Distorted 08' election wrap up

I must admit watching the election was a bit different this year. Traditionally I see names scroll across the screen that mean almost nothing to me. Only the seats and percentage mattered. Not so this year. I met and paid attention to MPs and they became not just names but people.

Thus we arrive at my distorted round up.

Minority government: Yay
Rona Ambrose Elected: Boooooo
James Rajotte Elected: Yay
Laurie Hawn Elected: Yay
Charlie Angus Elected: Cheers!
Hedy Fry Elected: Duly noted.
Linda Duncan Elected: I have mixed feelings on this. It is no secret that I like the NDP but I did enjoy the meeting I had with Rahim Jaffer. He seemed like a pretty good MP. Did the Conservatives stance on copyright loose Rahim Jaffer the race? Either way I have more MPs to meet.

Reply by Rona Ambrose

Dear Mr. Grajkowski,

Thank you for your recent correspondence to our office. If you are not satisfied with the response from Minister Ambrose, I urge you to contact the Minister of Industry directly to obtain more detailed explanations regarding your concerns. The contact information for Minister Prentice is as follows:

Minister of Industry
C.D. Howe Building, East Tower, 11th floor
235 Queen Street
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0H5
(613) 995-9001
Ministre.industrie@ic.gc.ca

Regarding your request for a meeting, we are unable to accommodate a meeting at this time.

This shall hopefully be the last time the name Rona Ambrose crosses my blog. I may never know where Rona Ambrose stands on Bill C-61. I do know where she stands when it comes to my vote.

Response to Rona Ambrose

Here is a couple quick notes. No, I do not actually own a Celine Dion CD although I am sure it is very good.

I do not expect to get any kinda of response from Rona Ambrose. If she really cared I would have got a proper response long ago.

I also do not expect a phone call from a scheduling manager. It is just one more "misunderstanding" from the office of The Honourable Rona Ambrose.

I really send this letter so I can exclaim "at least I tried". I also get the added benefit of having more cannon fodder against Rona Ambrose.

I do not claim to be above disliking MPs. Only Rona Ambrose managed to earn my loathing. Not even Jim Prentice earned that.

Without further ado, my letter.

Your response to my letter is very concerning. The response shows the lack of attention paid to my concerns and my fears in general. I would like to take a moment and explain why this response should be a embarrassment to your office. Hopefully, I can look forward to hearing a proper response as well as a phone call from the scheduling manager for a meeting (780) XXX-XXXX.

I would like to make a few quick points about the supposed clarifications. Your letter says Bill C-61 clarifies time shifting but it fails to clarify a key point. The bill fails to clarify how long I can keep my recordings.

Your letter says I can “copy legally acquired music onto other devices”. In the case of my 2002 Celine Dion CD, A New Day Has Come, your statement appears to be murky at best.

The fixed amount of $500 statutory damages appears to be a red herring. Most Canadians would fall under the $20,000 statutory damages per infringement because of the abusive digital lock provisions as well as the simple fact most programs that download files upload as well.

The educator copyright rules are complicated enough it takes copyright lawyers to figure it out. I very much doubt these rules will provide educators with a new way “to deliver course material and lessons” when considering the restrictions these new rules have.

The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is a secretive treaty without public consultation. I fear the ACTA will be a bias treaty. I plead with you, in the name of democracy, that you help bring the ACTA treaty into the light instead of the cloak and dagger state it is currently in.

I agree that Amendments to Canada's Copyright Act are needed and are long overdue but that is no reason to rush though a bad bill. Time and care needs to be taken to make sure it is done right. I ask that you, Rona Ambrose, meet with me because I believe it is important that all MPs understand the effects Bill C-61 will have, both good and bad.

Rona Ambrose

Sometimes I question why I am so hard on Rona Ambrose.. then I remember I am her constituent. In theory she should at least try to see what her constituents think. This is a stark contrast to Laurie Hawn who has no reason to meet with me. I'm just some guy running around proclaiming himself to be Fair Copyright for Canada - Edmonton Chapter founder and yet he met with me as have others.

So, why have I gone off the "Boo Rona Ambrose" deep end again? Let me try to explain.

Here is a quote from James Rajotte's canned letter response to Bill C-61.

"For your information, Bill C-61 is at the second reading stage in the House of Commons. Debate at this level is over the principle of the bill rather than a specific examination of every clause contained in the bill...I support Bill C-61 in principle, but I am ready and willing to listen to your views."

