by the people!
Let's keep it that way!
The details of this proposed bill can be found
on wikipedia.
There are excerpts included in this post. I believe this needs to be said....
When television first came out, they tried to sensor what was put on the air. We fought that act claiming it violated our rights. IT DID! Freedom of Speech is one of the most important tools we have. It frees the lines of communication so that WE THE PEOPLE have a TRUE VOICE! We the People have a say! However we have to stand up for our rights instead of accepting what is handed to us and reacting too late! Be proactive!
Fight for your Rights! Let Congress and the rest of our Government know we value our rights and our freedom! We are NOT blind sheep to be lead into a future where our rights have slowly, quietly disappeared under the
guise of "for our protection" or "for our own good"!
You have the right to speak up and to make your voice heard! Let them HEAR YOU!....before they sensor your rights.
Here is a part of the explaination i found on wikipedia:
"The bill would authorize the U.S. Department of Justice to seek court orders against websites outside U.S. jurisdiction accused of infringing on copyrights, or of enabling or facilitating copyright infringement.[4] After delivering a court order, the U.S. Attorney General could require US-directed Internet service providers, ad networks, and payment processors to suspend doing business with sites found to infringe on federal criminal intellectual property laws. The Attorney General could also bar search engines from displaying links to the sites.[13]"
Now while this clipping makes it sound as though it is all aimed at those outside the US...it also states that service providers, ad networks, and payment processors may be required to suspend doing business with sites found to be guilty....that isn't restricted to outside the US! And if we let them restrict the internet (also known as the "
world wide web" outside of our borders, who is going to stop a later bill from including the US businesses? Everything has a tendency to GROW from one small step to a giant leap...and before you know it, you are a blind sheep being led to the slaughter with no voice to change because while you were sleeping, someone took that from you....in this case...It has started with the 2008 bill that was their first attempt to censor the internet. We said NO then.
Now, here they are again with a different approach still trying to sensor our voice, our freedom, our right to be heard, to do business globally or locally!
Here is a second part of the bill being proposed:
"
The bill also establishes a two-step process for intellectual property rights holders to seek relief if they have been harmed by a site dedicated to infringement."
This part says NOTHING about outside the US. It just states the process generally. It gives no parameters, specifics, nothing!
Quote number three:
"
The bill provides immunity from liability to the ad and payment networks that comply with this Act or that take voluntary action to cut ties to such sites. Any copyright holder who knowingly misrepresents that a website is dedicated to infringement would be liable for damages.[4] The second section increases the penalties for streaming video and for selling counterfeit drugs, military materials or consumer goods. The bill would increase the penalties for unauthorized streaming of copyrighted content[for uploaders, downloaders, or hosts? clarification needed] and other intellectual property offenses.[13]"
Immunity for following along blindly....giving up freedom of speech for censorship??!!! WHAT?!?!?!?!
Oh and did you read the part about penalties?? Let me show you that again:
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.
"Impact on online freedom of speech
On TIME's Techland blog, Jerry Brito wrote, "Imagine if the U.K. created a blacklist of American newspapers that its courts found violated celebrities' privacy? Or what if France blocked American sites it believed contained hate speech?"[22] Similarly, the Center for Democracy and Technology warned, "If SOPA and PIPA are enacted, the US government must be prepared for other governments to follow suit, in service to whatever social policies they believe are important—whether restricting hate speech, insults to public officials, or political dissent."[23]
Laurence H. Tribe, a Harvard University professor of constitutional law, released an open letter on the web stating that SOPA would “
undermine the openness and free exchange of information at the heart of the Internet. And it would violate the First Amendment.”[7][24]
The AFL-CIO's
Paul Almeida, arguing in favor of SOPA,
has stated that free speech was not a relevant consideration, because "Freedom of speech is not the same as lawlessness on the Internet. There is no inconsistency between protecting an open Internet and safeguarding intellectual property. Protecting intellectual property is not the same as censorship; the First Amendment does not protect stealing goods off trucks."[25]
"
I disagree with Paul Almeida! Freedom of speech is being able to post your voice online as with on television! If another nation tried to tell us we couldn't do this, we would be OUTRAGED!! We would scream bloody murder until the ban was lifted and freedom was given back to us! Why should we not tell those trying to stop us in our own lands, within our own borders the same thing! They should know better more so than another nation! They live here, grew up here (usually), and enjoy teh same rights and freedoms we do albeit with a few more resources than most of us but still they are Americans!
Why should we let our own people take our rights from us? To me that is worse than someone else trying! Note I said trying!!
Don't let SOPA take away your voice!!
Email or write to your representative! Click the link if you need information. The link will take you to the House of Representatives directory. There is no reason not to take a moment to make a stand!!
Stand up for your rights and your freedom!
Email or write to your Senator! The link will take you to the governmeent site that lists each address, phone number and an automated form that sends an email to your senator. It does show required fields in order to send the email....but your voice should be heard!!
We didn't send soldiers to iraq to fight and die for freedom for other nations just to have ours taken away at home!! We have to support our troops by making our won stand. You may think this is far reaching but I don't. I think each freedom is precious and should be preserved. History has taught us that once a law is passed it is hard to change it. People get use to things....and can be mislead if close attention is not paid.
We fought for those amendments...and by we I mean the American people!
We owe it to ourselves and our future generations (and our future selves too!) to keep those freedoms!
Make your voice heard!
We the People....government for the people, by the people!
Let's keep it that way!
