PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet
I rarely post content inline on my blog anymore, but this is a very serious issue that needs to be recognized, and I don’t think enough people have heard about it or understand why it’s important that they should care. With Reddit recently announcing a blackout in protest, journalists are urging other sites to follow suit. I urge you to take a minute to watch this video and understand the situation and why you should care.
Why? Because PIPA/SOPA fundamentally will break the internet.
At it’s core it makes sense - after all downloading content without paying is illegal, even if we all do it - but as this video points out,
“protect IP won’t stop piracy, but it will introduce vast potential for censorship and abuse, while making the web less safe, and less reliable”.
Should they be able to shut down Pirate Bay? Yes.
But should they be able to shut down Google for linking to Pirate Bay? Or how about Facebook because you posted a song to your wall? Lots of people use sites like Fileserve or Megaupload to post illegal content, but it’s also used to host personal content or to transfer large files overseas such as home movies or family photos.
Ever post a song/video to your Tumblr? That could get your blog shut down, and you sued. Hell, ordinary people could go to jail for five years just for singing a pop song and posting it to YouTube. Kind of like how Justin Bieber found his fame…
This may all sound like hyperbole but believe me when I say it really, truly is not. PIPA/SOPA allows for all of this and worse.
Want to learn more? Visit americancensorship.org. And don’t be mistaken, just because your Canadian doesn’t mean this affects you…
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adamschoales posted this