I could go into detail and describe why I like this canned letter response to Bill C-61 but I think it speaks for its self. I have met with James Rajotte and I believe it when he says he is "ready and willing to listen".

Lets take a look at the canned letter Rona Ambrose sent out to me today.

"The bill clarifies that consumers will now be able to record television shows for later viewing (time shifting); copy legally acquired music onto other devices such as MP3 players or cellphones; and make backup copies of legally acquired books, newspapers, videocassettes and photographs onto devices they own (format shifting). Furthermore, the bill has set new limitations on statutory damages, so individuals would be liable for a fixed amount of $500 if they have infringed copyright for private use, provided that the material is not protected by a technological measure (TM or digital lock). Individuals may still be liable for other types of damages or remedies."

It reads like a freaking PR campaign. That letter is so filled with half truths it makes me rage. That is comming for a guy that almost never gets angry.

That quote is the reason why I meet MPs. I have to go around to make sure people understand the actual effects of Bill C-61 and shed full light on the supposed clarifications.

The Rona Ambrose scheduling manager has yet to contact me even though they say he/she would. I would still like a meeting just so she has the opportunity to see what I see in Bill C-61. I doubt it will ever happen though.

I am going to write a reply to that canned letter and post it here but I am unable to do so now due to my shear outrage.

Excuse me as I need to find a box of cute puppies stat.

Meetings Round 2

After a second Fair Copyright for Canada - Edmonton Chapter meeting we were off to a couple more meetings. Ian and David both joined me for the next couple meetings.

Laurie Hawn's meeting was first thing in the morning so I arrived early to grab a cup of coffee at the nearest coffee shop. Who else did I see there but Laurie Hawn himself having a cup of coffee. He greeted me and in a subtle manner showed he wanted to relax and enjoy his coffee.

I don't know.. I'm just a fan of those quite moments of understanding. No more explanation was required. I had my cup of coffee and read the paper untill it was time for the meeting.

Laurie Hawn once again listened to our concerns and taught us more on how the committee process worked.

The James Rajotte meeting also went well. It made me happy when I brought up a specific example and James Rajotte was able to say with the utmost honesty he was working on it and described how he was working on it.

The Rona Ambrose second meeting.... was still non-existent. They say the scheduling manager would get in touch with me. I have not seen it yet.

I figured that was it for this round of meetings. I would perhaps try and get a meeting with Rahim Jaffer if I felt motivated enough but otherwise done.

I then opened my inbox one day and saw this subject line 5 times in a row "URGENT!! Bill C-61 Assistance required"

Apparently, once again, I was not done.

Meetings

I believe about 4 to 5 of us went to the Laurie Hawn meeting in his office. Laurie Hawn was the first to admit he did not understand the full depth of the technological issues but he was still willing to listen. If Laurie Hawn was my MP I would be happy. His Town Halls should be a example to other MPs.

I then scheduled and went to a meeting for James Rajotte - The Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Industry. One other joined me for this meeting. We talked about some of my specific fears for bill C-61 as well as other technological issues including Bell Canada which just started making waves. A meeting I was once again satisfied with.

Meeting with my own MP.. Rona Ambrose is apparently a multi-step process. I first had a meeting with Debra Bain the Constituency Office Manager. I guess I passed the screening and Debra said I would get a meeting with Rona Ambrose at some point in the future. After a couple phone calls my turn for a meeting came up.

The Rona Ambrose meeting I think lasted a total of 20min.. the shortest meeting to date. The meeting managed to be cut short on both the front and back end.

During the meeting I asked if they could print me off a copy of Bill C-61 when it is released. They said sure. After Bill C-61 was released I gave them a phone call. Turns out my tax money does not go to paper for constituents... only affords a link in a e-mail.

Also, during the meeting she said I could schedule another meeting. I thought it would be a meeting about C-61 when it gets released. Debra Bain thought it would be a meeting on another subject that needs attention. Either way it did not matter. I was not able to get a meeting with Rona Ambrose on that or any other issues even after some more phone calls.

I made sure all my family and friends knew the trouble I had with Rona Ambrose. I know Rona Ambrose is never going to receive a vote from me. I know she will not get a vote from my family and friends without heavy thought. I also encourage everyone reading this that you do not vote for Rona Ambrose without heavy thought. At least try and schedule a meeting with her first.. so you can find out first hand how hard it is to get her to hear her constituents. She is the kind of MP I feared when I started trying to meet MPs.