My letter to Brian Masse, MP and his responce...

buritto · 2004-03-23, 11:34 AM

Dear Mr. Masse

For the first time in my twenty-eight years I'm writing a letter to a Member of Parliament. I never do this as I have never seen a reason to, that is to say I've never really seen the point. Sure I cry that I pay too much in tax, Huron Church is clogged etc. I have always said to myself what can one person, writing one letter, pertaining to a particular situation do to invoke a change? That question has always been a no brainier for me...I can't do anything because I can't change anything so why bother.

But having always said that I need to write to you regarding a quote I came across on the Internet. After reading the partial quote I was redirected to your website where I came across the following:

OTTAWA - Brian Masse, MP for Windsor West questioned Prime Minister Paul Martin's prioritization since assuming the role of Prime Minister.

"The recent Auditor General's report indicates that this Government has bigger problems to worry about than criminalizing satellite users. Canadians are tired of being constantly attacked through a regressive and unfair tax regime, paying increasingly higher costs for their prescription drugs, and having their ability to watch cultural and specialty programming cut off while big corporations and friends of the Liberal party run off with billions of their dollars in tax cuts and phony contracts." said Mr. Masse.

C2, An Act to amend the Radiocommunications Act, was the first Bill introduced by Paul Martin. This Bill, instead of dealing with the consumer (i.e. citizen) side of the issue, is dealing solely with the commercial side (i.e. protecting company interests) and will make the Government (either through law enforcement or judicial processes) the collection agency of the two licensed suppliers and would allow companies to claim higher damages against individual citizens. This Bill attempts to address issues of the satellite black market, but according to Mr. Masse does little by itself to address the issue of consumer access.

"The reality is that Canadians want access to a range of cultural, international and specialty programming that simply is not offered because of the slow-moving regulatory regime. Canadians who "pirate" satellite do so often not because they don't want to pay for it, but because they have no legal options to buy the programming that they want." Commented Mr. Masse. "Black market piracy should be condemned, but Grey market users shouldn't be the sacrificial lambs."

"This Bill is another example of the corporate cronyist feel of this new government. Companies who donated over $320,000 to the Liberal party over the last 5 years and to Paul Martin's leadership campaign are getting their reward with this ill-thought out Bill that criminalizes Canadians without offering them legal options to pay for the programming they want."

Sir, I can honestly say I don't know the legals of any of this but consider me a "common" Canadian. I watch the National at night and Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday and for the record I watched Mr Dress-Up when I was young, all on the CBC.

Why and when did TV become so bloody complicated? What the "common" Canadian of my age group are saying and screaming for that matter is "what's the big deal about HBO and ESPN?" Honestly, that's a big question. And for some reason our government through who knows how many parties has denied us programming that so many in the country really and I mean really want to watch.

Do you know what term is being said about this country from many of my age group regarding this concern? I'm sure you've heard this before too...we're calling it a dictatorship. That word sir, should scare the hell out of everyone who hears it.

We don't care about the CRTC, Canadian Content ( I know I'm Canadian), black/grey market, or any other reason any foreign service is not allowed here in this country. All we care about is watching a little TV. To us that's all it is Mr Masse, just a little TV.

Well that's my little rant Mr. Masse, I hope you can get a feel for what the "common" Canadian thinks. In a nutshell we think when the Canadian government says you can't watch Bill O'Riley on FoxNews, we think it's dictatorial. And that sir, scares the hell out of me, many others and possibly, maybe even you.

**********
A resident of Windsor

And his responce about 2 weeks later...

Dear ****,

Thank you for your recent email about C2, an Act to amend the Radiocommunication Act.

This is the second time that this Bill is before the House of Commons. The government would like to send the Bill to committee but I am opposed to that because I believe that this Bill is fundamentally flawed.

The government wants this Bill to be seen as protecting investments made by the broadcasting industry and fighting satellite piracy. I do not support and strongly condemn those who participate in the black market. When Canadians can legally purchase programming they should do so, or face penalties.

