San Diego GOP Chairman founded international piracy ring

[Liberty Belle]

Source: Raw Story

Any job applicant knows that background checks are routine – especially for jobs involving authority or oversight of money. So why didn’t the San Diego Republican Party do a simple Google search before naming Tony Krvaric as its chairman?

Online research reveals that Krvaric is the co-founder of Fairlight, a band of software crackers which later evolved into an international video and software piracy group that law enforcement authorities say is among the world’s largest such crime rings. After co-founding Fairlight in Sweden, Krvaric established U.S. operations for the organization, including an arm headquartered in Southern California—a major center for the computer and video game industry.

Krvaric has also been appointed by California Republican Party Chairman Ron Nehring to head up the state party’s budget committee. RAW STORY's investigation reveals the California GOP has put an alleged pirate in charge of its treasure trove.


Read more: http://rawstory.com/news/2008/San_Diego_GOP_chairman_cofounded_international_0425.html

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Much more at link above. This is Part I of a series, so grab some popcorn and stay tuned!

This raises some interesting questions, such as how does someone who has bragged about piracy exploits in various interviews get a visa, citizenship, a securities broker's license and a rapid rise to the top echelon of the California GOP?

Inquiring minds want to know.

[bemildred]

1. California Republicans, as a group, aren't very bright.

Just an observation. B-1 Bob Dornan. Sunny Bono. Raygun. It's a very long list.

[muntrv]

2. Nixon, too.

[Liberty Belle]

8. Here's a prime example of this pirate's mental capacity:

"Tony Krvaric has never fully disavowed his piratical past.

Ever a buccaneer at heart, he even lists an e-mail address with his pirate nickname ([e-mail]) at his business listing under Tony Krvaric with the San Diego County Businesses directory. Krvaric provided the e-mail address [e-mail] in his League of Women Voters information materials when he ran for the San Diego Republican Party central committee in 2006. Running for reelection in 2008, Krvaric currently lists [e-mail] with the Registrar of Voters."

[bemildred]

9. Hackers don't bother me.

Admitted they aren't all that bright, but they help keep the system honest. If nobody was looking for cracks, technology in general and software in particular would be even crappier than they are. The only reason this is even a problem is because various corporate entities want to get rich.

[merwin]

19. So? I still go by the name that I used when I was active in the scene.

Albeit, I was more of a behind-the-scenes guy :)

[Catch22Dem]

13. That nimrod who helped initiate the recall vote

Then got jack shit in return. Rep. Issa. Well, and the governator himself too.

[bemildred]

14. Good addition.

Hugh Hewitt. That idiot that prosecuted the Clinton impeachment. Pombo. Buck McKeon. Pete Wilson. Dukmejian. Sigh. And at one time our governor was Pat Brown and this state kicked ass.

[nwliberalkiwi]

15. Buck McKeon

Buck McKeon votes no on Healthcare and always yes on military funding. He's a Mormon that is extremely right-wing. I wonder what Christ would have to say about him.

[bemildred]

16. Another "Fuck you Jack, I've got mine" Republican. nt

[catzies]

28. Yeah. Isn't "That idiot that prosecuted the Clinton impeachment" heading the SEC?

If I'm thinking of who you're thinking of, Christopher Cox?

[bemildred]

29. Well, I was thinking of Rogan, who was my Rep at the time.

But leave us not forget Henry Hyde, Sensebrenner, Ken Starr, etc. It was definitely a team effort.

[catzies]

32. Ah, and Rogan was ousted by Adam Schiff, right?

I'm north of you, but not by much...a few Congr. districts north.

[bemildred]

33. Yeah, not that he is huge improvement.

But improvement he is. It was a very nice day when we sent Rogan to spend more time with his family.

[hunter]

26. They tend to much less than bright.

Have you ever been amongst a group of them? It's like a bizarre cult, and I think about half of them make their money ripping off the other half who by some good fortune, sociopathic cunning, or outright thievery actually have an outside income.

A money cult twit like Darrell Issa gets bumped off by the much more cunning Arnold Schwarzenegger -- these kinds of things happen all of the time in that community, and they never see the pattern.

The damned weirdest and most blatantly disreputable investment schemes I've ever seen come out of Republican Orange and San Diego county. Variations of pigeon drops and Ponzi schemes burn through the California GOP like communicable diseases, and the most astonishing thing is that the people who cook up these schemes often don't recognize them for what they are. They truly believe in their mega-church-washed hearts that they are not ripping people off, and they are shocked and hurt and sometimes even remorseful when the schemes collapse.

They can wake up amidst the financial wreckage they caused, surrounded by shocked bankrupt associates moaning in pain all around them, brush themselves off, walk away, put a smile on their face, and do it all over again.

