Whaddaya know. We were right:
Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) has sponsored an unusual [not for long!] provision at the urging of the nation's banks granting them immunity against an active patent lawsuit, potentially saving them billions of dollars.
Adopted with little fanfare [I'll bet!] , the amendment would prevent a small Texas company called DataTreasury from collecting damages from banks for infringing on its patented method for digitally scanning, sending and archiving checks. The patents were upheld last summer by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office after they were challenged.
The provision, passed without dissent by the Senate Judiciary Committee [Nice work, Senator Leahy!] in July and inserted into legislation scheduled for a vote by the full Senate this month, is a rare [but not for long!] attempt by Congress to intervene in ongoing litigation, congressional experts say.
Although the amendment would not invalidate DataTreasury's patents, it would spare the banks from paying for infringing them should courts decide that's warranted. If DataTreasury collected a royalty of just a couple pennies per check, the cost would run into billions of dollars.
So, you can break the law. You just don't have to pay any penalty. If you're a fictional person, of course. Like a corporation.
Say, I've got an idea:
Why don't we just put the entire United States code up for auction?
Fuck
this penny ante, onesies and twosies shit.
Just sell off the law. Why not?
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Now, this is Change
"Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont is the latest Democratic US senator to pick Barack Obama over fellow colleague Hillary Clinton.
Leahy, who has been in the Senate since 1974 and is now chairman of the Judiciary Committee, endorsed Obama today."
Lawless country of law. What a great change idea. And this took us all the time since 1776 to think of.
Say after me: change, change, change.
KoshemBos
personally, i like "good for thee, but not for me!"
that's my favorite line for these clowns. say it with a smile, chaps. you've saved Miff and the boys from having to suffer some nasty unpleasantness. go on down to the club and have a B&B. you've earned it.
Sweet Deal
So the Supreme Court rules that Corporations are People, so they have the right to free speech (i.e. false advertising, and money in politics), and yet we're now setting up a system where Corporations can't be sued, like people can.
Talk about the best of both worlds!
I can't wait until we sit these banks at the table and forge a bipartisan consensus with them.
Refining my idea
Makes no sense simply to auction off the Federal Code, because -- and I'm sorry I've been naive about this -- there's nothing in it for the individual "lawmakers."
I think it would make a lot more sense to auction off lifetime annuities for lawmakers on the changes they "become willing" to make. That removes that pesky "one time only" aspect that lobbying has, and, best of all, gives the "lawmakers" a permanent income stream. So, because they won't be affected by economic uncertainties, they'll really be much more capable of representing our interests.
Maybe somebody mode adept at finance than I am could flesh this idea out?
[x] Any (D) in the general. [ ] Any mullah-sucking billionaire-teabagging torture-loving pus-encrusted spawn of Cthulhu, bless his (R) heart.
"First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win." -- Mahatma Gandhi
Isn't This...
Really, isn't this business as usual? Not that it shouldn't be highlighted, because it should.
Remember Libertarian Presidential Candidate proposing to eliminate income tax and to pay for it with a one-time sale of our national parks? Oh, and he argued the FDA wasn't necessary, either. This isn't that different, except it's possibly more naked about its plutocracy.
don't forget too--all Iraq contractors, and
I believe all New Orleans/FEMA/Homeland Security/Pentagon/etc, and other fed contractors are immune too--in reality if not in legal terms.
It's disgusting.
also related--head of GAO lasted 3 months--
http://rawstory.com/news/afp/Top_US_acco...
Top US accountability officer quits over job constraints