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Posts tagged #sopa
SOPA opponents gaining momentum Wikipedia to join blackout
Jan 17th
source: redtape
UPDATED Jan. 16, 3:15 ET — Opponents of controversial federal anti-piracy legislation known as SOPA seem to be picking up steam. Supporters of the legislation in both houses of Congress appear have backed off, the Obama administration has expressed concerns with the legislation, and an Internet blackout slated for Wednesday is picking up supporters.
A House subcommittee was slated to prepare the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, for a vote later this month; the Senate had planned a vote on the companion bill, PIPA (The Protect IP Act,) even sooner. Now, it appears both votes will be delayed.
SOPA opponents are rallying around an effort to call attention to the legislation by convincing Web sites to “go dark” on Jan. 18, and display only a simple message of protest on a black background. On Monday, Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales announced that his website will go dark for 24 hours starting at midnight ET Tuesday, following the lead of other high-profile promised blackouts. Reddit.com will go black from 8 a.m.- 8 p.m. on Wednesday. The hacker group Anonymous also encouraged others to join in the 12-hour blackout, and garnered a lot of attention with its Twitter post using the hashtag #BlackoutSOPA.
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Meanwhile, several signs point to SOPA legislation hitting some serious speedbumps. On Saturday, a statement issued by White House cyberczar Howard Schmidt, and other administration technology officials, threw cold water on SOPA’s anti-piracy efforts.
“Our analysis of the DNS filtering provisions in some proposed legislation suggests that they pose a real risk to cybersecurity and yet leave contraband goods and services accessible online,” says the response, referring to SOPA’s proposal to allow law enforcement officials to blacklist Web sites — cut them off from U.S. users — that allegedly encourage piracy. The response, posted at WhiteHouse.gov on Saturday, does not take a position on SOPA, but it cautioned lawmakers that the administration will opposed anti-piracy efforts that might increased censorship.
“Any effort to combat online piracy must guard against the risk of online censorship of lawful activity and must not inhibit innovation by our dynamic businesses large and small,” the memo reads.
In Congress, supporters of the legislation have recently indicated they are open to changing their proposals.
Late Friday afternoon, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), said he planned tone down enforcement powers that would be granted by the proposed Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). A new version would not include the most controversial provision, which would have enabled federal authorities to “blacklist” domains that were alleged to be involved in distribution of pirated content, effectively cutting portions of the Web off from all U.S. users.
“After consultation with industry groups across the country, I feel we should remove Domain Name System blocking from the Stop Online Piracy Act so that the Committee can further examine the issues surrounding this provision,” Smith, one of SOPA’s chief backers, said in a statement. “We will continue to look for ways to ensure that foreign websites cannot sell and distribute illegal content to U.S. consumers.”
These are two very frightening pieces of controversial legislation, SOPA and The NDAA they both go to stop our Constitutional Rights without the approval from Americans, just as the Patriot Act was adopted WITHOUT public approval or a vote just weeks after the events of 9/11. #WAKETHEHELLUP
#sopa internet black out
Jan 8th
Members of Congress may be on vacation, but that hasn't calmed critics who say an effort to stamp out online piracy would create an unprecedented threat to free speech on the Internet.
Far from fading from memory, the Stop Online Piracy Act (along with a related Senate bill) has become a rallying point for Web freedom advocates in a debate that has pitted Hollywood and other business interests against some of the biggest titans of the technology world.
Interest in the debate spiked again this week when one of the bill's opponents suggested that online heavyweights such as Google, Facebook, Amazon and Twitter had considered a "nuclear option" -- temporarily shutting down their sites in protest -- to raise awareness about the bills, which await lawmakers when they return this month.
When contacted by CNN, none of those companies would confirm that such a drastic move had ever been considered. By Friday, the advocate whose comments had fueled the speculation appeared to back away from claims that a Web blackout was still likely to occur.
"Internet and technology companies will continue to educate policymakers and other stakeholders on the problems with the (legislation)," Markham Erickson, director of Web trade association NetCoalition, said in a statement. "An 'Internet blackout' would obviously be both drastic and unprecedented."
Part of the urgency comes from critics' fears that the legislation, which has opponents and supporters on both sides of the political aisle, is going to move quickly once Congress reconvenes.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, has announced plans to push that chamber's companion bill, the Protect IP Act, as soon as they return January 23. Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, also a Democrat, and other senators have promised to filibuster, a move that would prevent leaders from calling for a vote until the following day.
"We hope that the Senate will cancel its scheduled vote on PIPA so that we can get back to working with members on how to address the concerns raised by the
(Motion Picture Association of America) and others without threatening our nation's security or future innovation and jobs," Erickson said.
IF THIS BILL IS PASSED,
ANY AND ALL SITES CAN GO DOWN, INCLUDING YOUTUBE, FACEBOOK, TWITTER, MYSPACE, GOOGLE+, TUMBLR, BLOGGER, AND MANY MORE!
IF ANYTHING IS POSTED THAT VIOLATES THIS BILL:
(HR 3261)
IT WILL BE SHUT DOWN.
EVEN IF YOU ARE ONLY SINGING A SONG FOR 4 SECONDS, YOU WILL BE SUED.
REMEMBER ME TELLING YOU ABOUT THE INTERNET KILL SWITCH?
If passed, the "Stop Online Piracy Act," or SOPA (HR 3261), could rip apart the open fabric of the Internet. People could see their websites
disappear from the Internet for a "crime" as innocent as posting a video of themselves singing along to a favorite song.
It paves the way for the sort of heavy-handed blocking tactics you'd expect to see in China, not the United States.
SOPA violates our right to free speech.
GO HERE TO HELP:
http://act2.freepress.net/sign/sopa_letter/?source=facebook1
AND HERE:
http://act2.freepress.net/sign/resolution_of_disapproval/
anti-cyber bullying
Ndaa bill aka martial law bill
my commentary
