capoccia's Journal: Congressional Response to the EFF "Stop SCO!" Campaign

I send my fax to my Congresspeople whenever an issue I agree with shows up on the EFF Action Center or ACLU Action Alerts website even though I am not a member of either organization. This time it was the EFF and the issue was SCO.

If you live in the US and use Linux but haven't sent a letter to your Congresspeople, what are you waiting for?

Anyway, Tiberi is my Representative. I've recieved a form letter response to every fax I've sent, but at least the letter means his office is counting faxes and planning a response. The issue has recieved some attention, which is more than was the case before I sent my fax.

The form letters also say something about Tiberi's current position on the matter. This is nice since not every issue is prominent enough to have is position detailed in a press release.

Here's the response:

Dear Mr. Capoccia:

Thank you for your recent letter regarding SCO Group, Inc.'s decision to sue individual users of the Linux operating system. I appreciate this opportunity to correspond with you.

As I am sure you are aware, the SCO Group is alleging copyright infringement in the most recent version of the Linux operating system, kernel 2.4. According to a company spokesman, code was added to the newest version of Linux that violates SCO copyrights. In response, the company has taken legal action against IBM, other business users of Linux, and private individuals such as yourself. As you pointed out, the validity of SCO's claims have not been established. Furthermore, the case against IBM is not scheduled to go to court until the year 2005.

I understand your concerns about this issue and realize they are important to you. While I have not studied the situation in great detail, I will do so at the earliest convenience.

At this time, there is no legislation pending in the House of Representatives that relates to SCO Group's legal actions in this situation. However, I will be glad to pass your views on to my colleagues who serve on committees with jurisdiction over this issue. I thank you for bringing this matter to my attention. If I may be of further assistance on this or any other issue, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,
[Signed]
Patrick J. Tiberi
Representative to Congress

The last paragraph is the most interesting.

Also it seems the Caldera globe logo is especially appropriate as SCO tries to take over the word.