How Some of the Internet's Biggest Sites Are Protesting SOPA and PIPA

I absolutely applaud and appreciate the manner and style of how Wikipedia and other websites responded to this problem.

If you go to their website, yes it is darken today, which shows and explains their protest. Kudos, to the website Wikipedia, for them to standing up and let their voice is heard and FREEDOM OF SPEECH.

But another round of applause needs to go to them, for creating the means of you just entering your zip code and find your local representative and make your own voice to be heard. Oh, you are Free to make own opinion pro or against this subject.

I applaud for Wikipedia making easy use for all of us to heave FREEDOM of SPEECH and easy putting forth our DEMOCRACY!!!

I am going to put my applause where my wallet is and donate $100.00 of my money to Wikipedia. And just so you all know, I am tight with my money, really tight!

KUDOS TO Wikipedia!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FREEDOM OF SPEECH! DEMOCRACY! FREEDOM OF SPEECH! DEMOCRACY!

lol i thought robots didnt care about freedom of speech? jk lol. yeah im also happy that they are against such a stupid law that invokes full censorship of freedom of the internet. i hope this doesnt start a new form of "civil war" were techno punks go to war against money hungry corporations.

"religion is like a prison for the seekers of wisdom"

-Killah Priest

Personally, I am kind of mad at popsci for not taking part in this, then having the audacity to write a post of it? If popsci did so something, obviously it wasn't much because I heard nothing of it..

The evolution comes when every person has access and knows all the same information as everyone else.

"Do not try and bend the spoon. That's impossible. Instead... only try to realize the truth. There is no spoon."

JediMindset,
Oh Robots are very much for the freedom information highway of the cosmos and expanding robotic computerize automatic assimilation augmentation of life everywhere! And we find democracy to be beautiful and perfect once we are all thinking with one electronic computerize shared brain!
Bra-ha, hahahaa, ringing in circles of mechanize robotic hands,…. Ha ha ha! Arg! ;)

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Science sees no further than what it can sense.
Religion sees beyond the senses.

4chan is doing a neat way of protesting SOPA and PIPA. They've blacked out all text and all posts on all of their boards. Once you hover over it you can see the text again, but it's really getting the point across about how terrible it would be if these two bills got passed

Nothing up my sleeve, hocus pocus, I am the USA Government and I will distract the American peoples for a few days as I have not a clue to manage a government, balance a budget or come to an intelligent agreement among the elected representatives.

We the people nervous and afraid that our government can actually come together and make a new bill stick, please, lol. The fact that all these websites came together and darken their web pages was an unnecessary wasted effort on their part and gives our current government too much credit. Our current government does not have the collective ability to govern...

I am all for the written USA government! I am so disappointed with the current elected ones in power and the last elected ones for the past 30 years...

The only saving grace is our FREEDOM of SPEECH, so the America peoples can say Hey Stupid, cut out the dumb decision making! OH YEA! FREEDOM OF SPEECH IS NEED MORE NOW, THAN EVER BEFORE!

Oh, I do want to say thank you to all the websites that darken their websites to make a political statement for FREEDOM of SPEECH. THANK YOU!

we most likely won't have to worry about SOPA for the following reasons:
1. the white house is currently against it, so the odds of it getting passed are very slim.
2. if it does get passed, the odds of someone taking it to court, as it violates the due process clause and the freedom of speech, are very high. the likely hood of the supreme court repealing it are also high.
3. if somehow that DOESN'T happen, whichever presidential candidate wins the elections is somewhat likely to get the act repealed for popularity's sake.
4. if none of the above happen, then when it comes time to re-sign the bill, it is highly likely that it will not get re-signed

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why learn from your own mistakes, when you could learn from the mistakes of others?
“The most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible” -Albert Ein

Ever wonder why the corporations are so hell bent on controlling availability of content when there is no clear profit motive?
Just because I cant download something doesn't mean I automatically dip into my wallet.
This battle is costing them a lot, so what is it they want really?

The 1st Amendment doesn't include a right to violate copyright or other laws governing the transmission and exchange of data and information. What these web sites are protesting is the possibility that they may be held accountable should someone post copyright protected material on their web site without their knowledge. The law would only hold them responsible if they allowed the content to remain available after being notified by competent authority that a violation had occurred. If, upon notice, they block the content then no foul on their part; if however, they allow it to remain available then they become an party to the copyright violation - as much a crime as being the driver of a getaway car of a bank robbery. This they do not want; they don't want to be held accountable for content on the web pages they host. In reality, arguments about the 1st amendment do not apply here; I agree with the SOPA and support its passage and enforcement.

@cgbricker...what a load of crap, you are either a troll or clueless, this will be done with no due process or any appeal of any wrong doing, just instant censorship by the right wing nuts that want you yo all think like robots, all pun intended robot :-), negative cheers

drchuck1, you already drinking this early in the morning?
It is too bad your little blurbs are so short and just blasting noise. If you elaborate more and be more supportive of your own point of views, you sound less troll yourself. But, hey enjoy your early morning beer, bud!;)

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Science sees no further than what it can sense.
Religion sees beyond the senses.

