Battalion
Q PINION
Page 11 • Friday, September 24, 1999
TOAD ME DOWN, MATEY!
WWA ' I Internet music files
- Jot wrong unless illegally
I | pirated for profit
hi\
lomputer-
savvy
^■^Ags
ci .me back to
Hoi this se-
Uer to find
eKesNet In-
I'Si service
m. ss accessible
it was
e B^ar.
MARIANO
CASTILLO
Bien students heard about
Bey Levy, a senior at the
have$!c(B ers ity of Oregon, who be
gs, fete M 0 t ^ ie ^ rst casualty of the
appediBest Internet anti-piracy law.
Rumors immediately began
•' Hrculate that new restric-
m on the campus network
F* ere set up to curb illegal
rawing of software programs
PfMP3 music files.
3create:! In reality, the problems with
:gsaresraMet access were just a
tjlhasp. |tch in the server's configura-
m-ledniLp which has now been fixed.
■ students' assumption that
[incjflojBrestriction was a punish-
alit shows that they feel they
xmirimfrac doing something wrong.
'^PdP3 piracy has increasingly
. .Borne a hot topic as the for-
yyRt gradually becomes simpler
rt " ^ bfencode, transfer and burn
)i}to CDs.
‘■ffBefore making an ethical
i«mtioj.|jg men t on t j le i ssue> it is im-
P^rartant to distinguish between
tw0 g reat seas plundered
n, cyber-pirates,
riteiec/l Fi rs t there is the ResNet, a
est neuvork of the computers in
residence halls. One can access
ih/ copy any files shared by
ijtputer owners, and it is
easy to find MP3s and
ither loot.
Bien there is the Internet,
■ng MP3s is harder, but the
Mty of goodies one can find
greater.
Bie domain is basically the
TM
entire world.
How criminal is copying
some songs from a friend’s
computer or the Internet? That
is a tricky question.
Listening to an MP3 file
from someone else’s computer
should not be illegal.
It should be encouraged be
cause it gives music-lovers the
chance to hear new and di
verse music before making a
purchase. The real problem
with MP3s is students’ irre
sponsibility with compact-disc
burners.
The true culprits are those
who not only distribute copy
righted MP3 files but also burn
them onto discs and sell them
for a profit.
There also are the comput-
er-geek thrill-seekers out there
who create Websites devoted
to distributing MP3s to surfers.
These people are blatantly
breaking the law and stealing
from both the artists and the
recording industry.
There are sites that offer
complete albums for free and
others that require a member
ship. But the 1997 Internet
copyright law makes it a felony
to steal intellectual property
and make it available to the
general public. The law is clear
and makes sense.
Those who insist on playing
the part of the rebellious col
lege student may do so, but
they have no right to whine
when their sites get closed
down and they are fined up to
$250,000.
It is a fine line, but techni
cally, university networks and
the programs shared on them
cannot be dubbed illegal.
In short, the residents of a
college campus who can access
MP3s cannot be labeled as the
general public.
Sharing files can be a learn
ing tool, and campus networks
do not giving access to the
public as a whole.
Sharing MP3s on ResNet
should never be restricted in
any way. As far as copyright is
sues go, MP3s that stay within
the campus network can be
beneficial to smaller artists.
The songs found on every
one’s computers are the popu
lar, well-known songs. Just like
the radio, they give students a
sample-of an artist’s music
without stealing from his or
her work.
On campus, if you like an
artist’s MP3 and want to hear
some more, the only option is
to buy the album.
But the right to share files
on the network is being endan-
RUBEN DELUNA/Thi: Battalion
gered by students who illegally
manufacture and sell compact
discs with MP3s.
If the Recording Industry
Association of America could
see the MP3s on colleges cam
puses stay within its confines,
there would be no pressure on
schools to crack down on stu-
dents’ use of computers.
Mariano Castillo is a junior
KIATL. HURRICANE TRACKING CENTER
MAIL CALL
Pageant standards
should remain high
In response to Jeff Webb’s Sept. 22
column.
