Fuck sopa

[B_Hickboy]

I'm not using the worldwide web tomorrow.

 

[B_jdunhill]

Wikipedia is going 'dark' as they say tonight at midnight I heard. Fuck em.

 

[petite]

I'm with you. SOPA must die.

 

[ManofThunder]

Don't forget PIPA.

 

[kenny233]

Wikipedia is going 'dark' as they say tonight at midnight I heard. Fuck em.

A great day to perform maintenance on servers and clean them up. It should be better than ever when it returns...

 

[jtslover]

I just read the article about Wikipedia, and I say good for them doing a blackout! It's a website that just about every American uses, and that will show the destructive power of this nasty bill! I wish more sites would do a blackout, but God knows that a lot of these greedy buggers wouldn't do that!

 

[lms28]

The thought that either bill could pass (in some form or other) is truly frightening.

 

[joyboytoy79]

Google doesn't like SOPA and PIPA, either: https://www.google.com/landing/takeaction/

 

[Adrian69702006]

I think I understand the point of view of those opposed to sopa. However I also think a balance needs to be struck between safeguarding liberty and freedom of expression on the one hand and protecting people's property on the other. The advent of the internet has made copyright much more difficult to enforce than was previously the case. I think one has to make the default assumption that if one posts their deepest thoughts on the internet, they effectively become public property.

A few years ago I posted a pee desperation story on an adult website and was subsequently delighted to find it published some months later, without any acknowledgement, in a magazine. I complained to the magazine in question only to be told rather bluntly that as I'd posted it on their website it was theirs to do what they wanted with and, if I'd read the small print on the website I should have been aware of that. Legally I don't think they had right on their side - at least not under UK law. However they also realised there was little realistic prospect of me taking them to court over it and gambled, quite correctly, that they could get away with it. However that didn't make it right morally or, I suspect, legally either.

 

[kenny233]

The thought that either bill could pass (in some form or other) is truly frightening.

Agreed. As is the thought of politicians "solutions" to many other things.

Wikipedia prompts for the zip code and links you to the contact information of your local officials. It quickly explains the SOPA and PIPA issues and urges you to contact your local officials and voice your opposition.

I did not know Wikipedia was doing this, which to me, is much more appropriate than simply turning off the site.

BTW, Wikipedia mobile is available.

 

[Rob_E]

I found this article to be a good perspective on the issue Tim O’Reilly: Why I’m fighting SOPA — Tech News and Analysis.

I don't support piracy or copyright infringement, of course. However, what these bills do is to create a tool that would allow government to arbitrarily take down a site that they don't like without any due process of law. It allows an attack on the DNS level, meaning that no website in the world would be safe.

This is the same type of censorship that is used by China, Iran, etc. It would forever change free speech in the US. We must not let this prevail.

 

[bobg4400]

If congress does pass this bill can't Obama stop it?
I think he could just refuse to sign it or something?
I'm assuming he wants to stop it especially since pasing it would plunge his chances of being re-elected to 0%.

Also that Tim O'Reilly thing explains it quite well.
Also do SOPA and PIPA only apply to American based websites?
It seems unlikely The American Congress would be given the ability to infringe on websites based in other countries.

 

[phasor11]

It will affect everyone, everywhere, regardless if you are in the US or not. Non-US sites can be blocked, can have the payments systems blocked, can have their advertising blocked, so this does not just affect the US or US-based websites - it affects everyone.

Add to that that the US is pressuring other countries to pass the same type of laws.

This must be stopped - you don't kill a fly with a bomb, and that's what SOPA & PIPA are: overkill.

 

[bobg4400]

Non-US sites can be blocked, can have the payments systems blocked, can have their advertising blocked, .

But is this only in the US? They wouldn't be able to block access to a non-US site from Europe or something?

EDIT: According to Wikipedia SOPA imposes a broader requirement for network providers to "prevent access by its subscribers located within the United States" .

So It won't affect anyone not in the US.

Although realistically If they did pass this there'd probably just be riots in the streets until they removed the bill or however they get rid of these things.

 

[Rob_E]

At first it would only affect US based users viewing non-US based sites. At first very little would change. Slowly other countries would likely adopt similar laws. Large and cash rich sites would pay to avoid any interruption. Small sites, like this one, would just start to vanish. This might happen so slowly that there would be no organized protest. Eventually we would be left with only large corporate sites that had access to government and small sites that are off the radar. Once a small site got sufficiently large - lights out.

That is the fear.

 

[Serial Kisser]

I'd be off the internet today if I didn't need it for my job :I

 

[bobg4400]

But If It did pass people wouldn't take it lying down. There'd be protests and things straight away.

 

[D_Marina_DelRhey]

We're planning a mini-rally at my college.
We're getting a bunch of guys to wear Anonymous (Guy Fawkes) masks and Morphsuits to voice our opinion whilst other students move back in this coming weekend. This way, students and family can hear the word.

 

[joyboytoy79]

But If It did pass people wouldn't take it lying down. There'd be protests and things straight away.

There are protests now. Why do you think Wikipedia has gone black?

 

[Rob_E]

It's better to stop this now than to wait until it is law.