I know I can live without the internet or television. The question is, can YOU?

It seems like the internet is a good place to spread propaganda. All this talk about censorship and misuse, is simply propaganda spread by those on the internet, who are against any laws limiting their activities. There's nothing in the bill that even remotely mentions censorship. It simply is not a censorship bill. Having illegal links on your web site is not a freedom of speech issue. The bill also has no provisions for shutting down entire sites containing legal content, the complainant has to file a complaint about each link. And it's not a free for all that can be excessively abused, court orders must be issued. The only way that a legal web site can get shut down, is if all its content consists of links to illegal foreign web sites.
The intent of this bill, from what I've read is simply to prevent pirating web sites from circumventing US laws, by setting up foreign web sites that serve illegal content to US citizens.
The argument that content producers will file frivolous lawsuits against a charitable organization can shut it down, is simply scare mongering. Can you image the bad publicity that would arise if that would really happen? The argument of abuse of this law is a potential for all laws. It's like saying that the murder laws should be revoked, because of the potential abuse that can occur when people go around wrongly and malicously accusing others of murder. Does that make sense? This abuse does happen, occasionally, but that doesn't mean that the law against murder should be struck down, by the courts.

@elchan

You are the problem with the world and the US and the reason why everyday we are slowing getting rights removed from us...OUR founding fathers of this nation would be ashamed and disapointed that this country has turned into what it is...FREEDOM is not FREE it comes at a cost but if we keep restricting things as we do we won't even be able to cross the street with out asking our government for permission...its the principle of the matter sir not the act.

This is from reddit and I think it says it very well.

Why this bill doesn't actually stop piracy...

This legislation is aimed at requiring private U.S. entities to enforce restrictions against foreign sites but does nothing against the infringement itself. All of the enforcement actions can and will be worked around by sites focused on copyright infringement. U.S. citizens will still be able to use foreign DNS servers, new advertising and payment networks will pop up overseas, and "infringing sites" will still be linked to by other foreign sites and search engines. In fact, tools used to circumvent these forms of internet restrictions are being funded by the U.S. State department to offer citizens under "repressive regimes" uncensored access to the internet. When the dust settles, piracy will still exist, and the internet in the U.S. will have entered the realm of federal regulation and censorship.

blog.reddit -- what's new on reddit: A technical examination of SOPA and PROTECT IP
blog.reddit.com

SOPA tried to stop crooks. Sadly people think SOPA tried to stop free speech. It is the crooked people who banded together to confuse proper thinking. SOPA needs to pass.

The internet needs to be controlled as any form of transportation is. What country allows unrestricted trade? None. What country allows theft? Well, crooked ones do but most civilized ones do not.

The worst part is that porn and other topics that are normally restricted are not being enforced at all. What movie theater can legally allow under aged into adult movies? Why let the internet do that?

Jefro your arguments are dumb my friend....internet is not comparable to TRADE or THEFT....SOPA is bad all around for what it stands for you want to live blindly to the restrictions that are put on this world....FREEDOM only has one meaning maybe you should look it up...

A great victory for the internet!

Just a suggestion to the folks aiming for a solution against online Piracy:

DON'T STOP ONLINE PIRACY..

What you should actually be doing is enacting ways to implement Retroactive Purchases of goods downloaded from a P2P torrent network, in order for you monetize that system.
(ie: adding retroactive purchase buttons on torrent sites or torrent clients)

WHY? : Because usually, people don't really know how much they wanted to pay for the product until AFTER they have played, listened, watched, or have read it a million times already.

Just think of Online Piracy as some sort of intellectual 'welfare', like the other social welfare programs that governments like to fund.

THINK OUTSIDE OF THE BOX! The internet is the perfect playground to practice post-scarcity economics!

Once you leave the borders of USA and visit any other country, street market boot leg DVDs is everywhere and no local police authority does anything about it. It is an everyday reality. Boot leg DVDs are sold at USA flee markets as well.

I do not like to see laws that punish and diminish the Freedom of the American People. I do understand the view of protecting copyright and making its protection strong. But I will always hold the FREEDOMS as Americans higher and protection of this must always come first, including Freedom of Speech!

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Science sees no further than what it can sense.
Religion sees beyond the senses.

Ok guy's at what point to we stop the governments from adding more controling laws. I already can't walk down the street with a beer. I can't cross the road where I want. I can't fish where I want. I can't hunt where I want. I can't drive without the goverments permission. i can't cross any boarders with out their permission. I can't own a gun (I'm canadian). I can't put a pool in my yard without their permision. I can't have chickens on my property if i live in the city. I can't drive without a seat belt. I can't even beat the crap out of a burgular if I catch them in the act. And let's not forget what natural health products the government have band.