[apster
Continued fromf
It is unclear whetherli
usic file-swapping issobad
usic industry after all.
A recent study of more It
line music fans by
immunications suggests fo
Napster and other music-
jgrams are 45 percent mot
increase their music
m fans who are not trading
otlegs online.
The recording industry
pster case is not about alieHP"
hursday. July 27,2000
Page 5
THE BATTALION
ecently, a Houston hospital
decided to ban the videotap
ing of births after a family
ideotaped its child's delivery, catch-
ig the hospital's negligence on film,
accused of harming the baby, the
ospital was forced to pay the family
15 million to compensate for the
hild's resulting blindness and brain
isic lovers, but rather
ting artists.
"Clearly, people who arc
pster love music. They're]
our best customers,"
sen, president of the RIAA
On May 9, Chief U.S. ft lamage. Therefore, more hospitals are adopting the no-
Ige Marilyn Hall Patel re
pster's claim that the [
lennium Copyright Ado!
itected it from the illegal an.
users. Napster promptly ad;
defense strategy, arguing fe
al copying of music is pros
federal law.
The RIAA estimates
ipping via Napster by anes!
20 million people worldwide
: the music industry more
D million in lost sales.
£6
All of this liti
gation is reallj
setting the
groundwork ft
vhat is going ti
be the future o\
the Internet’ 1
— Lanyli
intellectual property attorn-
aping policy to protect themselves. Hospitals are not
laive — they are cautious of this lawsuit-happy, money-
naking age. Because physicians are taking action to pro-
;ect themselves, American voices have accused physi-
ians of trying to hide their negligence. The Houston
hild's disabilities are undoubtedly tragic, and the hos-,
oital, doctors and nurses involved should do their best
:omake amends. However, the entire field of medicine
hould not be stereotyped as careless.
Medicine is a profession that operates like any other
business. Companies sometimes make mistakes, but
cameras are not always recording every minor error.
Imagine customers walking into offices' back rooms and
stores' warehouses, tracking every blunder made.
Doctors and hospital administratiors give families
the privilege of allowing them to videotape childbirths.
Physicians ac-
Not allowing
video cameras
letallica drummer Lars Dili!
a Senate committee earlier t
th that Napster users are basil
ealing.
hat attitude has angered mar
during child
delivery does
not indicate
guilt, is a deci
sion for the
doctors and
family members
knowledge that
childbirth is a spe
cial event; however,
when patients
abuse their privi
leges, consequences
may follow. The no-
taping policy is a
hospital's way to
protect itself, not an
act to disguise neg
ligence. Families
are not having their
rights infringed
upon by being pre
vented from film-
think they should just sbutup,
is Cavanaugh, 25, said o
llica. "They don't have toworr
t getting fans. It's riyid
ol."
ing birth. Hospitals are not taking anything away from
families; there is no law giving families the right to
videotape hospital procedures. The choice of whether
the birth can be filmed should be made by the individ
ual doctor.
^ Both St. Joseph's Regional Health Center and Col
lege Station Medical Center give each doctor; discretion
tapster and the InternetsbouU| when 11 comes to fllmin § bir , ths; the hospitals do not
.ales" said Steohe' a un ^ orm policy. Each doctor should know his
or her tolerance for distractions and pressure, and make
an educated decision. Both hospitals recognize that
leaving the decision with the physician is the best way
to handle the issue.
Delivering a baby is a difficult procedure. Patients
entrust the lives of their children to doctors, expecting
the safe delivery of a healthy child. Most babies are de
livered successfully; however, the media tends to report
only accidents. If complications follow, the physician is
automatically blamed. Most other businesspeople will
never experience such pressure and videotaping births
certainly does not sharpen a doctor's concentration.
urt record sales," saidStephe;
, 40, a jazz percussionist atteni
n Internet music convention
York on Tuesday. "Musicisb
ng force of the universe. A tm
is going to want his music tot
1 through whatever medium,
mong the Net-savvy, itispret
i agreed that online mus
ping is here to stay, whateti
ens to Napster,
ill of this litigation is really sc
the groundwork for
to the future of the
^arry Iser, an intellectual pn
ttorney.
r, who has worked with
■s and Michael Jackson to prok
copyrights, says Internet comf
mst develop "protected, roya
ating" downloading systems,
i one has yet been able to figt
>w to do that.
itter sales
ay stron
W YORK (AP) - Boy wizJ
Potter is still weaving magic
rd week of release, fl;
:ore shelves and Web retail'
a steady pace.
