Re: [Fsfe-uk] EU Ambassadors vote to back Software Patents

[Tom Chance]

On Saturday 08 May 2004 11:59, A. S. Bradbury wrote:
> On Friday 07 May 2004 15:54, James Heald wrote:
> > -- FFII News Release -- 7 May 2004 --
> > +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++
> > -- For immediate release --
>
> <snip>
>
> I have read this news release in horror. What can I do about this, is it
> too late to write to my local MP? Would this even have any effect? What
> should I say? As you can see, I'm feeling I should really do something, but
> I'm not quite sure what. I can't dedicate the time for much more than
> writing a letter or two, if that would be helpful. Any thoughts?

Write to your local MEPs. Write a letter, then slightly change it in these 
three ways:

To Labour MEPs:
- emphasise damage to small and medium enterprises
- emphasise damage to startups, i.e. no equality of opportunity
- say you've received the standard reply from arlene mccarthy before

To Tories:
- emphasise damage to small and medium enterprises
- say you've read the standard reply from malcolm harbour

To Lib Dems, Greens, UKIP, etc:
- emphasise damage to small and medium enterprises
- emphasise that the commission & council are trying to fight parliament... 
encourage them to stand up  for parliament and by its sept 2003 version
- ask them to sign the FFII call for action II [1]

That shouldn't take you all that long. There are lots of previous letters on 
the FFII web site if you need help. Send them off, and then pester them if 
they don't reply within a week (by phone, or if not then by e-mail). If you 
get any standard replies that aren't very helpful, post them to this list and 
we can formulate a reply, demanding that they answer your questions, or get 
their party's representative to satisfactorily answer them.

I hope that helps,

Regards,
Tom

[1] http://swpat.ffii.org/papers/europarl0309/demands/index.en.html