEM STEALERS ARE RUINING OUR TROLL-BRIDGE ASSOCIATED LAND VALUE INDUSTRY!!!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
The realtor tells me its a feature. In two thousand years it will be of minor historic importance.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Evil Europe!!!
Huh? I'm pretty sure I write about US gov't transgressions a LOT more than European ones. I think you may have a bit of selection bias.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
I'm betting you're now becoming just a little bit less of a fan of ad hominem attacks, and the fact of the matter is I'm not calling you a poopyface; I'm looking at your blog and commenting on it. This is what Mike does on occasion. Maybe it comes from being in the US and growing more accustomed to the nearly unspeakable actions of those who rule under the guise of representing.
The EU is hardly the ne plus ultra of civilisation (not until we nuke Portugal and Greece, anyway), but the size and distribution of the bureaucracies works fairly well to stymie bad legislation, and history serves to protect us from making these mistakes again. In comparison the US has a rather long history of intentional memory loss.
So now if you'd like to return to the original subject I'll be awake for a while. If you just want to continue the name-calling and OT bullshit, you can just go fuck yourself; I still need to clip my toenails tonight and my kid is, at this moment, pretending she's Welsh. With this in mind perhaps you'll understand that my actual concerns are a bit more important to me and mine than the baseless opinion of some random intarwebs twit.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
bravo sir, bravo... you are indeed rallying people to adjust their viewpoints to be more in line with yours by the use of false statements and jabs intended at directing the focus elsewhere.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Evil Europe!!!
As a regular reader from the UK I have to wonder how long you've actually read Techdirt. I have never seen a bias towards slamming Europe.
"you don't need to include ad hominem attacks. "
He didn't. Ironically (or not), you are the one who is making an ad hominem attack in calling Mike anti-Europe with nothing apparent to back it up.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
I am so sorry. Have her commited its the only way. Anyone wanting to be welsh needs to be in the room next to napolean.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
Okay, so you weren't trolling. I guess your attack on Mike as being biased against Europe was just really, REALLY wrong....
"I've also looked at your blog, Tim, and I find it as lacking as its traffic reports show"
I'm sure you're right, and thanks for taking the time to look. I haven't devoted NEARLY enough time to my own blog. It's something I'm hoping to change....
"which may explain why your attempt to ride this site's story about digital distribution were about as successful as your attempts to get others to cheer on your writing (when you're not forced to work two jobs)."
I don't understand your attack. And I'm not sure where I tried to ride TD to success, either. And no, my work as a writer has not made me as successful as I want...yet! Good news, I'm relatively young for the writing world, and I've heard many authors refer to what I'm doing now as "paying your dues". But thanks for your concern, albeit a kind of angry one....
"I'm betting you're now becoming just a little bit less of a fan of ad hominem attacks, and the fact of the matter is I'm not calling you a poopyface"
Ha ha, poop. I too love that word. And, sorry, I thought you were trolling because that's how it sounded to me. Turns out you were just super wrong. No biggie. Happens to me too. And I'm not one to really require an apology after an attack. It's no big deal to me....
"Maybe it comes from being in the US and growing more accustomed to the nearly unspeakable actions of those who rule under the guise of representing."
Psst! You DO realize that I'm one of the most critical of the US on this site, right? That I've been labeled a conspiracy theorist because of some of the things I've accused our government and businesses of doing? I'm not sure what your problem with ME is, honestly....
"The EU is hardly the ne plus ultra of civilisation (not until we nuke Portugal and Greece, anyway)"
FACEPALM!
"but the size and distribution of the bureaucracies works fairly well to stymie bad legislation, and history serves to protect us from making these mistakes again."
Interestingly, I would disagree with you. What Europe looks like today from the standpoint of homogeonization reeks of Hitler's plans. The only difference is that your beuracracies are controlled not by the Reich, but by an international banking system that is raping the bajeezus out of your economies. But good news! Those same bankers are doing it to us too!
"So now if you'd like to return to the original subject I'll be awake for a while."
No more names. No more calling you a troll. The original topic you raised was Mike's supposed bias against Europe. An even cursory examination of this site's stories shows how silly such an assertion is.
Happy holidays...and please don't nuke Greece. My boss is Greek, and it'd put him in a bad mood....
[ link to this | view in thread ]
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Selection bias
I am an immigrant. I left the US and the EU has been willing to put up with me. I am here at their sufferance. As you may have noticed, I tend to take the position of the loyal opposition, a concept almost universally lost on Americans. I complain bitterly about this place (the PIIGS nations have fucked those of us who are fiscally responsible) and I'm so quick to point out problems that people ask me why I moved here.
You can't fix any problem you can't identify.
After a few years of reading and participating on this site it seems to me that you really slam Europe inordinately and inappropriately hard for things that you fully accept the US doing. Wiretapping? Secret investigations? Propaganda? Net neutrality>? Corrupt politicians? All par for the course... as long as it's the US. Just one idiot here seems to justify a massive sense of outrage, and that was my point: one idiot who can be stopped without effort, but you're outraged.
The idiots calling me a trooooooooooll can all die in a single fire (the AC who did so did make me giggle). I wrote the comment and answered you here for you to consider. Maybe I'm wrong -- hell, I studied econ for fun -- but maybe you are, too.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
Unlike a great part of the US court system, Germany courts are not ruled by precedent. Only the parliament and the Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe can make decisions which are binding on other courts. For comparison, please imagine someone expecting a PCSO to arrest, subdue and take into custody an armed bank robber. Or a traffic warden. "Well he wears a uniform, has a badge and works for the council! Why isn't he doing anything?!"
And Mike does this all the time. Just look at the germany tag. Or the france one. The whole world is not the US and US law does not apply here. On the continent, guns are generally illegal and tits are "family friendly", and on this side of the Channel the latter show up on the front page rather than being buried inside somewhere.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
So sleepy...
Could you please give some meaningful examples, or GTFO, troll?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
They are pointing out flaws with law, and calling out stupid bullshit.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Selection bias
I just have one question: are you insane? The majority of posts on Techdirt are slamming the US for those very things you list. If anything, Techdirt is US-centric, and subjects the US to greater scrutiny and in more detail than other countries, mentioning only the worst offenses from other countries. I might hypothesize a reason for this would be the greater knowledge of the US and its political and legal system than the systems of other countries, leading to more thorough exposition for US stories.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Re: Re: Evil Europe!!!
If you have a point then it would seem to be that Mike is American. Well done you.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
[ link to this | view in thread ]
[ link to this | view in thread ]