"The Soapbox" is a new feature and is just getting started! (Give it time!) PLEASE contribute!

WARNING: THIS thread WILL be edited. NO comments on any of the Soapbox items (or about the Soapbox itself) will be allowed to remain very long. (They WILL be zapped after I have read and assimilated!)

Each Soapbox item will also have (or, sometime in the past, already exists as) a thread of it's own elsewhere here at Boycott-Riaa. ALL comments in response to the rant belong in it's original thread, NOT HERE!

"The Soapbox" is intended as only a gathering of original writings from our participants and/or "must reads" that we feel new visitors need to see.

I, Shmoo (aka "independentmusician") shall be the sole decision-maker as to which rants ultimately make it into "the Soapbox" AND I shall also be the final authority on how they are edited and/or presented. (However, you all should know by now that I will ALWAYS listen to suggestions and/or complaints regarding things.)

Each rant will (of course) have a quick-link to the original thread so that commentary can be made in response.

I ask each of you to keep an eye out for suitable items for "the Soapbox" whenever you are browsing old/archived Boycott-Riaa threads. Simply stick the link to those previous articles you find right here in "the Soapbox" and I will take care of the rest.

The Soapbox shall ONLY feature rants that further our agenda and is NOT a place for articles that have to do with such things as site policy and/or "internal" issues. (Flame-war stuff is especially a NO-NO here!)

Feel free to let me know what you think of this idea AND start providing links to previous items you'd like see included in "the Soapbox" immediately below.

But be fore-warned, I will be VERY selective about what permanently remains in "the Soapbox."


(Remember, EVERYTHING here at Boycott-Riaa is always a "work in progress"!)

--Shmoo, your humble Admin

From way back in 2002 we have our own gdZiemann's (George) RIAA's Statistics Don't Add Up to Piracy ...wherein he goes through the numbers and exposes a few RIAA lies.

Here is a rant by captdunsel that was a RESPONSE to a previous article called "Music Industry Still Singing The Blues" ...wherein he lashes out in-general against the enemy.

Here is the transcript AND the mp3's of Steve Gibson's discussion with Leo Laporte's about Sony's "Rootkit Technology" DRM (copy protection gone bad)

a MUST read!!!

Hi Fi mp3

Lo Fi mp3

Folks, "the Soapbox" is just getting started and will take a while to build.

Please feel free to find stuff in our archives that are "must-reads" for new/first-time visitors.

(Yes, feel free to give "unashamed self promo's" of your own stuff you have wrote in the past. All I need is the link if it already exists.)

Here's an original rant about the DMCA sent in to us by the webmaster of DiskWatch

LamerX Rants about Copyright

GREAT work LamerX!!!

This is something that CynicalGeezer posted, but I am not sure it is his original work or if it is something from an article he found.

http://www.boycott-riaa.com/article/18623

(Let me know if you wrote it all or not CynicalGeezer! ...or, if you'd like it to be here in "the Soapbox")

The Magic stylings of the RIAA

Yet another rant by LamerX

Keep the rants comming folks!

(I'll clean 'em up with editing and proper links and stuff at a later date.)

Straight Talk About Copyrights --by argoff

A post gfmlcka found at slashdot.

DIVIDER LINE===============

Everything below this point in this tread is subject to being edited and/or deleted. Any suitable stuff for "the Soapbox" will be moved above this line eventually. You MAY use this space for discussion ABOUT the Soapbox and/or anything administrative about Boycott-Riaa in general. But bear in mind that it WILL end up being deleted eventually the next time I move this line.

(Please refrain from putting stuff here that would be better suited for the "Off Topic" thread.)

stilltrying
Date: November 22, 2005 @ 12:32 AM ( delete )
I have a short RANT!!! For year's now folk's here have been saying that the reason's CD sales have been slowing was because of crappy product same with movies all the while the Riaa and Mpaa say it's from filesharing???? Well I think we have the proof that we the people were Right???? Look at the lastest box office receipt's of the new Harry Potter movie. 101.4 million in it's first week just at the box office!!!! The # 2 movie this same week only took in 22 million!!!! Now I'm no Harry Potter fan in fact I've never seen a single movie in the series BUT there is something about these movies that bring's people to them in groves!!!!! My point is any or all of the Harry Potter movies are on p2p but people would rather spend their hard earn $ at the theater to see them instead of going the P2p way???? WHY!!! This only proves when the Riaa or Mpaa give the people what they want to see or hear the people support it in groves!!! If p2p is so deadly to the Riaa and Mpaa then WHY did the new Harry Potter movie take in 101.4 million $ in it's first week????? Hell this movie took in more $ than the rest of the other top 10 combined in the last week????? Point Proven p2p hasn't been what's been causing the Riaa and Mpaa sales to Tank!!! If this were true then explain why Harry Potter took in 101.4 million in it's first week???????
======================
Metalfatherbrennan
Date: November 23, 2005 @ 11:18 AM ( delete )
Apologize in advance if this has already been discussed, but I wanted to point out that New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has now fined two labels millions of dollars for illegal radio payola schemes. Though this is a small victory in the scheme of things, its a huge step in the right direction. The marketplace has been monopolized and corrupted to the point that an independent musician has no hope of being really successful in the business. However getting rid of payola practices may open the door to more independent music on mainstream radio, which is a huge huge deal. I recommend you all contact Attorney General Spitzer and thank him for fighting against illegal practices by the major labels and encourage him to continue his investigation.
===============
Also Father Brennan is about to finish recording our new song "F$%@ the RIAA"

You can read the lyrics here:
http://www.fatherbrennan.com/forum/viewtopic. php?p=581#581

*Some harsh language in the lyrics for those of you who are offended by that.

I'll let you all know when its recorded and available for download.

This business with Sony is just the tip of the iceberg. (big surprise there) We know about the latest XCP, but what else has been going on that we don't know about?

Maybe the exponential rise of malware and spyware lately isn't just a coincidence. Leave it to the music cartel to bung up a great concept like the internet. I don't think even our (US) gov't. would screw it up this badly.

When are people going to just stop buying these CDs loaded with destructive malware? I'd like to think Sony will get hammered for this latest debacle, but that's hoping too much, I fear.

I like that cartoon George posted a link to in another thread. We can only hope and pray the Dept. of Homeland Security goes to pay Sony a visit for compromising net security the way they have.

Thankfully XCP was written poorly enough for it to be discovered. At least Micro$oft jumped on the wagon and came up with a fairly quick response. Faster than a lot of the antivirus companies.

Things that make you say, "hhmmmmm."

The Boycott-Riaa "Dictionary"

Our list of terms, names, and acronyms, etc. defined as WE mean them to be understood.

Just noticed that the link to the song lyrics doesnt work, here is again:

http://www.fatherbrennan.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=35

Folks, I am going to let this thread slip down the line, but I have it linked in the "Welcome" thread so that we can still keep it active. (I'm doing the same with the "Dictionary" thread.)

I'm trying to save on "front page clutter".