Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

General: Should SOPA Be Stopped?

SBFordSBFord Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129

SOPA or the "Stop Online Piracy Act" is working its way through the United States Congress with far-reaching implications around the world. In our latest Free Zone column, we take a look at whether or not SOPA -should- be stopped. Read on and then enter into the discussion in the comments.

I’ll state clearly right up front that I believe curbing online piracy is a worthy aim. That said, the more I learn about this act and its sister in the Senate, the Protect IP Act, the more uneasy I feel about the proposed mechanism. For me, it brings up the classic quandary of whether the ends justify the means and how much collateral damage is acceptable. What’s more, it’s not a simple black and white situation since there’s no way of knowing if the implementation will be precise and surgical, heavy-handed in the extreme or somewhere in between.

Read more of Richard Aihoshi's The Free Zone: Should SOPA Be Stopped?



¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 


«13456713

Comments

  • DragonantisDragonantis Member UncommonPosts: 974

    As usual, America trying to control everything in the world.

     

    Down with Sopa!

  • bobfishbobfish Member UncommonPosts: 1,679

    I'm actually quite excited about SOPA & PIPA, I want to see how much of an impact they have on the rest of the world if they go through.

    I'd be very sad if US law changed the global face of the internet.

  • ZekiahZekiah Member UncommonPosts: 2,483

    Remember remember the 5th of November...

    "Censorship is never over for those who have experienced it. It is a brand on the imagination that affects the individual who has suffered it, forever." - Noam Chomsky

  • AtmaDarkwolfAtmaDarkwolf Member UncommonPosts: 353

    the war on terroism continues :P

     

    Just another example of how the US government works, find something u can get dudes with big wallets behind, tack on your 'real' agenda, push it though.

     

    I sure hope it don't come to pass, I like having the freedom to say what I want online, look at what I want, and have others show what they want. IMO the internet is the ultimate form of 'freedom of expression' that is worldwide, but if you choose to allow the US gov (A huge member in the world) decide whats ok and what is not online, we ALL suffer.

  • kostoslavkostoslav Member UncommonPosts: 455
    USA Caldari ;)
  • Loke666Loke666 Member EpicPosts: 21,441

    It is funny how the US goverment complain that China, North Korea and Cuba restrict the internet but then don't mind doing the same themselves.

    Stuff like this wont stop pirates, it will just create problems for regular users and if someone high up would decide that MMOs are bad they will use laws like this against us.

    Piracy is badbut fighting piracy often leads to a lot worse things then the pirates themselves. Free speach is the most important human right there is and restricting it can lead to really bad things.

    Franklin and Jefferson knew this already at their time.

  • Loke666Loke666 Member EpicPosts: 21,441

    Originally posted by Cacaphony

    I guess no one noticed this

    Actually, no. None of my regular newspapers or sites reported it it...

  • Loke666Loke666 Member EpicPosts: 21,441

    Originally posted by Zekiah

    Remember remember the 5th of November...

    ...Gunpowder, treason and plot. :)

  • ZekiahZekiah Member UncommonPosts: 2,483

    Originally posted by Cacaphony

    I guess no one noticed this

    They do this all the time only to come in through the back door down the road. Make no mistake about it, they'll work to get this passed at any cost. It's not the piracy they care about, it's the control they lust after.

    "Censorship is never over for those who have experienced it. It is a brand on the imagination that affects the individual who has suffered it, forever." - Noam Chomsky

  • CacaphonyCacaphony Member Posts: 738


    Originally posted by Zekiah


    Originally posted by Cacaphony
    I guess no one noticed this

    They do this all the time only to come in through the back door down the road. Make no mistake about it, they'll work to get this passed at any cost. It's not the piracy they care about, it's the control they lust after.


    True, they may very well bring it back.

    This guy brings up that issue.

    The real meat of the message come in at about 5:09 in the vid.

  • MeltdownMeltdown Member UncommonPosts: 1,183

    Wait so SOPA gets a bad name across the internet communities and they just up and change the acronym and try to pass it under a different name? Oh government why is it no one likes you.

    "They essentially want to say 'Correlation proves Causation' when it's just not true." - Sovrath

  • IkedaIkeda Member RarePosts: 2,751

    I desperately wish people would understand how their government functioned so they could understand how the process works.  Even if they just sit down to watch schoolhouse rocks just one more time.

