From one RIAA victim to another …
p2pnet news view RIAA | P2P:- Vivendi Universal, EMI, Warner Music, Sony BMG and their RIAA have almost reached the end of the line.
In 2009, they’re repeatedly shown up as cruel and greedy and with nothing but contempt for the people who keep them fat and happy.
But their days are almost done as more and more people stand up to them, and as increasingly, the mainstream media, who used to be their reliable PR dupes, are reporting things as they really are instead of merely repeating Big 4 BS as though it’s accurate information emanating from reliable and credible sources.
But these aren’t just souless companies. People run them – people such as Mitch Bainwol (left) and Cary Sherman, millionaire spin doctors paid to present black as white and lies as truths.
And their victims are people too, not merely names on a false RIAA subpoena.
Yesterday we ran a post by Randy Kruger, a father whose daughter, Britanny, is being hung out to dry by the labels, with the RIAA fronting for them.
Here’s how Recording Industry vs The People’s Ray Beckerman described things »»»
The RIAA is being especially vengeful towards Brittany, because she, with the help of her non-lawyer father, dared to question the legality of MediaSentry’s conducting investigations in Michigan without an investigator’s license.
Her complaint prompted an investigation by Michigan’s Department of Labor and Economic Growth which encouraged other college students, and even colleges, in Michigan to follow suit, probably led to reform of Michigan’s licensing statute, caught MediaSentry up in a pack of lies, and which may yet lead to criminal prosecution, but which was not sufficient to cause MediaSentry to stop its illegal practice.
The RIAA used MediaSentry as its personal priovate investigator, but recently had to fire it, replacing it with a Danish company with an equally shabby background.
‘A constant state of fear’
I’ve spoken with Britanny and there’s no way on earth she’s the criminal or thief the RIAA claims she is. Nor are any of the other innocent people the RIAA claims are “devastating” the corporate music industry by sharing music with each other.
However, where once the RIAA could get away with murder, it’s now being made to pay, figuratively and literally, with people such as Tanya Andersen, the single mother who suffered through years of misery, thanks to the Big 4, but who wouldn’t give up, leading the way.
Tanya saw Randy’s post and said this »»»
The way Randy Kruger wrote this letter was perfect. It sincerely touched my heart. It describes so well what fighting the RIAA feels like including how it affects everyone around them. The RIAA changes your life and makes you live in a constant state of fear, intimidation and feel like your privacy is constantly violated.
I’ve wondered so many times why the powers that can do something, just won’t. It makes me angry. I was shocked (and still am) that our government, etc., is letting this go on in the US.
There are many good people out there who are trying to help. Sites such as P2Pnet are making a huge difference. I remember when I first started my own fight with the RIAA it was a huge relief when I found out there were others who actually knew what I was talking about. (Because at times, it felt like this was some hidden thing that was happening to just me and many people I contacted knew nothing.)
There are still many people though who seem to have no idea what these lawsuits are all about. They don’t and won’t possibly understand what Brittany and her family are going through. It is maddening.
These people that work for these companies that pursue the lawsuits, I don’t understand. I guess it’s all about money to them; and they somehow make themselves feel okay about totally destroying another human beings life. That’s how I see it anyway. This is supposed to be one of the funnest times of Brittany’s life and she’s having to deal with this BS.
I can relate with every part of Mr. Kruger’s letter. It was beautifully written. I just want to tell Brittany to hang in there and know that you are not alone. Don’t let these people stop you from going after your dreams in life. They are not worth it. Many times I have had to take this thing day by day–I know it’s really, really hard. Don’t give up
So what about it, Mitch and Cary and Jonathan Lamy and Cara Duckworth and all the rest of you RIAA employees?
What about Morgan Swartzlander who, says Randy, makes to calls for the RIAA as ‘Lead Settlement Representative,’ working from, “some secret location, leaving only an untraceable phone number, or sending vague emails”?
Are you people happy in your work? At the end of the day, do you relax at home, feeling you’ve achieved something worthwhile and meaningful?
If you do, you urgently need help.
Jon Newton – p2pnet
February , 2009
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February 5th, 2009 at 12:49 pm
and I quote Ray Beckerman:
[Ed. note. Day after day for the past four years I have spoken with the good people from all across the country -- people like Randy and Brittany and Tanya -- whose lives have been made hell by the vermin who brought this plague of unnecessary and mean spirited litigation down upon our nation. Being a litigation lawyer I try to stay focused on the law and the facts (unlike my adversaries, who make it up as they go along in order to serve their Masters). My basic job has been to get the litigation documents on line so there will be a record, and to assist other lawyers helping defendants in these cases, on both substantive and procedural legal issues. But I am deeply thankful for someone like Jon Newton, who day in and day out has been doing a fantastic job of telling us about the human side of these cases. My hat is off to him, and I thank him. And I will say that when the judgment day comes, my guess is that a million Matthew Oppenheims, and a million Richard Gabriels, and a million Timothy Reynolds', won't be worth a single Tanya Andersen. -R.B.]
read this again, next time you think p2pnet doesn’t affect people Jon…
stw.
February 5th, 2009 at 9:29 pm
…And I second the motion for the creation of “Jon Newton Day”!
: )