Um...Senator, what were you thinking?

Sen. Orrin Hatch apparently spouted off a possible 'solution' to downloading copyrighted material--have the tech guys make a way to destroy the computer being used in the download. Everybody around him pretty much distanced themselves from that comment, thankfully.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for protecting intellectual property (within limits), but can you imagine the damage that could be done to, say, a library computer when someone downloads a file? Or how do you explain to the executive whose kid downloads a song that the machine with all of his business information is now a giant paperweight courtesy of blow 'em away techniques? How do you account for fair use, etc.? Copyright law isn't just black and white--it's open to a lot of interpretation.

Tech can make some things harder and some things easier, but it can't solve all the problems out there. So, keep looking for answers, Mr Chairman. Let's hope this is one of those 'I got swept away by emotion and had no idea what I was really saying' sorts of things.