Yet another letter from an ACS insider

Bellow the fold:

Fellow science enthusiasts,

I am sending you this email to alert you that ACS has a plan in place if Open Access passes in Congress. I've been told by multiple colleagues that ACS executives are creating a bogus controversy that Open Access will impede scientists' copyright privileges in regards to the studies they publish. ACS has already begun to "educate" scientists about intellectual property rights, with hints that this "education" will help them protect the integrity of their studies.

In reality, this is little more than a stealth campaign to sow confusion and doubt among scientists who don't understand copyright law. But why would they? They're scientists, not lawyers.

If this attempt by ACS executives to confuse members by conflating issues sounds familiar, that's because it is. First, they conflated Open Access with peer-review; now they are conflating Open Access with intellectual property rights.

ACS might force a court case against the federal government based on copyright law, but management and lawyers are not sure that this will work. At best it might just delay the inevitable. Again, none of this is really about what's good for scientists; it's about what works to pump up ACS executive salaries and bonuses that are kept aloft by publishing profits.

It's just a sad year for ACS.

Until later,
ACS Insider2 (AKA Miss Phlogiston)

Previously:
Connections between AAP and ACS
Some More Information on ACS, PRISM and Eric Dezenhall
Eric Dezenhall memo leaked