Author: Hafiz Noor Shams

Alas, it’s time to fight back. We watched our comrade fought and now it’s our time. I sound like a commie.

Dear Students:

Over the past few weeks, the Recording Industry Association of America
sent several notices to the University of Michigan of its intention to
subpoena the identity of specific computer users within our campus community.
At least seven of these are U-M undergraduate students living in the residence
halls. Normally, such notices from RIAA are in preparation for a lawsuit
against the individuals for violation of copyright.

RIAA has begun a series of lawsuits against individuals it believes have
violated the copyright of its members by illegally downloading and uploading
music via file-sharing programs over the Internet. RIAA has targeted specific
computer accounts used to access and transmit such files, and then has
issued subpoenas to the service providers (including universities) in order
to find out the names of those responsible for the file-sharing.

The University has notified each of the students involved in the RIAA notices.
University policy is not to release the names or contact information of
our computer users unless we are required to do so by law. Should RIAA
pursue legal action, we may be compelled to release the identities of these
individuals.

To avoid legal action over inappropriate file-sharing, it is important
to understand the proper use of University computing resources. While
some file-sharing is completely lawful, some file-sharing is not. In addition,
the programs typically used to download files from the Internet often,
unbeknownst to the recipient, turn the individual’s computer into a file-sharing
(uploading) server. Even unknowingly uploading some copyrighted works
may subject you to additional legal risk.

U-M assumes that students will use University information technology networks
and resources lawfully. Here is information you may find helpful in educating
yourself about the appropriate use of networks and resources:

www.rescomp.umich.edu
www.umich.edu/~itua/
www.copyright.umich.edu

If you have any questions about appropriate use of U-M computer resources,
you may contact the User Advocate at user.advocate@umich.edu.

–Royster Harper, Vice President for Student Affairs
–James Hilton, Associate Provost for Academic, Information and
Instructional Technology Affairs

p/s – The Eredivisie has finally resume. The first match will be held today between Roda JC and Ajax.
pp/s – Roda 1 – 2 Ajax. Yeah!
pp/s – In response to letter sent via Environmental Defense concerning an unbelievable energy bill. I hope I didn’t sound like a deep green in my earlier letter.

January 21, 2004

Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams
314 Cambridge House, West Quad, 541 Thompson St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109

Thank you . . .

. . for contacting me regarding your opposition to the final version of the Energy bill (H.R.6). I share your concerns about this legislation.

As you know, on November 21, 2003, the Senate failed to stop a filibuster on this bill by a vote of 57-40. I voted to block the Energy bill because I had serious concerns about how the bill would affect Michigan.

First, the Energy Bill waives past and future liability for producers of the gasoline additive, MTBE, which contaminates our drinking water. This MTBE liability waiver provision would cost Michigan’s taxpayers an estimated $260 million in order to clean up Michigan’s over 745 MTBE polluted underground storage tanks.

The Energy Bill also failed to include measures to prevent another nationwide blackout. On August 14, 2003, more than 50 million people, including 6 million in Michigan, were left without electricity, many for several days. The August blackout cost Michigan’s economy nearly $1 billion. Unfortunately, the Energy bill did not include measures to fix our electric grid problem and to strengthen electric reliability to prevent a future blackout.

Finally, the Energy Bill repeals the Public Utility Holding Company Act (PUCHA), without adding necessary consumer protections laws to take its place. PUCHA is a landmark consumer protection law that enables states to regulate utility mergers and protect consumers. The Enron debacle, the West Coast electricity crisis, and the blackout this past August have all made it clear that consumer protections need to be strengthened, not weakened. We must ensure that utility company mergers advance the public interest by establishing clear rules and enforcement procedures to prevent soaring electricity rates. Otherwise, Michigan families could face higher rates and unreliable electric service. You can count on me to fight for provisions that will help move us towards a truly competitive utility market while maintaining consumer protections.

I believe that we need a more balanced energy policy. Rather than emphasizing nuclear production and oil exploration in environmentally sensitive areas, there should be more of a focus on energy efficiency initiatives, conservation, and development of renewable energy.

Thank you again for sharing your concerns with me. I expect that the Energy bill will continue to be vigorously debated. Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can ever be of assistance in the future.

Sincerely,
Debbie Stabenow
United States Senator