Stop Me Before I Vote Again

J Alva Scruggs passed this along, on Rep John Conyers' "Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act of 2008":

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h110-4279&show-changes=0

It adds civil forfeiture, in the no-trial-needed drug war style, to intellectual property laws.

I was a little surprised that Conyers drove this one through. I'd never considered him that much of a thug. But after looking at his sponsors...

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/contrib.php?cycle=2008&cid=N00004029 He's getting big money from MGM, Murdoch and the American Intellectual Property Law Assn, inter alia.

J Alva ain't kiddin' about this wildly draconian war on, among other things, bogus designer labels. Here's an excerpt from the bill:

(1) CIVIL FORFEITURE PROCEEDINGS- (A) The following property is subject to forfeiture to the United States:

`(i) Any counterfeit documentation or packaging, and any counterfeit label or illicit label and any article to which a counterfeit label or illicit label has been affixed, which a counterfeit label or illicit label encloses or accompanies, or which was intended to have had such label affixed, enclosing, or accompanying.

`(ii) Any property constituting or derived from any proceeds obtained directly or indirectly as a result of a violation of subsection (a).

`(iii) Any property used, or intended to be used, to commit or facilitate the commission of a violation of subsection (a) that is owned or predominantly controlled by the violator or by a person conspiring with or aiding and abetting the violator in committing the violation....