A lot is being written about the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) and given that many readers here will have seen something about it elsewhere link here, here and here I have not posted on the subject. But for those not up to speed on this, the government with strong support from the copyright holders and their lobbying groups has been trying to agree on the wording of trade agreements with many of our main trading partners whose terms were not revealed. They now have been leaked link here. It is widely assumed that the government was proceeding this way to avoid having to open the language of legislation to amendment by Congress. An up-or-down vote on an already negotiated trade agreement would have a better chance of passing as submitted in its present strong form. In addition, it is expected that the government will press other countries to sign up to the same strong terms, i. e., without change, if they want trade agreements with the US.

What has some really upset is the provision to enforce filtering on the internet, to disable such P2P sites as Pirate Bay, and to invade privacy by going through travelers computers and music players when they cross borders. In other words, this is not simply better enforcement but a substantial expansion of the law.