The problem with this Bill is that it also targets the so-called grey market and creates significant problems for consumer access to cultural and specialty programming. This Bill assumes that people who currently “pirate” satellite have the option to purchase, legally, the programming that they want to see – this is simply not always true. The reality is that because the CRTC, which approves what channels can be added to a communications companies list of offered channels, has not approved a wide variety of channels such as HBO, Al-Jazeera and many other specialty and international channels, Canadians who want access to these programs cannot access them legally. This Bill would make them criminals and if caught, be subject to fines of up to $25,000 or imprisonment.

This Bill does not deal with the consumer (i.e. citizen) side of the issue and deals only with the commercial side (i.e. protecting investment interests). I am interested in seeing a Bill that addresses the issue of permitting a wider range of international and specialty programming: dealing with satellite piracy without ignoring the needs of Canadians. Had the government followed the Heritage Committee recommendations of June 2003, we would have greater access to many programming options and people would pay for those options.

This is Paul Martin’s first Bill as Prime Minister. This Bill does not signal a significant change from the past government: the concern is for their corporate friends, not the reality and needs of Canadians. Since 1997, Bell Canada and Shaw Communications Inc (respective owners of Bell Express-Vu and StarChoice) donated over $320,000 to the Liberal Party of Canada and Paul Martin’s leadership campaign.

I will continue to fight in the House of Commons to ensure that the needs of Canadians are represented, not just those of Canadian corporations. Thank you for making the time to write to me on this important issue.

Yours truly,

Brian Masse, MP Windsor West

I think it's cool of him to reply...I never did this before

otown47 · 2004-03-23, 11:46 AM

"protecting investments made by the broadcasting industry"

When it comes to HD, that's the fallacy of the whole thing.

There is hardly any investment being made in HD in Canada. Outside of sports, we can count on one hand the number of Canadian HD productions that have been aired. The only real HD activity we've seen from Canadian broadcasters, is to set themselves up with low power digital transmitters in Toronto to effectively block any new US cable and satellite broadcasters (ie HDNET).

HD in Canada is a sham.

james99 · 2004-03-23, 12:08 PM

I see Canadian HD productions all the time: on HDNET and Discovery HD Theater.

peano · 2004-03-23, 04:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by james99

I see Canadian HD productions all the time: on HDNET and Discovery HD Theater.

Isn't that ironic...don't you think?

buritto,

Nice letter. I am impressed that Mr. Masse responded. I am still waiting for my Liberal MP, Colleen Beaumier, to respond to my original letter and a subsequent follow up asking her to please answer. It is more than 4 weeks now. I am not holding my breath.

By the way, I have read the RCMP are now knocking on homeowners doors on the east coast based upon Crime Stopper tips. Apparently, in one jurisdiction, there are only two officers and they have one doing this. Bell must have some damn fine fishing camps!

buritto · 2004-03-23, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peano

Quote:

Originally Posted by james99

I see Canadian HD productions all the time: on HDNET and Discovery HD Theater.

Isn't that ironic...don't you think?

buritto,

Nice letter. I am impressed that Mr. Masse responded. I am still waiting for my Liberal MP, Colleen Beaumier, to respond to my original letter and a subsequent follow up asking her to please answer. It is more than 4 weeks now. I am not holding my breath.

By the way, I have read the RCMP are now knocking on homeowners doors on the east coast based upon Crime Stopper tips. Apparently, in one jurisdiction, there are only two officers and they have one doing this. Bell must have some damn fine fishing camps!

The RCMP are knocking on peoples doors? Because they have a DirecTv dish on there roof? I wonder if those 2 RCMP dudes shake there heads when they got that order :lol:

netjel · 2004-03-23, 08:42 PM

Quote:

The reality is that because the CRTC, which approves what channels can be added to a communications companies list of offered channels, has not approved a wide variety of channels such as HBO, Al-Jazeera.

Yeah!!! that's what Most consumers are after .....HBO AND Al Jazeera!?!?

Gunsmoke2 - GS2 · 2004-04-05, 12:42 AM

Quote:

November 7, 2003

Dear XX:

Thank you for your e-mail message of September 10th regarding illegal or grey-market satellite systems. I would like to take this opportunity to share with you the Canadian Alliance's position on this matter.

The Liberal government recently introduced legislation to increase the penalties and provide for civil remedies against those individuals and corporations who sell and use illegal radiocommunications equipment - specifically satellite dishes to receive signals from satellite television program providers who are not licensed by the CRTC. The Canadian Alliance will not be supporting this legislation (Bill C-52). Allow me to outline our reasons why we oppose this legislation.