I don’t think it is necessary to
change the rules in the Miss America
pageant. While it is true divorce is at
an all-time high and abortions are
now very common, those are not the
types of images we need to be telling
our children are OK.
Single women who are able to bal
ance being a mother and having a ca
reer should definitely be given credit,
because it is a hard thing to do. But
without contradicting myself, these
are not the type of goals I would want
my daughter striving for.
By making these women role mod
els we are telling young ladies it is OK
to have an abortion or to get a di
vorce at a young age because Miss
America did it. Standards are set high
in these pageants to set these
women apart as role models.
If you have ever gotten past the
idea that pageants are only about
looks and actually watched one, you
would know a lot of these women
have volunteered for helpful organi
zations. In many cases, these
women have started organizations of
their own.
These women are not only beauti
ful but also intelligent women with
goals in their lives.
We can say it is unrealistic to find
that sort of perfection. But is it really?
Just because divorce is a common
thing does not make it OK.
I would like for my children to see
perfection in a pageant and feel it
was realistic to strive for that.
Stacey Farrell
Class of ’99
VIEW POiNTS
Pain in the arrears
T he United Nations’ strongest mem
ber is quickly becoming its biggest
laughingstock.
At the opening sessions of the inter
national organization’s General Assem
bly, it was evident the United States’
name is mud among many United Na
tions members.
“There’s no reason to hide it,” U.S.
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright
told the New York Times. “They resent
us deeply because we are not paying,
and we are the backbone of the U.N.” *
Albright was referring to the $1.6 bil
lion in back dues owed the United Na
tions by the United States.
Gridlock in Congress has continually
blocked efforts to pay off this incredible
sum, and with every new defeat of legis
lation to erase the debt, America’s ef
fectiveness as a U.N. member is blunted.
The United States routinely pre
sumes to be the model leader of the in
ternational group, but a good leader
must first be a good member. By shirk
ing its financial commitment to the or
ganization, the U.S. is forfeiting what lit
tle moral authority it may have with its
fellow members.
In a time of national prosperity and
budget surpluses, when Congress is
weighing the merits of an obscenely
large tax cut, the U.N. debt must not be
swept under the rug again. Uncle Sam
should clear his books.
— Caleb McDaniel
Whafs in a name?
T elevision and reality go hand in
hand, right? Not nearly enough for
many vocal minority groups this
fall. Because of a lack of substantial
minority characters, excluding maids
and cab drivers, many minority groups
have called for a national boycott of the
major networks. They are calling the
boycott a “brownout.”
Naming the boycott a "brownout”
does not make complete sense.
Certainly, if people want to change
something, they should protest it, deny
it money and pressure the chairs of the
boards everywhere to fix it.
But do not diminish the cause by re
ferring to the boycott as a “brownout.”
The term “brownout” is much more
offensive than any ridiculous sitcom
contrivance.
It seems undeniable that television
networks fill the minority quota by
scripting bit parts involving “the help.”
It is unfair minority groups are so
misrepresented.
However, the term “brownout" not
only makes it seem minorities exclu
sively should be offended that they are
being misrepresented, but also serves
as a racial divider.
If racism is occurring, shouldn’t
everyone be offended? It may not be re
alistic to think that all Caucasians
would even notice minority characters
rarely play anything but bit parts, but it
should be offensive to all that these er
roneous generalizations abound in life,
much less television.
People separate themselves by the
idea of race too much already — it is
unfortunate minority groups would con
tinue to cement those racial divides.
While people continue to stereotypically
classify something as black or white or
Hispanic, lack of representation on
prime-time television is the least of so
ciety’s problems. Sitcoms last only a
few years however racial divides can
survive almost forever.
