SOPA and PIPA

[JenJen]

There are two bills that are currently being considered by congress here in the U.S. These bills will effectively put an end to internet freedom as Americans know it in an ill-concieved effort to combat piracy.

I would direct you to Wikipedia for information regarding the bills, but it's January 18th now and Wikipedia is currently in a blackout to protest them! Seriously, how cool is that?

So instead, here's some information that Google has put together about SOPA and PIPA. And if you feel so inclined, there's also a petition so you can add your name to the thousands upon thousands who are calling for congress to vote against these dangerous pieces of legislature.

I honestly believe that if these bills pass, it will be the start of something terrible. A Dark Age of information and online freedoms. Perhaps I'm being dramatic. But seriously, this crap is bad news in a big way.

[March Hare]

Someone should tell the supporters of those bills "uhm, hello, you're going to make the US like China. RedChina." That ought to scare them.

[Chanel_no5]

Someone should tell the supporters of those bills "uhm, hello, you're going to make the US like China. RedChina." That ought to scare them.

*laughs and nods in heartfelt agreement*

[JenJen]

Someone should tell the supporters of those bills "uhm, hello, you're going to make the US like China. RedChina." That ought to scare them.

I know, right? XD I'm surprised the thought hasn't crossed their minds.

[March Hare]

I'm surprised as well, Jen. But then, maybe we shouldn't be surprised by the staggering amount of self-serving short-sightedness that people in high power are capable of displaying.

It makes me sad, though. A LOT of the websites I visit on a daily basis are hosted in the US and controversial in nature. Many of them display a healthy sense of humour and perspective, even. If SOPA/PIPA go through they are doomed. This must not happen.

[SterlingSilver]

If SOPA/PIPA go through they are doomed. This must not happen.

Right on. The internet is the playground of our generation. We're the ones who should decide what we do to it. Who's to say a bunch of old guys we didn't even vote for should get to make those decisions? I think it's going to take a social movement on our part, though. We've gotten lazy since the 60's xD

[March Hare]

If SOPA/PIPA go through they are doomed. This must not happen.

Right on. The internet is the playground of our generation. We're the ones who should decide what we do to it. Who's to say a bunch of old guys we didn't even vote for should get to make those decisions? I think it's going to take a social movement on our part, though. We've gotten lazy since the 60's xD

Occupy Online?

I don't know. You're not entirely right there. The internet is, in principle and potential, for literally EVERYBODY in the whole damn world. Anyone who can get their hands on it can use it. This does not exclude even the bunch of old guys. The internet is anarchic by nature, and the mistake the US Government is making is the same mistake as the Chinese government are making (alas, with a little success in the latter case, it seems): the mistake of wanting to control what goes on in the world of the wide web.

There are ways of doing it, but those are not the traditional ways of controlling things. Those are not the ways that the old guys in the House and Senate are used to. It's a New Order, if you like, and it requires new methods of dealing. SOPA and PIPA are prime examples of old methods (that showed their inadequacy as far back as the first Korean war). They are faulty and harmful. Senate and House should find new ways to deal with their latest bogeyman, and as long as they haven't found any, they are to keep their paws off and their eyes peeled.

Dixit Bitch Hippie.

[john_kimble]

I saw that Wikipedia is blocking out their website today to protest it. Of course it's the one day I actually need to look up something on there....

Anywho, I doubt this will get all the way through congress. I hope not anyway!

[Blah!?]

At this point, if it does get through congress, this will be the last bit of proof that even a skeptic like me would need to see that the government truly doesn't care one single bit about the peoples' best interests. Honestly, this thing has no one's best interests in mind. Even the people that it helps short-term will suffer miserably for it in the long run.

In layman's terms:

[Animeeze]

XD blah that comic was awesome haha. I just don't understand how the could put the fate of the future generation and the current generation in the hands of the older generation that probably doesn't use and or understand the generation. Me and my one friend were talking about this today and he brought up this valid/interesting point that makes me lose all understanding of the governments reasoning process LOL.

[Vetinari]

It's awful being ancient and completely unable to understand the internet and all the concepts associated with it.

*creaks sadly away on zimmer*

[March Hare]

Yeah, but, whoa there. Don't make it about "old" and "new" generations. That's not (just) what it's about. It's about the powerful ones being scared of getting their power stolen away from under their noses. The internet has the potential of being used to overthrow any kind of establishment AT ALL. Think about that for a second, and you'll realise what the US Government is trying to do.

Again: red fucking China.

I can hardly even blame them.

[Skiffy]

There are other petitions for people outside the US, scroll down for one on here: http://americancenso...INVp-EE_j6Ifn0D

[Anonymouse]

I don't understand how our government can even considering enacting something that almost EVERYONE IN THE COUNTRY, not to mention a lot of people around the world, are against. That's the total opposite of democracy.

I'm sick of restrictions.

[Animeeze]

Yeah, but, whoa there. Don't make it about "old" and "new" generations. That's not (just) what it's about. It's about the powerful ones being scared of getting their power stolen away from under their noses. The internet has the potential of being used to overthrow any kind of establishment AT ALL. Think about that for a second, and you'll realise what the US Government is trying to do.

Again: red fucking China.

I can hardly even blame them.

This is true XD Thank you, and I didn't mean to make it solely about that or anything, because there are awesome old people too, I was just ranting cuz I love the internets, I had it in my head that most older people don't use the internet and that wasn't right to assume with no back up too, I'm sorry XD But your point is really true...and scary too. I don't want internet censorship, it is very horrifying I signed the petition and hopefully this won't happen.

