Witch Hunt

J. Kevin Tumlinson

Recent activity by the Recording Industry Association of America (commonly referred to by the ominous acronym "RIAA") has led me to wonder - just how much freedom and privacy do we have? Less than we think.

Here's the rundown so far. The RIAA has managed to issue hundreds of subpoenas to Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in an attempt to track down individuals who are offering massive numbers of music files for illegal download. These ISPs include companies such as SBC, one of the biggest providers of DSL and other internet services in the country. And for the most part, these companies are releasing the requested information without a fight.

That scares the heck out of me.

Now, don't go smirking and thinking that I've been running some musical theft ring out of my home office. I'm too impatient to wait for my music to download, even on my nifty DSL connection. I'm not at all worried that I'll get named in one of the thousands of approaching lawsuits with which the RIAA will clutter our court system. What bothers me is that new legislation seems to have given a new and untested organization a blank check when it comes to accusing and out-and-out attacking anyone, anytime. All they need is a subpoena (which seems to be easy enough for them to obtain) and a target.

When I signed on with my ISP, one of the things promised to me was a protection of my privacy. I signed a legal document that stated that my personal information would never be given out to anyone without my express permission. I realize that more often than not a subpoena over-rides this protection. What seems to be happening in this recent witch hunt by the RIAA is that my personal privacy can be ignored with little or no effort. What's worse, I have no recourse. If I'm suddenly named in a lawsuit, I have to go through the time and expense of defending myself.

In the Salem Witch Trials, the accused were often subjected to certain "tests," to determine whether they were or were not witches. One of the most popular was the water test, in which the accused was tied to a stone and dropped into a pond or river. If the person floated to the top, despite the stone, then they were a witch and they'd be burned to death. If they sunk to the bottom and never returned, well they were innocent and God have mercy on their unfortunate soul!

Modern America's version of the water test is the RIAA's ability to spawn subpoenas at will. Once you've been served, you have no choice but to commit your time and resources to defending yourself. Court costs, lawyers, time away from work - these things are expensive. In the end, if you are found guilty you will likely pay some large fine. But if you are found innocent, you are given a pat of the back, a hearty "congratulations, you weren't a criminal after all!" and no compensation whatsoever for the expense, the loss of privacy, the public humiliation that you will continue to face for years to come. God have mercy on your unfortunate soul.

All it takes is for the RIAA to cry "witch," and just about anyone could be metaphorically tied to a stone and tossed into the drink.

We can't possibly allow an upstart organization to have this much power, this fast. Letting the RIAA run unchecked is like arming toddlers with hand guns and sending them out to "play nice." This organization needs to make a full reporting to the public on how and why they target certain individuals, and what steps they intend to take. Yes, crimes are being committed. Yes, intellectual property is being stolen. But let's make sure we aren't handing over our rights to a group that is clearly not qualified to control them.

Contact your local and state representatives if you are concerned about this privacy issue. Tell them you don't want the RIAA or anyone else to have governmental power over your privacy.

J. Kevin Tumlinson is a writer and a schoolteacher living in Lake Jackson, TX. He is listening to perfectly legal music.