Topic
Stop the SOPA Act. Stop Internet Censorship. (United States)
Hey Glitchen! If you're in the United States, please take a moment to read up on the SOPA act.
If this act passes and becomes law, it could potentially do a great deal of harm, and open the door for a lot of ugly things. The spirit of the law doesn't necessarily mean it will be interpreted thusly, and it can be argued that the spirit of this act is not so virtuous.
Please take a moment and look into the SOPA act and write your representative.
Here are some more resources that I trust on the subject:
Consumerist
The EFF
Replies
- This right here is a huge damn deal. This, if it passes, basically means that our Internet access will be determined by corporate interests. We're about to have our rights to information get held ransom by the entertainment industry here (the entertainment industry- how the eff is our country so jacked up that we have allowed our government to hand over the keys of the city to the people who made Ernest Goes To Jail? WTF is wrong with us?!). This will also likely kill new startups and social networking. This is going to be a disaster if it passes. Get educated on this, because the vote's going down today, and it's the worst Internet legislation we've ever faced.
- Xev, thanks for posting this.
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Bear in mind that the only way to tell if a data stream is pirated content is to insert yourself into that transmission and copy it (this is akin to the state or a corporation reading your mail).
But these efforts would also potentially criminalize a teenager doing a cover of a song and posting it to YouTube. A child drawing a picture of Spider-Man that gets posted to a family blog or Flickr account could also be actionable. Fans who make replica props and costumes could be prosecuted (some friends did reproductions of both the Iron Man and WarMachine armor, and were at San Diego Comic Con).
And we're seeing another approach in the maligning of the USPS as being broke and inefficient. It's against the law to read someone else's mail, but when there's no longer a USPS and all correspondence/packages are handled by private vendors, are we looking at different rules?
You're being asked to surrender your 4th Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure under the guise that evil people out there are stealing content providers blind, that their PROFIT is more important than your CIVIL LIBERTIES. (Someone tried pushing a bill in California that would allow warrantless searches of CD duplicating houses on the premise that law enforcement could just drop by and look.)
I am not saying piracy doesn't exist, or that it's not a serious issue. I'm pointing out that we are trading away our freedoms wholesale every time someone wails, and we need to look closely at proposed 'solutions' to make sure they're not making us weaker. - WHOA. Whoa, hold the fuck up. Ernest goes to Jail was a great movie.
- @Xev- In what alternate reality was that a good movie? I'm guessing one where Plan 9 From Outer Space won Best Picture...
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In all honesty, I hated the Ernest movies. They just bothered me. I imagine the only reason they were successful was for the same psychological reasons that people slow down and stare at horrible car accidents on the highway.
But you have to admit, my post was funny, if only for the sheer absurdity. - @Xev could you mind your language please
- Certainly, if you mind yours.
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@TK-855... great points and explanation. It's more far reaching than I think people understand. The articles circulating are downplaying it and make it sound like it's just about people sharing music or video.
I'm calling my Congresspeople tomorrow and signing petitions. - @Ooola- AFAIK, the voting is taking place tonight.
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The bill went to the House Judiciary Committee today. I'm going to call anyway.
It's not passed yet so I'll add my voice to the opposition.
www.techdirt.com/blog/?tag=... Good collection of stories re: SOPA - Lifehacker has a great article and video explaining more about what SOPA is and how it works, as well as some of the ramifications of this bill if it becomes law.
- This is also very bad for all of us outside the United States. What happens there affects the whole net. And that country exerts heavy influence on others to adopt their policies, through diplomacy, controlling WIPO and so on.
- We need all the international support we can get! My point was to call out the US peeps so they can take direct action and contact their reps. Really good point, I didn't mean to leave the rest of the world out at all!
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This is happening RIGHT NOW. If you haven't yet, please call your representative and urge them to vote NO on SOPA!
http://keepthewebopen.com/open -
Do you honestly think they will stop this when they just passed the defense authorization act which is 100 times more egregious to our civil liberties.
Yeah sure call your congressman, but honestly, it's not gun work. Best course of action is to sit back and watch the downfall of civilized society. - @Mr. Dawgg: That thinking is exactly the reason why nothing will ever get changed.
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I just said this in the chatroom:
There are a lot of shitty things going on right now, and politics are pretty crap. But if you want things to change, sitting around lamenting how crap everything is won't help. Call your representatives and let them know that this isn't ok.
They do actually listen, and some of them are fighting VERY HARD to prevent SOPA from going through. Some are fighting equally hard to push it through. Let them know that you will not be voting for them in the next election if they continue to support it. - @Xev, its f as in telePHone, so thats phuck ok!