Stop SOPA!

[Fugitoid]

**** The Senate is scheduled to vote on SOPA on January 24th and there looks to be enough Senators voting for SOPA that it will pass. Of course, SOPA will still need to get past the House and then signed by the President. But we want to stop this here and now! ****

Normally, I don't like to promote causes on TMNT-L just because I'm the admin but this one is very different because it will affect everyone around the world not just the folks in the US.

What I'm talking about is SOPA, aka the Stop Online Piracy Act. Hopefully, you have already heard about this already but just in case, SOPA is a bill introduced in the United States House of Representatives that expands the ability of U.S. law enforcement and copyright holders to fight online trafficking in copyrighted intellectual property and counterfeit goods. Now on the face of it this looks like a good thing. I think there is nothing wrong with upholding copyright and stopping counterfeit goods. However when you really read the bill (and I have), it is so broad and wide ranging that fandom websites such as TMNT-L could be taken offline. I hate to be one of those alarmist or conspiracy theorist people but the wording in the bill is really that vague and I encourage you to read (or at least try to read) the bill yourself:

http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/pdf/112%20HR%203261.pdf

If you want a pared down explanation of what SOPA will do or you are one of those people that wants to learn more before throwing their support behind something, there is a lot of good information already out there:

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/244011/the_us_stop_online_piracy_act_a_primer.html
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2011/10/house-takes-senates-bad-internet-censorship-bill-makes-it-worse.ars
http://lifehacker.com/5860205/all-about-sopa-the-bill-thats-going-to-cripple-your-internet

But hopefully, I have a good enough reputation that I'm someone you can trust and what I'm saying is not baloney.

To see what you can do to stop SOPA, http://americancensorship.org is a good place to start. But time is a factor and SOPA is definitely up for debate when the House Judiciary Committee comes back from recess in January.

[Michaelangelo]

I did join in on this and even wrote a letter to congress in the area that they had for that.

[Leonardo_Mystic]

It will never pass. It violates the Consitution and the First Amendment.

[Aignatius]

What Leo Mystic said. 

Yet some keep trying to bypass those documents that have worked just fine for the past 233 years, don't they? *grumble*

[BubblyShell22]

I agree with Leo Mystic. They can't shut down sites like TMNT-L because we're not really pirating anything. We're just discussing a franchise and nothing more.

[Fugitoid]

First off, there is nothing in the bill that violates the Constitution and the First Amendment. In fact, the purpose that it tries to serve is a legitimate one. But the wording in this bill is too broad. It also gives too much wide ranging authority to the Department of Justice, and legal immunity to any service provider, payment network provider, Internet advertising service, advertiser, Internet search engine, domain name registry, or domain name registrar for voluntarily taking action against websites dedicated to infringement. So if this bill becomes law it *could* be used to violate the 1st Amendment but it wouldn't violate whole the Constitution (the 1st Amendment is part of the Constitution). But that's something that would get argued in court, if the infringing website has the resources to go to court. And even if the infringing website did have the resources, their website would be down anyways until the case would be resolved. But we don't even want to get to that point.

Folks, there are very powerful companies and lobbyists who support SOPA. In fact, Viacom supports SOPA. And who does Viacom own? That's right... Nickelodeon. So I know it might be a little paranoid to think if SOPA passes that companies/corporations would go after us little guys. But remember the RIAA and MPAA (under pressure from the music and movie industry) go after music and movie downloaders. How many times have you read news articles where everyday people settle with the RIAA or MPAA out of court? And those people are just playing music/watching movies privately. Sites like TMNT-L are public. Remember companies/corporations don't act like human beings, even though they are run by human beings.

I'm sorry for the paranoia and scare tactics but SOPA is just bad. 

Sometimes paranoia and scare tactics are the only way to get results. It worked (and I hate to use this example) for George W Bush.