■ U.S. and British publishers
Potter and the Goblet of Fin,'
Took in the series by British aut
cvling, have already gone bad
sses for additional print runs
mwhile, some readers are
daring orders on Amazon#
/ebsite for the unwritten f
i the best-selling series, exped
■leased next July,
ritain, supplieg o( Goblet of
isappeared so quickly since 1 -
release that London-bi
bury, publisher of the U.K.
ilready on its 13th reprint,acd
>okesperson said Wednesday
imsbury has delivered neJ
lion copies to booksellers'
more than the initial prints
larly, the book's U.S. publish
ork-based Scholastic Inc.,
1 an additional 3 million cop
iving distributed all of its
initial print run.
series has so far sold 35 ml
vorldwide, and it holds thei
ts on the newly launched v
nes Children's Hard cover h
ist.
Roll
Family members
with video cameras
in a professional
work environment
undoubtedly create
distractions and
complications.
Perhaps fewer
tragedies would occur in
obstetrics if doctors did
not have to work around
video cameras. A child's
birth is an exciting mo
ment, but when doc
tors are expected
to perform
to the
best of
their
abilities,
they
should
not have
to tolerate
an annoy
ing camera
unless they
agreed to it.
Doctors
and hospitals
are frequently
accused of hid
ing things, and
their concern for
patients' health is
ignored. Med
ical physicians
are inappropri
ately stereo
typed as irre
sponsible and
sneaky because of
the few cases such
as that of the Hous
ton hospital. Doctors
are being wrongfully
blamed — just because
physicians may choose
to protect them
selves legally, it
does not mean they
are guilty. Hospi
tals as a whole
should not be re
sponsible for mak
ing decisions about
videotaping, but rather
each delivery case should
be considered individually.
The decision should be made as
an agreement between the individ
ual doctor and the family.
O
V ideotaping a child's birth
has become an increasingly
common event over the last
few years. But due to a recent law
suit, many hospitals may change
their policies on camera use in
delivery rooms. A Houston
hospital recently paid a $15
million set-
JESSICA
CRUTCHER
Amber Rasco is a junior journalism major. jeff smiih/The Battalion
tlement after the staff was
found negligent in caring for a
newborn. The lack of proper
care left the child blind and
with irreversible brain
damage. The family mem-
were able to prove
their case because they
videotaped the child's
birth; the hospital's
negligence was
caught on tape.
Currently, three
Houston hospitals have
policies against taping.
According to legal and
medical experts, fear of
lawsuits is increasingly
driving this trend na
tionwide.
In addition, a poll
taken by Richard
Mithoff, the family's
attorney, found
that more
Houston hos
pitals are
considering
banning
video
rameras.
Banning
video
taping
of births
only
shows
guilt.
Hospitals
should be
less con
cerned with
covering their
tracks and more
concerned with pro
viding patients the quali
ty care they deserve.
According to Mithoff, the fami
ly would not have known of any
wrongdoing if not for the videotape.
For example, the tape showed the baby
made no sounds and did not move muscles when she
was born. It also shows that the nurse waited nearly an
hour before calling a doctor. In addition, a medical at
tendant can be heard saying, "Someone better get that
tape and destroy it," toward the end of the tape. If this
family had not videotaped its daughter's birth, it would
not have been able to prove that the hospital staff was at
fault for the child's disabilities;
Dr. Robert Zurawin rationalized the hospitals' no-
taping policy by explaining, "We like to satisfy our pa
tients wishes ... but the conflict is it's a permanent
record."
