Today the internet is on strike. In Google’s words:
Two bills before Congress, known as the Protect IP Act (PIPA) in the Senate and the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the House, would censor the Web and impose harmful regulations on American business. Millions of Internet users and entrepreneurs already oppose SOPA and PIPA.
Google, WordPress, and Wikipedia are just a few who oppose the bills and are demonstrating in the strike today. Go to their sites, and you’ll see the following…
RigCast heavily opposes PIPA and SOPA, but RigCast is also built on a foundation of unbiased information, to focus on the facts. So, in an effort to explain what they are and what they could do if they were passed, RigCast recommends that you inform yourself via the many informational offerings available currently:
- Wikipedia PIPA / Wikipedia SOPA (Excluded from blackout)
- Reddit’s Technical Examination of SOPA & PIPA
- PC World’s Abbreviated Facts on SOPA and PIPA
Essentially, the bills attempt to fight foreign internet piracy (like popular P2P and bit torrent sites), but they are so loosely defined that they will be able to fight…anything online. The passing of either bill has the potential to allow an out-of-control spiral of web limitations, blocked sites, and web usability disasters. Internet police gone wild.
If you decide to voice opposition, you can do so here.
Read all about this crap today. Good for Google, Wikipedia, and I noticed Craigslist, for making people aware who wouldn’t know whats going on otherwise. I believe in antipiracy, but you are right about how loosely based these laws are and it would be a shame to fault the above said companies to have to monitor the millions of posts and information they relay to the general population. It would be impossible! It is up to the user to do what’s right and what’s wrong in regards to pirating movies, music, etc. Crazy shit man! I’m sure some variation of the law will be passed, but i can’t imagine it will stay this wide open.
By the way, YOU ROCK!