Laws are laws, but when laws are pathetically unrealistic and unenforceable they are stupid laws. Current copyright laws that prohibit the recording of TV programs or transfer of CDs to MP3 players have got to be up there with the most ignored laws in Australia. What’s the bet that even Philip Ruddock, Australia’s top lawyer, has broken the law by recording a television show at least once.

Dumb laws.

So when the time and political motivation arrives, a chance exists to update the copyright act and turn it into something that better reflects reality. Not on your life, if the Liberals have anything to do with it. Faced with this opportunity, Philip Ruddock has caved in to ridiculous industry demands and written into proposed copyright law a demand that Australians only watch a recorded TV program once and then erase it. There’s not much detail about what will happen to you if you watch CSI Miami a second time, but maybe the copyright police will bust down your door and subdue you with capsicum spray.

A little sense leaks through with permission to “format shift” your music from CD to MP3 and vice-versa, but don’t even think about making a compilation CD of songs from your other CDs. Capsicum spray.

It’s exactly this kind of pig headedness from the media and entertainment industry that is driving their consumers to piracy. It’s abundantly clear that legislating against these behaviours will not change them — the legislation actually promotes these behaviours — so why not instead provide the service that the consumer wants? And shame on the Liberals for proposing laws that so grossly misrepresent the reality of human behaviour.