[bemildred]

30. Well, it is very like a religion.

Anything that shuts your brain down if good for people that want to make money off of you. People have faith in the virtue of money too, I suppose. And it's hard to be convincing if you don't believe in what you are selling, at least temporarily.

[Indydem]

3. I guess that depends on your opinion of software, video, and music piracy. n/t

[rox63]

4. Just another GOP criminal

Move along, nothing to see here. :eyes:

[Supersedeas]

23. laissez faire voodoo economics

[Oerdin]

5. This is garbage.

I enjoy using websites like Surf the Channel and the reality is the Swedish government has been much more vigilant in protecting user rights and fair use then the US has and so in most cases such hosting sites are legal under Swedish law. That's why sites like Surf the Channel and The Pirate Bay are hosted in Sweden and incorporated in Sweden. In any event I don't care about the RIAA and MPAA as I think they're both corrupt bastards who use their money to abuse their fans and I won't go after anyone who helps strike a blow against such groups.

[Liberty Belle]

7. So you approve of stealing if the "victim" is rich?

That's a mighty slipper slope in terms of ethics.

[merwin]

20. Not if the victim is rich, if the 'victim' is taking advantage of the population

unfairly, without any morals or standards.

[bitchkitty]

31. I like STC too -

if it weren't for them, I would never watch anything. My budget doesn't have room for extras.

[Liberty Belle]

6. Ahoy! Some very funny comments at Fark:

http://forums.fark.com/cgi/fark/comments.pl?IDLink=3571491

Enjoy!

[tanyev]

10. See? Republicans do care about global warming!

www.venganza.org

[nadinbrzezinski]

11. hacking is hacking.. hmmm databases?

[Liberty Belle]

12. or voting machine software?

[merwin]

18. "hacking is hacking." You've been drinking too much MSM koolaid

There's a huge difference between software cracking for fun and knowledge (which is the root of it), and breaking into computers for financial gain.

[Liberty Belle]

21. True...but he's a financial planner and

Wachovia his last employer was just in the news accused of money laundering

[merwin]

17. Then there's the demoscene side of Fairlight, which has won numerous awards and

is thought of very highly in the graphics/musical demo scene.

Personally, I could care less. I like and respect their work in the demoscene :)

I am somewhat ashamed of Raw Story for this one. So what if he's a Republican? I was involved in the scene when I was in high school too. That doesn't make me any less of a good person.

Wikipedia: Fairlight (group)

BTW, I think this excerpt from the article describes it perfectly:

"Apparently there’s a hit piece floating around on me, “exposing” my wild high school, teenage years where I was in a computer club where we swapped Commodore 64 games (similar to how kids swap mp3 music files these days)," he wrote Monday. "This was in the 80’s, on a computer that’s long since defunct!"

"1990 I graduated high school, grew up and started my own business, and then in 1992 I came to this country, continuing the same business (selling computer and video game chips and accessories as well as some nonperishable foodstuffs, taking over my father’s business for a while after he died in 1994) until I left that field when the profit margins became too thin to make any money – around 1997 or so," he added. "That’s when I became a financial consultant, which I remain to this day."

"I’m sure glad they didn’t look in to my elementary school years, as there’s some really embarrassing stuff that I did in 4th grade," he continued. "BTW, I also heard a rumor that another fellow committee member (who shall remain unnamed) once made a tape copy of his friend’s favorite vinyl record."

[Liberty Belle]

22. The demos were definitely artistic!

But why would you fault Raw Story for exposing this guy's secret life?

He wasn't just a low-level cracker. He co-founded a piracy ring that grew to become one of the biggest organized crime rings on the planet, and his own co-founder has said Krvaric was still involved up to at least 2004 - when he was already involved in GOP politics here.

If true, he was doing illegal activities while representing a party that espouses moral values. Of course, there's also the question of whether the GOP knew about his past or not--and if so, was he hired for having certain skills? 'Cause he sure didn't have much background in politics when he rose through the GOP ranks so fast.

[merwin]

25. True, he doesn't have much experience in politics...

however, he's shown that he has the drive to succeed in whatever he tries to do. Therefore, he probably could talk his way into politics

[starroute]

24. Yet again, it's about the hypocrisy

The GOP touts moral values and getting tough on crime, but that all seems to fly out the window when it's one of their own.

The GOP says their support for this guy shows they're not against all immigrants -- just the lazy, dishonest ones. His past history shows that argument up.

It's like the outing of closeted gay Republicans. It isn't the lifestyle that's at issue -- it's the hypocrisy.

[superconnected]

27. They saw a crook and said, "You're one of us! Come on in!"