If hospitals were doing their jobs, this "permanent
record" would not be a problem. Hospitals deal with
life-and-death situations on a daily basis. Therefore,
hospitals should have the most error-free procedures
and employ the most competent people.
A qualified doctor should have no problem
demonstrating his or her hard-earned skills in front of
a camera.
In addition, legal reasons are not the only cause
parents have for taping the birth of their children. The
birth of a child is a hallowed event in American society,
one that many parents wish to be able to enjoy time
and again.
Doctors should
be able to work
with cameras
in delivery
room, removing
them a needless
reaction to
Houston
family's lawsuit
Denying them
this opportunity
shows a lack of both
compassion and re
spect for the pa
tients' wishes.
Cameras in de
livery rooms can
serve positive pur
poses for hospitals.
If a child is t>orn
with a disability,
the tape can help to
prove whether the
doctor was at fault.
Although in the re-
cent case, the tape
proved guilt, if the doctor were not at fault, the same
tape could have absolved the doctor of liability.
Everyone makes mistakes. But minor mistakes in a
delivery room do not cause $15 million settlements.
Videotaping births will not result in dozens of lawsuits
against doctors who accidentally drop the forceps.
However, it will protect parents and children from
being the victims of gross negligence such as that which
occured in the recent Houston case. Hospitals that ban
cameras in delivery rooms strongly allude to their guilt
by their secrecy, and also show more concern for their
own welfare than for that of the patients the hospitals
are supposedly there to help.
It is sad the medical field has become so concerned
with potential lawsuits that it has lost sight of what is
best for those it serves.
Buchanan and Reform Party an odd mix
F
Jessica Crutcher is a junior journalism major.
Mail Call
// h pitchfork" Pat Buchanan
ditched his party last
year, crying foul.
Realizing he stood no chance of
replicating his success in New
Hampshire four years ago, Buchanan
afforded his fellow Republicans a
sigh of relief. After all, polling shows
that neo-Nazism does not really play
all that well with soccer moms and
other swing voters.
So Buchanan headed over to the
Reform Party cabin out in the woods,
urging the little piglets to let him in.
Apparently unacquainted with fa
bles, the fledgling third party em
braced him with open arms. Maybe
it was dimly lit and they had had one
too many.
It is not that Buchanan was hand
some or charming. He just had a
marquee name that might translate
into 5 percent of the vote and more
federal money down the line.
Anyhow, the party awoke the
next morning all sore and full of re
morse. Buchanan did not keep his
word. And the wishful thinking sank
down the drain like so much tap wa
ter. On the surface, it seemed as
though he had something in com
mon with the party's founder, the
quirky Texas billionaire Ross Perot.
Well, quirky is a polite way of saying
grade - A nut job. But at any rate,
both portray themselves as economic
populists.
Of course, the only blue collar
Buchapan has ever worn is with an
Armani suit in some posh television
studio. The common man's common
man jets about in a limousine and
has millions to his name from all his
past media gigs. But it would not be
altogether fair to say the Reform Par
ty embraced him with open arms. Its
higher-ups had reservations from the
start about Buchanan. After all, good
ol' Ross had never written, "the
Christian white male has been dis
possessed." He had never chastised
Ivy League schools for admitting
Jews. He had never praised Hitler's
"genius." He
never made
Dr. Laura
seem like a
bleeding-
heart liberal,
the sandaled
sort who
sings "Kum-
baya" around
a campfire.
Perot
founded the
Reform Party
partly on a platform of social liber
tarianism. This was explained to
Buchanan, but the poor little op
pressed white male just could not ac
cept such harsh conditions. Like a
small child, he just had to rail against
homosexuality and abortion. After
all, he always intended to use the Re
form Party; he had no obligation to
play by its rules.
And so, Buchanan marshaled his
supporters to seize control of several
of its state branches. The naked play
It is not that Buchannan
was handsome or
charming. He just had a
marquee name that
might translate into 5
percent of the vote and
more federal money
down the line.
for power will grant him a favorable
national delegation at the nominating
convention and allow him to shape
the party's future. While Jesse Ventu
ra stole Ross's thunder, Buchanan lit
erally wants to shanghai his party.