[Leonardo_Mystic]

Then I'm confused. How does a bill meant to block access to which is essentially public domain and suppress our free speech of the domain NOT a violation to the Constitution and the First Amendment? That would be absolutely shell-backwards. Hundreds of thousands of websites would be shut down simply not because we're profitting off any of this, and we're not, but because we're discussing the latest episode or comic book issue.

Something like this would hurt every one in the end; a domino effect. You won't have anyone talking about the new Turtles show on Nick or the latest episode of House or Fringe. That in turn would hurt viewer numbers and lower ratings means less profitting. Less profitting means eventually a canceled show. These days people sit in internet cafes and wi-fi hotspots to talk about these kind of things. Word of mouth now travels in a nanosecond. To cripple the internet would be to cripple the world.

[Fugitoid]

SOPA doesn't block access to just any website just because the DOJ or a company says so. Obviously that would be a violation of rights. And SOPA doesn't go after websites where people are just talking about stuff either. SOPA goes after (foreign) websites that have copyright infringing content. I put foreign in parenthesis because there are parts of SOPA that get too broad and vague that domestic websites could be targeted. Anyways, unfortunately technically there is copyright infringing content on TMNT-L. For example, just look at your signature Leonardo_Mystic. That image is not owned by you. In fact, you still have the Gamespot logo on there. Not that it matters because the original image isn't Gamespot's either. So SOPA passes and if Viacom/Nickelodeon or Gamespot got all crazy with interpreting SOPA, there is a case to be made that TMNT-L is an infringing website. Of course, I'm just playing devil's advocate and this is all worse case scenario. But if SOPA becomes law, I wouldn't put anything past what companies will do.

My view may be a little pessimistic but the point I'm making is that we don't anything like SOPA becoming law. Because once it's law then companies have a "legal" way to control things. Give 'em an inch, they'll take a mile.

Btw everyone, the Senate is scheduled to vote on SOPA on January 24th and there looks to be enough Senators voting for SOPA that it will pass. Of course, SOPA will still need to get past the House and then signed by the President. But we want to stop this here and now!

[BubblyShell22]

Yeah, but even if we write to our congressman/congresswoman, it won't matter. If they're for SOPA and not against it, it's not going to do any good. And even if we try to stop this, it's not going to do any good. The reason? Politicians only care about themselves. They want to pass stupid acts like this instead of worrying about our economy or illegal immigrants coming into our country. It just shows you how pathetic this country really is and how our politicians are not for the people. We don't live in a democracy. We live in a dictatorship.

[Michaelangelo]

That's sounding like a no hope way of looking at things.

I've always felt that if people wanted something done, it could be done.  That people can stand together with a strong voice and be heard.  While there's people out there for the money, there's also people just blind to how everyone feels.  The more people band together for what they want, speak openly and loudly, there is always that chance of being heard.

The ladies and gentlemen in our government are only human.  Humans have the abilities to listen, and think for themselves.  If there is a strong enough cry from the public, these people will start to hear it.  And I do feel that some of these cries will be loud enough with certain websites going black for a day in protest of this bill. 

Right now they're asking people who support the cause to help get more websites to join in on this protest. 

http://act.fightforthefuture.org/page/m/2e1f2084/1d04ac97/71e4c0f5/f863ee6/2399413899/VEsH/

The people putting this together, getting these huge webpages to combine their forces in a belief, are not doing this because there's only a few.  But many who want the same goal.  And together, they can get their voices heard.  I'm curious to where this goes, and I do hope that this bill is not passed.  I did take a minute to write congress on the website that Fugitoid provided in hopes that while I am one person, that many others are doing this as well and our voices will be heard.

[Fugitoid]

Yeah, but even if we write to our congressman/congresswoman, it won't matter. If they're for SOPA and not against it, it's not going to do any good. And even if we try to stop this, it's not going to do any good. The reason? Politicians only care about themselves. They want to pass stupid acts like this instead of worrying about our economy or illegal immigrants coming into our country. It just shows you how pathetic this country really is and how our politicians are not for the people. We don't live in a democracy. We live in a dictatorship.

