UW is no longer in my Top 8

...but I think MySpace is a joke anyway, so that's a moot point. And now for my annoyed rant:

What the hell!?

This could easily be an opportunity for another school (I think Wisconsin was the first? Could be wrong) to tell the RIAA to "[four letter word or any other favored explicative] off" and go start picking on people who actually profit from such alleged theft. But no, what does the UW and its overpaid administration do? (WARNING: INVOCATION OF GODWIN'S LAW AHEAD... sorta)

Yeah, full cooperation. Appeasement and FULL COOPERATION. Vichy France, meet your 21st-century equivalent.

This is ridiculous, and I, a lowly "blogger" with a T20 getting ready to suffer from Sudden T20 Death Syndrome, should not be the only one saying so. But what really pisses me off is that the article is in _THE NEWS TRIBUNE_. Not MyUW, The Seattle Times, or any other easily-accessible news source. The F'ing News Tribune.

Of course, I'm also annoyed by the high-minded assholes (who aren't getting served or sued, of course) that seem to believe that the RIAA is justified in this - "You broke the law, and now you're just paying for it, so stop yer whining" - without noting that a) the fees ($3K ~ $5K settlements) are ludicrously overpriced given that the songs aren't (and can't be) identified in any realistic way (the fees don't go to the actual singers and writers, who, in theory, are the ones most hurt by illegal downloading as it, in theory, leads to lower album sales and royalties) and b) the methods used by the RIAA to sniff out evildoers are pathetic, enough so that the government probably wouldn't use them as evidence in terrorist trials for fear of the case being thrown out over it.

Luckily for anyone who has the sense to not download and yet still got prosecuted for it, someone had the guts and balls to go after them. "...negligent and illegal investigation and prosecution" doesn't cover it all - there ought to be a "malicious" or two tossed in there as well. I'm not sure how the laws are different in Washington, but given that they're invoking the RICO Act (federal law) I don't see why it can't be done here. I'm also surprised it isn't class-action, either, as I can recall a few other cases along these lines.

Yes, there is illegal file-sharing on the UW campus - no doubt about that. If any UW students are reading this, I suggest that you stop and browse Amazon.com more, or rent movies - for free! - from Odegaard. And yes, the UW would be aiding the illegals (I'm going to start using this word to apply to any lawbreaker in the US, as it seems strange to simply use it in reference to illegal immigrants) but we're not talking about a political or national security issue here - this is simply an industry trying to make a few extra bucks off of people who are culturally not likely to be able to afford it. Of course, if the targeted students/staff happen to be the most well-off on campus... the UW would ignore it, the news media would ignore it, and it might come up in a footnote to the above suit or a leaked memo from the RIAA main office.

So in summary: I'm very disappointed in you, UW. Very disappointed. And you still haven't sent me my diploma!