USTR still pushing ACTA on Canada

March 2, 2013 5:12 AM

Canada's Harper government has introduced an ACTA compliance bill at the behest of the USTR, despite the treaty being dead elsewhere.

ACTA would come into force in the countries that ratify it after six countries do so, but only Japan has ratified ACTA at present.

posted by jeffburdges (18 comments total)

Despite a lack of evidence to suggest that Canada is a major source of counterfeit product, the bill puts at risk the fully-legal parallel import of generic items — pharmaceuticals, for instance. The bill would also change copyright infringement from a civil dispute to a breach of criminal law. Pity Canada if this bill is enacted!"

Well, gosh.
posted by Mezentian at 5:46 AM on March 2, 2013

There's a certain something that is characterizing legislation, not always from the right but usually. Or perhaps, it would be better to describe what is now missing: legislating towards fixing problems for the public good. Now we have legislation for the benefit of a subsection of the public or for the benefit of the ruling body.

It rankles.
posted by Slackermagee at 5:51 AM on March 2, 2013 [5 favorites]

Just think, if only we had this kind of political leadership at the beginning of last century, we'd have clearer skies and less risk of global warming.

That said, we would still have to get our horses shod regularly, and would have that problem of navigating through unpaved streets filled with running excrement.
posted by markkraft at 6:09 AM on March 2, 2013

It rankles.

Take it up with ALEC. They're all ears.
posted by sneebler at 6:13 AM on March 2, 2013 [1 favorite]

Anytime the US wants to offer Harper residency would be fine with us.
posted by arcticseal at 6:21 AM on March 2, 2013 [4 favorites]

Evil motherfuckers gonna be evil.
posted by localroger at 6:24 AM on March 2, 2013 [1 favorite]

Harper is a goat-fucker. Full story at 11.

Seriously, this doesn't surprise any Canadian who has been paying attention over the last few years.
posted by WinnipegDragon at 6:26 AM on March 2, 2013 [1 favorite]

I'm curious if parallel medical imports play any significant role in keeping down healthcare costs in Canada. If so, Mezentian's quote suggests one important lobby behind this : pharmaceutical companies who wish to charge as much in Canada as in the U.S.
posted by jeffburdges at 6:29 AM on March 2, 2013

Or maybe they wish to stop legal parallel medical imports from Canada? Is Harper aiming to raise medical costs in Canada or back stab the Canadian generics companies, or both?
posted by jeffburdges at 6:38 AM on March 2, 2013

I'd guess a backstab to the Generics.

Because they do that sort of Beyond Evil stuff all the time in the part of the world that is best described by someone as "Poorblackistan" (I forget who coined that one) because copyright (of medication, genomes, DNA, music) is more important than life.

Grar.
posted by Mezentian at 7:18 AM on March 2, 2013

Let's not forget this is the same government that defeated a bill that would have allowed the export of generic AIDS drugs to Africa. They have consistently favoured industry over, well, humanity.
posted by mek at 9:40 AM on March 2, 2013 [2 favorites]

It's a (relatively) warm Saturday, and I can't bear to think about this now. With a majority Conservative government there's nothing we can do, except maybe protest. There's no checks or balances to ensure the bill gets a proper vetting. If it wasn't for people like Michael Geist the general public wouldn't even know this bill existed.

What are the ramifications? Who knows! The government wants to pretend it addresses the "problem" of counterfeit goods, because there are just so many of those flooding the market. They're not being honest about it, so Mr. Geist's informed speculation is the best information anyone is going to get.
posted by Kevin Street at 12:23 PM on March 2, 2013

I can't think of anything that could prevent this bill from passing. Public protests don't gain much traction without support from the media, and the media are owned by the very content providers who stand to benefit from this.
Canada is a small-c conservative country now. I guess it's taken me a while to finally realize that.
posted by rocket88 at 1:44 PM on March 2, 2013

Canada is a small-c conservative country now. I guess it's taken me a while to finally realize that.

It always was, I think. '68 to '84 was an interregnum of sanity.
posted by docgonzo at 3:20 PM on March 2, 2013

IT'S A TRAP!
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 4:48 PM on March 2, 2013

Harper is a goat-fucker.

Although accurate in spirit, I fear this is an insult to goats everywhere.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 4:49 PM on March 2, 2013

Canada is largely controlled and governed by a loose confederation of criminals, ranging from your ordinary Hell's Angels (highest per capita in the world!) to money launderers (hello, Lotto corps and casinos!) to theft of public holdings (see: BC ALR sell-off and PPP projects) to arms smuggling and outrageous cost overruns, kickbacks, and bribes (burn in hell, SNC Lavalin).

It is of exceedingly little surprise that the PMO, repeat offenders against election law, parlimentary tradition, and suppressors of science, are bought and sold by corporate interests.

Despite appearances, Canada is deeply fucked up.
posted by five fresh fish at 5:35 PM on March 2, 2013

Why all the helpless dispare? All countries are governed by criminals! All of them! Yeah, the Scandinavians and Germans look awfully legit until a Julian Assange comes along or Goldman Sacks needs some tax payers to rip off, but really they're all criminals. Power corrupts. If you dislike their latest crime, you publicize it's criminal nature so that committing said crime might help different criminals gain more power.
posted by jeffburdges at 5:44 PM on March 2, 2013