Did We Break It?

If you haven’t yet heard about SOPA and PIPA it’s time to get yourself educated.

Both of these pieces of legislation are up for hearing and review in the US Congress very soon, this week in fact.

Both of these pieces of legislation are so broadly written and draconian in their tactics that they have the potential to shutter most of the internet, pirate or not, and most likely not. In addition they have the potential for curtailing education, free speech and our economy. Because inspite of what Hollywood would have you believe. The internet contributes much more to our economy than they do.

Don’t get me wrong, I believe in copyright. I produce art and I have a family member who writes. I believe in copyright and that it should be protected. HOWEVER, all the tools are already in place to do that and to fight for it. Hollywood’s complaint is that those processes aren’t enough and take too long.

There is a reason they take time. It’s called due diligence. Since they are not likely to apologize, forget about compensating, a party that has been wronged by their claim of infringement, what happens when the infraction is something as small as posting a link to a site that they thought was legitimate, or was at the time they posted the link and 5 minutes later someone else posts something that now makes the site an infringing site. Sorry, I don’t think they will be going back and looking at date/time stamps.

This takes knee jerk justice to it’s heights. It laughs in the face of the concept of due process and completely obliviates the concept, our justice system is supposed to revolve around and that is ‘innocent until proven guilty.’

No these two pieces of legislation take the stance of shoot, and don’t bother to ask questions later. Just shoot, take them all out, innocent or guilty, doesn’t matter.

If you read this, if you value the freedom and the information available to you on the internet then you will voice your protest. Write a letter, make a phone call, hold a demonstration, turn your website dark, tell 2 friends. Do something. In fact, telling 2 friends, if they will tell two friends might be the easiest thing and most revolutionary thing you can do.

Most importantly, help get these two pieces of legislation not just off the table. Lets get them defeated so completely that the question never comes up again.

As a side note, I realize that I have provided few actual details of these acts. Please look them up and additional coverage of them up on your own. You will find information on many tech websites as well as at WordPress.org.