Oh really?

Support in Washington for the SOPA anti-piracy bill in Congress (and its Senate equivalent, PIPA), is waning. After weeks of mounting uproar online, Congressional leaders started backpedaling last week and the Obama Administration weighed in on Saturday in response to online petitions to stop the bills. The White House issued a clear rejection of some of the main principles of SOPA.

Source: SOPA Supporters On The Run

SOPA Delayed; Cantor Promises It Won't Be Brought To The Floor Until 'Issues Are Addressed'

Obama Administration Responds to We the People Petitions on SOPA and Online Piracy

[Fugitoid]

The ladies and gentlemen in our government are only human.  Humans have the abilities to listen, and think for themselves.  If there is a strong enough cry from the public, these people will start to hear it.  And I do feel that some of these cries will be loud enough with certain websites going black for a day in protest of this bill. 

Right now they're asking people who support the cause to help get more websites to join in on this protest. 

http://act.fightforthefuture.org/page/m/2e1f2084/1d04ac97/71e4c0f5/f863ee6/2399413899/VEsH/

The people putting this together, getting these huge webpages to combine their forces in a belief, are not doing this because there's only a few.  But many who want the same goal.  And together, they can get their voices heard.  I'm curious to where this goes, and I do hope that this bill is not passed.  I did take a minute to write congress on the website that Fugitoid provided in hopes that while I am one person, that many others are doing this as well and our voices will be heard.

It's funny you mention this Michaelangelo because I was going to bring it up. Would it be alright with everyone if TMNT-L joins in? It'll only be for 150 seconds (2.5 mins).

[Michaelangelo]

Phoenix and I are cool with it

[BubblyShell22]

Sorry for my pessimism on the subject. I just don't trust politicians one bit. I hate politics and refuse to participate in anything having to do with them, which is why I refuse to vote in any election. Yes, it's good that they did shelve this and that some people did listen. It's just that normally, politicians are crooks who don't care about anybody but themselves. They never should've even thought of that bill anyway.

[Phoenix]

I'm hoping this is a legit story. Not much other stories on this topic

http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/white_house_opposes_sopa_congress_drops_bill/

[Leonardo_Mystic]

It's legit. The House has shelved the bill. http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/204167-sopa-shelved-until-consensus-is-found

[BubblyShell22]

I heard on the Drome that it was shelved for now, but that PIPA (Prevent Internet Piracy Act) is still up for consideration.

[Fugitoid]

Unfortunately, SOPA is not dead. It's definitely in trouble but author of the bill, Congressman Lamar Smith, is going to get it out of the public eye for a while and then bring it back in February hoping the protest against it will have died down. So we have to still be vigilant.

SOPA Isn’t Dead, It’s Just Sleeping (Until February)
Lamar Smith: SOPA markup to resume in February

And I don't think I'm going to have TMNT-L participate in the strike after all. They are calling for websites to go black for 12 hours, from 8am to 8pm.

[BubblyShell22]

I just heard on the news this afternoon that it's being shelved indefinitely until they can reach a compromise. I think it was due in part to Google's and Wikipedia's protests they made by going dark. At least this is good news, and hopefully people will come to their senses about this.

[Fugitoid]

Yup. The voting on SOPA and PIPA, which I never really brought up because it's related but not as bad as SOPA, have been both delayed for a vote indefinitely. This is awesome but it's just one battle. The war is far from over.

[BubblyShell22]

Yeah, but maybe with this break, people will come to their senses about how damaging this bill can actually be for everybody. *keeps fingers crossed*

[Fugitoid]

Looks like SOPA & PIPA are toxic topics right now so nobody is touching them.

So I've moved the topic out of Announcements.

But make no mistake this isn't the end of SOPA & PIPA (or whatever takes their place in the future) and I'll be keeping an eye out.

[BubblyShell22]

Yeah, that's all we can do right now.