But Perot loyalists have mobilized
against the neo-fascist demagogue,
hoping to head off the coup.
And now only one man stands
between Buchanan and the $12.6 mil
lion. That man is John Hagelin. Run
ning for the third time under the
Natural Law
Party banner,
Hagelin is
mounting a
challenge to
Buchanan in
the mail-in pri
mary. If suc
cessful, he
would be
among the first
presidential
candidates in
American his
tory on two tickets and have ballot
access in all 50 states. Forming a
third-party coalition is really a stroke
of strategic brilliance. And in that
vein, Hagelin has also been making
every effort to connect with disaffect
ed college-age voters. He even made
a stump speech at Indiana University
last November.
But, alas, Hagelin is an oddball.
There is some truth to the argument
that third-party candidates cannot
win when everyone constantly says
they cannot win. But in Hagelin's
case is simply that he cannot win.
He is campaigning on the issues
of preventative medicine as an ap
proach to health care, banning ge
netically modified food and shap
ing policy through scientific
consideration. Abbie Hoffman
seems almost like a Washington in
sider by comparison.
And then there is the meditation
thin£. Schooled by the Maharishi
Mahesh Yogi, he believes every so
cial problem can be solved through
meditation. Back in 1993, he even
launched a meditation literature cam
paign in Washington, D.C. with the
hope of decreasing homicide rates.
And he has suggested that sending
meditation gurus over to Kosovo
would put an end to centuries of bit
ter conflict. Gov. George W. Bush
talks about uniting the country and
restoring trust in government.
Vice President Gore vows he will
fight for the people against the inter
ests of the rich and powerful.
Hagelin just wants everybody to
mellow out. If he could just convince
Buchanan to give meditation a try, he
would be set to go. After all,
Buchanan^s not exactly known for
pulling punches and will give him
one hell of a ride. Hagelin's cam
paign literature literally depicts his
head floating up in the clouds. At
long last, an honest campaign ad.
Joseph S. Pete is a columnist for the
Indiana Daily Student at Indiana U.
Each geneartion has
its own best golfer
In response to Mark Passwaters’
July 26 column.
While I agree with Passwaters
on his assessment that Tiger
Woods should not be labeled the
greatest golfer of all time, I dis
agree with his putting that label on
Jack Nicklaus. Was Nicklaus better
than Bobby Jones, who won the
pre-modern grand slam and retired
at 29? Or Ben Hogan who won six
majors after coming back from a
near-fatal car wreck during the
prime of his career that left him
nearly unable to walk? My point is
that they were all great golfers dur
ing their own generation.
How about instead of scrutiniz
ing Tiger’s recent run to the Nth de
gree, we just sit back and enjoy his
already remarkable achievements.
Chris Sasser
Class of ’96
Decreasing tickets
not a valid cure
In response to Sunnye Ownes’July
26 column.
While Owens raises awareness
of the court backlog that is facing
the city of College Station Munici
pal Court System, she fails to un
derstand the necessity of law en
forcement. If the people have a
problem with the laws being en
forced, then they need to elect
legislators who will change the
laws, not crucify the police officers
who enforce them.
Her continued insistence that
the College Station Police Depart
ment (CSPD) write fewer tickets in
order to reduce the backlog dis
plays a problem facing America to
day. Many Americans fail to take
personal responsibility for their
actions, so instead of the court
problem being caused by the mul
titude of people breaking laws in
College Station, the problem is
caused by CSPD enforcing the
laws. She also mentions that it is
an inconvenience for Aggies to
have to return to College Station
to attend the trial for their viola
tion of the law. But if you obey the
laws, there would be no reason to
return to College Station for a trial
in the first place.
It comes down to this: CSPD is
doing its job, the courts are
stuffed and need more space and
possibly more lawyers to prose
cute cases, and most importantly,
people need to stop breaking the
law in College Station if they do
not want to be inconvenienced by
the backlog of cases.
John Denholm
Graduate Student
The Battalion encourages letters to the ed
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