@CC: Sorry for the delay to your post. I was very ill this past week.
To answer your post:
Copyright Reform: Is there a reason for 25-35 year term suggested. A majority of the party is in agreement that 10-20 years seems most reasonable although any shortening from Life+50 would be desirable.
I will start by stating that I am not entirely firm on the end result of the length of the reduced copyright length, but I'd like to explain how I came to my answer.
I looked at the issue and considered several factors; "What do I want?", "What does the end user want?", and "What does the artist want?". Most people would assume that I belong in the "end user" group and leave well enough alone at that, but they wouldn't be entirely correct. I belong in both groups, to be honest. It is obvious that I am and end user but not so to most that I also am a creator of copyright materials.
I'm not a musician, (other than in the shower
), and I don't write books as of yet, but I do produce websites, technical documents, applications, legal documents, and many other things that I would like to keep my name attached to. I want at least some recognition for the work that I create. I don't charge anything for the vast majority of what I create and give it out freely to whomever wants it: all I ask is that they keep my name attached to it. My reasons are few but I believe that I am owed what I ask for if all that I request is to keep my name attached to it.
However, I believe that after a few years, in my case, that everything I create becomes obsolete. Such is the way of technology today. I would never expect that in 10 years someone would have to hunt me down to give me $10 to use something that I created to fix an old clunker that they were teaching their kid how to fix, nor would I want them to. I would rather it be freely available to anyone who wanted to use it.
It took me a while to come to the conclusion of 25-35 years. I came to that decision because not everything becomes obsolete with time. The most perfect example is music. Music is timeless, it is something that can inspire a person hundreds of years later. Quality music will stand the test of time while the rubbish and filth will be forgotten.
True works or art inspire minds, and while I want them to be free to all, I believe that if an artist could make a living inspiring other through their work, then that is something that is worth putting in to protect their lively-hood so that they can do so.
I am not arguing that 25-35 years
is the length it should be, as I mentioned before, the length isn't something that I am firm on, it is just that I believe that both sides need to have a fair and balanced voice to the length. I believe the answer lies within the 15-35 year range, however, I would be opposed to a term shorter or longer than that.
Trademark Reform: You realize that trademarks have to have multiple aspects to them. An example is Apple Computer... With their apple as a logo (both old school rainbow and the new versions) pertains as a trademark to Electronics and Computing devices. If apple were to try and use their logo for say branding say a fruit vendor or something then started suing other vendors who sold apples as violating trademark law they'd be laughed out of court. It usually takes a combination of a logo/color/wording to really make a trademark if you look closely. I mean Coca-Cola has red/white coloring and their stuff... but Dr. Pepper has the same red/white coloring but it's a different trademark. Err in short can you provide any examples of Trademark Law abuse such as trademarking the color red?
I am fully aware of the applications of trademarks. I am also aware of many cases of abuse of where a companies or organizations have or have attempted to assert [read force] their competition in litigation over trademark infringement. One of the more recent ones in BC is the "Olympic" name brand being forced to be removed from companies that have existed, in some cases, for over 20 years. I don't care what the IOC agreed to, nor do I care about some foreign body wanting to exert itself over Canadian sovereignty.
Abuses aside, I still do not believe that things such as colours, common words or phrases, or single letters should be able to be trademarked. The ideas that I had in mind to change the current law were very much along the line of removing the ability to TM the things I mentioned plus changes that would make using the court system to bankrupt a lesser funded competitor or to force them to change simply because they don't have as much money banked... although an overhaul of the court system would also do this. I digress.
I also appreciate your view on Gay and Lesbian rights. I'm not gay myself but I know some people who are. That said if you are campaigning I'd avoid connecting 'choice' with 'homosexual' as a majority of those voters do not necessarily view it as a choice. Anyone who is able to reconcile conflicting beliefs as respectably as you do being able to dislike something while letting compassion take precedence takes strong morals and character to be capable of doing.
I certainly do appreciate you mentioning this. It has been brought to my attention before in several discussions that being gay/lesbian is not a choice and that people are born that way. It is a choice, but not how most people perceive it to mean in that context, but rather that their choice is of partner, not necessarily their partner's gender. Let's not forget about those people who are attracted equally (or even in part) to both genders, for them the choice of gender becomes preference and can even shift at times.
That being said, I do have to add this: While being someone who is relatively good with describing what I mean and take care for the most part to not offend people that I don't intend to, I am not someone who is "PC" or "Politically Correct". I strongly believe that we coddle people far too much and it has worked vastly against the general populous of Canadians that we bow down when someone so much as bats an eyelash about racism, sexism, ageism, etc., etc. I am not afraid to broach any subject and am most certainly not afraid to call a pile of crap what it is.
I hope that answers yours questions. Please do feel free to post more.