[resolution]

But the Bill is about intellectual property rights correct? Not free speech?

The problem i guess is one of approach, but I can't imagine any approach that could adequately police a medium like the internet.

[Marshmallow Peep]

Well, I could rant and rave about SOPA and PIPA all day but I already did that a while ago so I'll save that for later. All I have to say for now is that if SOPA and/or PIPA pass, whoever let them do so should stay inside and far away from windows. It'll be their own fault if somebody came up to them and strangled them out of nowhere and nobody did anything about it because according to them, killing another person is nowhere NEAR as important of a problem as piracy. Yeah, it's sad, isn't it?

[Chanel_no5]

It'll be their own fault if somebody came up to them and strangled them out of nowhere and nobody did anything about it because according to them, killing another person is nowhere NEAR as important of a problem as piracy.

With all due respect, that comment made me feel literally sick to my stomach, because I'm in politics and very recently I've received several threats over an issue that people had totally (and some of them willingly) misunderstood. Colleagues and friends of mine were threatened to death.

I don't agree with these Bills, but I can understand the legal background of the discussions, and even "as a joke", speaking of killing politicians strikes a very bad cord with me. I'm sorry for threadjacking, and I absolutely think that the matters of PIPA and SOPA should be discussed further, but please, for the sake of good taste, leave that kind of talk out of it. Please.

[Anonymouse]

But the Bill is about intellectual property rights correct? Not free speech?

The problem i guess is one of approach, but I can't imagine any approach that could adequately police a medium like the internet.

It's supposed to be about intellectual property rights, but it's worded so vaguely that it could allow the government to shut down websites that are even marginally guilty of featuring copyrighted material.

Just to use this site as an example, the government could decide that the fanfiction or fanart posted here, or links to sneezing clips from movies and television shows, violate the law and shut us down just for that. At least I think that's what people are worried about, correct me if I'm wrong...

[Bondi]

Okay, I'm against the SOPA act and I signed the petition and I will be really, really upset if this thing actually passes. I don't need to repeat anything that anyone else has said and I don't have anything to add there.

With that said, the protest against it is probably the stupidest, most inefficient protest against these sorts of bills that I have ever seen in my 11 years of having regular internet access. What was so bad about having banners and flags on your website like Amazon.com and TV Tropes are doing now? Why are some other websites shutting the whole thing down, going on strike so people can't use the website? Sure, it grabs people's attention, but you don't need to go that far. The other protests worked just fine without going to these extremes? How is shutting down Wikipedia for a day a good thing? So much for being able to use Wikipedia to actually find any information about this thing? The site itself as well as the strike page has very little information on the actual bill and why it's so horrible; it just contains a bunch of generic rhetoric. Sure there is a very informative video that actually bothers to explain what this is all about, but would it have killed them to put at least some of that information on the main page of their website? Yes, I agree that people need to be outraged; however, instead of shutting everything down and spewing a bunch of rhetoric that no one cares about, the websites that are so upset should explain to people on their main page why they need to be outraged.

[PaperThings]

Well, I know for a fact that NOBODY in my school had a clue what SOPA and PIPA were and then, when Wikipedia and the other sites shut down, suddenly they knew. And now they're going to join the protesting.

So, I think the sites' shutting down did exactly what they meant to do, which is inform (a lot) of people who had no idea what these bills were. My parents, for instance, barely understood how they would affect the internet and definitely weren't aware of the many negative sides.

Honestly, this is the only political matter that I've ever seen people undivided about, both in real life and online. So, at least there's that?

[JenJen]

Why are some other websites shutting the whole thing down, going on strike so people can't use the website? Sure, it grabs people's attention, but you don't need to go that far.

I actually think they do need to go that far. Because there are a LOT of people who don't pay attention to things unless they start to get inconvenienced. And Wikipedia gets so much traffic from pretty much everyone, I think it's a fantastic way to catch the average's person's attention and let them know what's going on. And really, it's only for a day.

[melonbun]

[March Hare]

Why are some other websites shutting the whole thing down, going on strike so people can't use the website? Sure, it grabs people's attention, but you don't need to go that far.

I actually think they do need to go that far. Because there are a LOT of people who don't pay attention to things unless they start to get inconvenienced. And Wikipedia gets so much traffic from pretty much everyone, I think it's a fantastic way to catch the average's person's attention and let them know what's going on. And really, it's only for a day.

Exactly, precisely and indeed as you say, Jen. It is only one day - and look at the people moan and wail and gnash their teeth. "GIMME MAH WIKIPEDIAAAAAAAARRRGHH!" Remember when Blackberries went down for a couple of days? Howling in the streets. Sackcloth and ashes. Your reaction, Bondi, shows exactly why this was the most effective method of bringing this to everyone's attention. (Plus, Google still worked, so you could use THAT to find information.)

resolution is also right. How could one single government ever presume to police the internet? That's like sending a couple of soldiers into a jungle and expect them to make everything exactly like Uncle Sam wants it to be. Sound familiar?

[Bondi]

Okay, then why aren't these sites having any banners or information at all now that the day is passed, since it's so important to inconvenience people to keep them informed? So now I guess if the people who don't follow current events just happened to not go on the Internet yesterday at all for whatever reason, they won't see anything about it.

The net neutrality advocates did a good enough job getting people informed without having to close down sites and resort to vague anti-establishment rhetoric on their main page...at least I thought so. I mean, ISPs aren't allowed to throttle websites who don't give them money for people to download from them faster.. They managed to prevent that from passing several times just by being upfront with everyone and having clear explanations in plain site as to why congress's proposed laws would be a bad thing.