There are an estimated 700,000 satellites in Canada that are not licensed by the CRTC. Canadians often use these satellites to access religious programming and cultural programming that is not offered by Canadian providers. We believe that the deployment of any existing or new police resources to patrol neighbourhoods for satellites rather than criminals is inappropriate and wasteful.

While we do support attempts by the federal government to stop the importation of large shipments of illegal satellite receiving equipment, we must recognize the growing demand for cultural and religious broadcasting in Canada, and the fact that Canadians often do not have access to channels due to Canadian content restrictions.

The Canadian Alliance agrees with the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage's recommendation that calls on the CRTC to permit Canadian broadcasting distribution undertakings to offer a wider range of international programming, while being respectful of Canadian content regulations.

The Canadian Alliance believes a sound DTH satellite policy represents an opportunity to support the ability of Canadians to develop an international market for their programs. Our approach would be to negotiate a reciprocity agreement with the United States to create an open market in the licensing of television satellite distribution. We believe that a prudent and proactive response would be to make Canadian programming available in the United States and allow foreign programming to be available here in Canada for the benefit of all Canadians.

In closing, let me state that the Canadian Alliance continues to believe that those who receive ExpressVu and/or StarChoice signals without paying Bell or Shaw are stealing. Thank you once again for taking the time to write and for your interest in the Canadian Alliance.

Sincerely,

Stephen Harper, M.P.
Leader of the Opposition
Leader of the Canadian Alliance

I saw this posted on another site

GS2

brucea · 2004-04-08, 01:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by buritto

Yours truly,

Brian Masse, MP Windsor West

I think it's cool of him to reply...I never did this before

Me too... I sent a comment to our local MP (David Chatters - "Alliance"), who didn't respond (mind you, he is a bit of a twit, and with the electroral boundary changes, won't be representing our area - however, I will be voting conservative, as the Liberal candidate in the are is the new twit).

My thoughts are that it can never hurt...

