igor on Thursday, April 23

via grex: The Mercedes of Shoe Commercials

"With such a pro-copyright and anti-technology position, it’s hard to argue the role of Vice President Biden in the appointment of these lawyers as anything but integral. If he did not appoint the lawyers himself, it is likely that he had the majority of influence in the appointment process. This process is likely to continue, with intellectual property not only being a low priority in the Beltway, but a situation that heavily favors the music industry. It is quite ironic that, despite his reliance on Hollywood, Obama was endorsed by many supporters of more tech-friendly copyright policy, including Google, Stanford law professor Lawrence Lessig, the EFF, and even the American wing of Sweden’s Pirate Party. They hoped that his somewhat neutral stance on copyright would ease to a more reasonable copyright policy. Apparently, they had forgotten about Joe Biden and how Vice Presidents can wield unlikely power."