[pp.int.general] levies

[Ray Jenson]

Apologies for being late on this discussion, I've been ill and in bed
for a number of days.

I want to point out that levies, and in particular the kinds of levies
you're talking about, are counterproductive to the stated aims of the
Pirate Party. We don't simply want to tax everything to excess, because
not only does that play into the hands of the Copyright Regime, it also
weakens our position as being pro-consumer across all categories. Rather
than simply being anti-Regime, we should be pro-consumer. This means
opposition to the taxation of free trade, culture, and private
communications (except as necessary to offset the costs associated with
these things).

The question to ask is: what purpose does it serve to place a levy on
culture? If we're going for revenge, then we will ultimately reap not
only the positive side of that action, but also the negative. Simply
ignoring the "down side" of the equation is what gets everyone in trouble.

In this case, we're becoming worse than those we are intending to
oppose. You must look at it from the position of the typical consumer.
In this case, the Dutch viewpoint is absolutely correct, I think: a levy
will only create more criminals (due to people not paying because
they're morally opposed to giving a corrupt government even more money
to toy with), and in the end it solves nothing.

We're better than that. Rather than playing into the corruption, or
trying to punish someone, why not work against the corruption and work
toward everyone's benefit (including, ultimately, the Copyright Regime)?

I know, I can already see the torches and pitchforks of my heresy, but I
honestly believe that simply working toward a balance of the copyright
system as a whole will benefit consumers, but also the Copyright Regime
itself can learn that a more balanced system is a more profitable system
for them, since it means less money spent on pointless litigations and
needless enforcement tactics.

Enforcement tactics, like enforcing a levy that nobody really wants to
pay to begin with.

Hope this helps people understand my perspective, even if you don't
agree. I would encourage logic in your replies, rather than thoughts of
revenge or "sticking it to them" since these activities have
consequences that are less than desirable in the long term.

Ray Jenson
Operations Officer
Pirate Party of the United States