Bruce

2004-03-23, 11:34 AM	#1
buritto Join Date: May 2003 Posts: 2,322	My letter to Brian Masse, MP and his responce... Dear Mr. Masse For the first time in my twenty-eight years I'm writing a letter to a Member of Parliament. I never do this as I have never seen a reason to, that is to say I've never really seen the point. Sure I cry that I pay too much in tax, Huron Church is clogged etc. I have always said to myself what can one person, writing one letter, pertaining to a particular situation do to invoke a change? That question has always been a no brainier for me...I can't do anything because I can't change anything so why bother. But having always said that I need to write to you regarding a quote I came across on the Internet. After reading the partial quote I was redirected to your website where I came across the following: OTTAWA - Brian Masse, MP for Windsor West questioned Prime Minister Paul Martin's prioritization since assuming the role of Prime Minister. "The recent Auditor General's report indicates that this Government has bigger problems to worry about than criminalizing satellite users. Canadians are tired of being constantly attacked through a regressive and unfair tax regime, paying increasingly higher costs for their prescription drugs, and having their ability to watch cultural and specialty programming cut off while big corporations and friends of the Liberal party run off with billions of their dollars in tax cuts and phony contracts." said Mr. Masse. C2, An Act to amend the Radiocommunications Act, was the first Bill introduced by Paul Martin. This Bill, instead of dealing with the consumer (i.e. citizen) side of the issue, is dealing solely with the commercial side (i.e. protecting company interests) and will make the Government (either through law enforcement or judicial processes) the collection agency of the two licensed suppliers and would allow companies to claim higher damages against individual citizens. This Bill attempts to address issues of the satellite black market, but according to Mr. Masse does little by itself to address the issue of consumer access. "The reality is that Canadians want access to a range of cultural, international and specialty programming that simply is not offered because of the slow-moving regulatory regime. Canadians who "pirate" satellite do so often not because they don't want to pay for it, but because they have no legal options to buy the programming that they want." Commented Mr. Masse. "Black market piracy should be condemned, but Grey market users shouldn't be the sacrificial lambs." "This Bill is another example of the corporate cronyist feel of this new government. Companies who donated over $320,000 to the Liberal party over the last 5 years and to Paul Martin's leadership campaign are getting their reward with this ill-thought out Bill that criminalizes Canadians without offering them legal options to pay for the programming they want." Sir, I can honestly say I don't know the legals of any of this but consider me a "common" Canadian. I watch the National at night and Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday and for the record I watched Mr Dress-Up when I was young, all on the CBC. Why and when did TV become so bloody complicated? What the "common" Canadian of my age group are saying and screaming for that matter is "what's the big deal about HBO and ESPN?" Honestly, that's a big question. And for some reason our government through who knows how many parties has denied us programming that so many in the country really and I mean really want to watch. Do you know what term is being said about this country from many of my age group regarding this concern? I'm sure you've heard this before too...we're calling it a dictatorship. That word sir, should scare the hell out of everyone who hears it. We don't care about the CRTC, Canadian Content ( I know I'm Canadian), black/grey market, or any other reason any foreign service is not allowed here in this country. All we care about is watching a little TV. To us that's all it is Mr Masse, just a little TV. Well that's my little rant Mr. Masse, I hope you can get a feel for what the "common" Canadian thinks. In a nutshell we think when the Canadian government says you can't watch Bill O'Riley on FoxNews, we think it's dictatorial. And that sir, scares the hell out of me, many others and possibly, maybe even you. ******** A resident of Windsor And his responce about 2 weeks later... Dear , Thank you for your recent email about C2, an Act to amend the Radiocommunication Act. This is the second time that this Bill is before the House of Commons. The government would like to send the Bill to committee but I am opposed to that because I believe that this Bill is fundamentally flawed. The government wants this Bill to be seen as protecting investments made by the broadcasting industry and fighting satellite piracy. I do not support and strongly condemn those who participate in the black market. When Canadians can legally purchase programming they should do so, or face penalties. The problem with this Bill is that it also targets the so-called grey market and creates significant problems for consumer access to cultural and specialty programming. This Bill assumes that people who currently “pirate” satellite have the option to purchase, legally, the programming that they want to see – this is simply not always true. The reality is that because the CRTC, which approves what channels can be added to a communications companies list of offered channels, has not approved a wide variety of channels such as HBO, Al-Jazeera and many other specialty and international channels, Canadians who want access to these programs cannot access them legally. This Bill would make them criminals and if caught, be subject to fines of up to $25,000 or imprisonment. This Bill does not deal with the consumer (i.e. citizen) side of the issue and deals only with the commercial side (i.e. protecting investment interests). I am interested in seeing a Bill that addresses the issue of permitting a wider range of international and specialty programming: dealing with satellite piracy without ignoring the needs of Canadians. Had the government followed the Heritage Committee recommendations of June 2003, we would have greater access to many programming options and people would pay for those options. This is Paul Martin’s first Bill as Prime Minister. This Bill does not signal a significant change from the past government: the concern is for their corporate friends, not the reality and needs of Canadians. Since 1997, Bell Canada and Shaw Communications Inc (respective owners of Bell Express-Vu and StarChoice) donated over $320,000 to the Liberal Party of Canada and Paul Martin’s leadership campaign. I will continue to fight in the House of Commons to ensure that the needs of Canadians are represented, not just those of Canadian corporations. Thank you for making the time to write to me on this important issue. Yours truly, Brian Masse, MP Windsor West I think it's cool of him to reply...I never did this before**

2004-03-23, 12:08 PM	#3
james99 Moderator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Burlington Posts: 23,034	I see Canadian HD productions all the time: on HDNET and Discovery HD Theater. __________________ Blu-ray and HD DVD Neutral! PS3 and 360 Neutral! My DVD Collection

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2004-03-23, 11:46 AM	#2
otown47 Veteran Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Ottawa, Rogers Posts: 3,880	"protecting investments made by the broadcasting industry" When it comes to HD, that's the fallacy of the whole thing. There is hardly any investment being made in HD in Canada. Outside of sports, we can count on one hand the number of Canadian HD productions that have been aired. The only real HD activity we've seen from Canadian broadcasters, is to set themselves up with low power digital transmitters in Toronto to effectively block any new US cable and satellite broadcasters (ie HDNET). HD in Canada is a sham.