— Beverly Mireles
fOH
urkish government should learn from mishandling of quake
CAESAR
RICCI
he dying came
suddenly and un
expectedly,
he earth shook,
|ding towering apart-
t complexes col-
ing from their pre-
ipus heights to piles
Irubble.
fchildren, women
d men laid strewn about the debris
proken concrete beams, sharply pro-
ing reinforcement metal and scat-
d furniture.
ust moments before they had been
deping peacefully. Now they were
■own into a nightmare of terror. Some
frere saved by a lucky fall, but most
Nre not.
[Crushed by the heavy concrete that
from above or pinned beneath de
ls for days without water, death was
fate for many.
Death did not discriminate — a
wn man might lay uninjured next to
crushed corpse of an innocent child.
At 3:01 a.m. on Aug. 17, a 45-second
thquake devastated northwestern
rkey. More than 15,000 people were
killed, hundreds of thousands were left
homeless and whole cities were leveled.
But was all the death and destruction
inflicted upon the unsuspecting Turkish
people inevitable, the work of unforgiv
ing and unpredictable natural forces be
yond man’s control? Or did human folly
work hand in hand with natuie to am
plify the disaster?
Would more precaution and prepara
tion have limited the massive loss of
more than 15,000 lives to, say, a few
hundred? J ^ , . .
Many experts and Turkish citizens
believe so. r , ,
Although some of the devastation
caused by Turkey s 7.4-magnitude
earthquake was inescapable, much of it
could have been avoided.
Thousands of lives could have been
saved if the Turkish government had
more strictly enforced building codes or
had better prepared disastei-relief ef
forts. But housing contractors were al
lowed to build shabby apartments, brib
ing officials to let the buildings pass
inspection. And when the buildings did
come tumbling down, unorganized gov
ernment rescue efforts came too late.
Just as a reckless drunk driver who
unintentionally kills someone is guilty'
of manslaughter, Turkish housing con
tractors and government officials who
are found negligent should be punished.
Their carelessness and greed cost
countless lives.
"However, there is
no sense in rubbing
salt on Turkey's
wound."
Turkish housing contractors and mu
nicipal officials invited the Aug. 17
earthquake to turn into a humanitarian
disaster.
To save money and time, contractors
used cheap materials and methods to
construct the 20,957 people-filled build
ings which reduced to rubble when the
tremor struck.
Municipal officials, who never
should have let the flimsy apartments
pass inspection, often took bribes from
profit-hungry contractors.
Rafik Sahin, a Texas A&M civil engi
neering graduate student from Turkey,
said his country has “great codes” for
building homes and buildings, but they
are not enforced.
“Much of the damage could have
been prevented if contractors were
more careful,” Sahin said, who left
Turkey just 19 hours before the earth
quake struck.
To compound the agony of earth
quake victims, the Thrkish govern
ment’s reaction to the catastrophe was
slow and chaotic. Many people died,
not because they were crushed by
falling debris, but because they were
trapped without water or medical assis
tance for too long.
Dr. Mustafa Yavuz, a Texas A&M
physics professor and native of Turkey,
described the government’s lack of
preparation as “unacceptable.” The
government “didn’t take action on
time,” he said.
In an Associated Press article, one of
the country’s top judges called Tlirkey
“a diseased, clumsy state.”
But TUrkey has learned a painful les
son. No person, government official or
building contractor wanted to cause
their people anguish.
Criticism is definitely warranted, be
cause it leads to improvement. But
what is most important for Turkey now
is not to take revenge on those at fault
but to learn from its mistakes and better
prepare to prevent future catastrophes.
TUrkey, a developing country, has
learned a bitter lesson: Never sacrifice
safety for convenience, and always be
prepared for the worst.
There is no sense in rubbing salt on
Turkey’s wound. All that can be done
now is to learn from this dreadful expe
rience. The Turkish people must now
ensure all dwelling places are construct
ed to resist earthquakes and that gov
ernment relief efforts are well-prepared
and coordinated when future natural
disasters strike.
It is only sad significant changes and
awakenings had to be bought with such
a terrible human price.
Caesar Ricci is a junior
plant and soil science major.