tagged w/ Senator Patrick Leahy
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Congress is calling SOPA a way to prevent online infringement and piracy. However, those committed to free speech rights and creative innovation know that this is nothing more than an attempt to compromise Internet security, free speech and creative license. As currently drafted the legislation would grant the government and other parties unprecedented power to force ISPs and search engines to redirect or block users' attempts to reach certain websites. This in turn would threaten the security and reliability of the Internet as a whole in creating other third party servers besides severely limiting free speech. And under SOPA's provisions ISPs would also be pressured to monitor user activities.
YouTube Video on how PROTECT IP / SOPA Act Breaks the Internet http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HGEUhCfQ464
House Bill - H.R.3261 - Stop Online Piracy Act (aka SOPA) http://www.opencongress.org/bill/112-h3261/show
Senate Bill - S.968 - PROTECT IP Act of 2011 (aka PIPA)
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/112-s968/show
All in all this is a direct attempt to limit free exchange of ideas on the Internet, the truly last bastion of freedom we have. Therefore, in response to the SOPA black out day scheduled for January 18 to coincide with witness testimony in Washington DC, we were hoping members of Current would also become involved in a site wide showing of solidarity for Internet freedom against SOPA.
Therefore, we are asking those interested in participating on January 18 to respond in this thread with the following responses: "Boycotting" or "Post about SOPA" to let us know how you intend to participate. We are also urging everyone to list this in all their groups and to come on January 18 to vote up all SOPA posts. Now we cannot force or limit anyone from posting on other topics, but to make a showing where the majority of articles on the front of the Community page would address this important topic with the responses reading "Stop SOPA" would send a message that we who use the Internet are serious about preserving its freedom.
Senate will vote on the Internet censorship on Tuesday, January 24th. You can find where your Members of Congress Stand on SOPA and PIPA http://projects.propublica.org/sopa/.
Click http://my.americancensorship.org/ to see what is happening in your state.
Please then participate on January 18 and respond in this thread so we have an idea of how many people here will participate in this show of web wide solidarity for freedom.
Thank you,
MotherForTruth / JanforGoreCongress is calling SOPA a way to prevent online infringement and piracy. However,... more
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The media's blackout of the House's Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Senate's Protect IP Act (PIPA) started from Day 1, but you've been talking about it for months. Follow this thread throughout the day as we'll continue to round up the SOPA/PIPA conversation in the Current.com community, as well as Twitter.
Today marks a blackout on the part of several websites, including Wikipedia and Reddit, who are going dark to protest both bills.
To get started, here's a look from our partners at Crimson Hexagon at where the most social-network chatter about SOPA/PIPA has been happening (click on the graphic to see a larger version):
The media's blackout of the House's Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the... more
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Is President Obama's word that he will veto SOPA and PIPA as good as his word that he would veto the NDAA?Is President Obama's word that he will veto SOPA and PIPA as good as his word... more
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I stand with the participants of this video against SOPA/PIPA.
I AM FOR A FREE AND OPEN INTERNET.
DO you hear us, Congress?
Stand together today as a community and as a country and oppose PIPA and demand SOPA be left dead and not in a coma. Our freedom of expression, creativity and free speech are being threatened by those with the power and money to shut the Internet down to protect their own profits.
The Internet is the peoples' agora. KEEP IT FREE!
I will only be posting about PIPA today and voting all posts about it UP.
Please vote this up!I stand with the participants of this video against SOPA/PIPA.
I AM FOR A FREE AND... more
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Stop Online Piracy Act
The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), also known as House Bill 3261 or H.R. 3261, is a bill that was introduced in the United States House of Representatives on October 26, 2011, by House Judiciary Committee Chair Representative Lamar S. Smith (R-TX) and a bipartisan group of 12 initial co-sponsors. The bill, if made law, would expand the ability of U.S. law enforcement and copyright holders to fight online trafficking in copyrighted intellectual property and counterfeit goods.[2] Presented to the House Judiciary Committee, it builds on the similar PRO-IP Act of 2008 and the corresponding Senate bill, the PROTECT IP Act.[3]
The originally proposed bill would allow the U.S. Department of Justice, as well as copyright holders, to seek court orders against websites accused of enabling or facilitating copyright infringement. Depending on who makes the request, the court order could include barring online advertising networks and payment facilitators from doing business with the allegedly infringing website, barring search engines from linking to such sites, and requiring Internet service providers to block access to such sites. The bill would make unauthorized streaming of copyrighted content a crime, with a maximum penalty of five years in prison for ten such infringements within six months. The bill also gives immunity to Internet services that voluntarily take action against websites dedicated to infringement, while making liable for damages any copyright holder who knowingly misrepresents that a website is dedicated to infringement.[4]
Proponents of the bill say it protects the intellectual property market and corresponding industry, jobs and revenue, and is necessary to bolster enforcement of copyright laws, especially against foreign websites.[5] They cite examples such as Google's $500 million settlement with the Department of Justice for its role in a scheme to target U.S. consumers with ads to illegally import prescription drugs from Canadian pharmacies.[6]
Opponents say that it violates the First Amendment,[7] is Internet censorship,[8] will cripple the Internet,[9] and will threaten whistle-blowing and other free speech actions.[7][10] Opponents have initiated a number of protest actions, including petition drives, boycotts of companies that support the legislation, and planned service blackouts by English Wikipedia and major Internet companies scheduled to coincide with the next Congressional hearing on the matter.
The House Judiciary Committee held hearings on November 16 and December 15, 2011. The Committee was scheduled to continue debate in January 2012,[11] but on January 17 Chairman Smith said that "[d]ue to the Republican and Democratic retreats taking place over the next two weeks, markup of the Stop Online Piracy Act is expected to resume in February."[12]Stop Online Piracy Act
The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), also known as House Bill... more
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