  • drgrandrgran Member UncommonPosts: 192

    I'm pretty sure Microsoft, Yahoo, and Google will have a problem with this. Being search engines they will get affected the most. They spend millions + millions on monitoring there web links people search on.

    ASUS G74sx
    i7 quad core
    16gb ddr3 ram
    3gb ram Nvidia 560M
    240GB SSD & 750GB

  • MeltdownMeltdown Member UncommonPosts: 1,183

    Originally posted by Ikeda

    I desperately wish people would understand how their government functioned so they could understand how the process works.  Even if they just sit down to watch schoolhouse rocks just one more time.

    Do you mean how it's supposed to work like the ol' Bill sitting on Capitol Hill? Or how it works in reality? 

    "They essentially want to say 'Correlation proves Causation' when it's just not true." - Sovrath

  • maplestonemaplestone Member UncommonPosts: 3,099

    I would point out that MMOs are a successful technical solution to the problem of piracy by changing the business model from selling a copy (the game client) to selling a service (the server) without any need for draconian laws.

  • IkedaIkeda Member RarePosts: 2,751

    Originally posted by Meltdown

    Originally posted by Ikeda

    I desperately wish people would understand how their government functioned so they could understand how the process works.  Even if they just sit down to watch schoolhouse rocks just one more time.

    Do you mean how it's supposed to work like the ol' Bill sitting on Capitol Hill? Or how it works in reality? 

    A little of both.  But honestly, people have the right to VOTE for people.  These people say "I choose this person to be MY representative in the nations capital".  To be uneducated and be allowed to vote seems like the greatest travesty.

    It would be TOO much to expect people to understand the entire system but I do expect people to understand the difference between Veto'ing and Shelving a bill.

    Another big problem is people don't understand how line-item veto's work.

    It makes me shake my head in disappointment.

  • Loke666Loke666 Member EpicPosts: 21,441

    Originally posted by Cacaphony



    True, they may very well bring it back.

    This guy brings up that issue.

    The real meat of the message come in at about 5:09 in the vid.

    Crap, he is right...

  • xenogiasxenogias Member Posts: 1,926

    Please keep in mind that alot of us Americans are sick to our stomach that our government would even come up with some batshitinsane idea like this. To make matters worse people actually believe this act would actually solve any real issues. I'm not going to go into details here but there are ALOT of ways to show your representatives what you think of this. If enough of us "Peons" speak out against SOPA and PIPA it WILL do some good. You may not think so but it wouldnt hurt you to take 10min of your time to at least attempt to do something about it right? We Americans need to remember SOPA and PIPA wont just effect us and its our responsibility to try and do something about it.

  • zimboy69zimboy69 Member UncommonPosts: 395

    how would this work in asia 

     

    i take it  noone from the usa has been to south east asia  and noticed on every single street corner there  are  100' if not thousand of pirates  selling games dvd's and blue ray's

    even major supermarkets sell pirated movies and  cinema's show pirated films with heads all over the screen

     

    if you really  wanted to reduce piracy you need to tackle asia and guess what

     

     

    this  bill wouldnt get past  the airport

    image

  • MeltdownMeltdown Member UncommonPosts: 1,183

    Originally posted by Ikeda

    Originally posted by Meltdown


    Originally posted by Ikeda

    I desperately wish people would understand how their government functioned so they could understand how the process works.  Even if they just sit down to watch schoolhouse rocks just one more time.

    Do you mean how it's supposed to work like the ol' Bill sitting on Capitol Hill? Or how it works in reality? 

    A little of both.  But honestly, people have the right to VOTE for people.  These people say "I choose this person to be MY representative in the nations capital".  To be uneducated and be allowed to vote seems like the greatest travesty.

    It would be TOO much to expect people to understand the entire system but I do expect people to understand the difference between Veto'ing and Shelving a bill.

    Another big problem is people don't understand how line-item veto's work.

    It makes me shake my head in disappointment.

    Meh, everyone feels that way about things they understand and the common-man doesn't. I feel the same way often about computers and the ingorance of something that probably more people use than vote in my country. If everyone was educated on all the issues and all the inner-workings of the government, we could abolish the representation system altogether.

    "They essentially want to say 'Correlation proves Causation' when it's just not true." - Sovrath

  • nyxiumnyxium Member UncommonPosts: 1,345

    Yes. The temptation for abuse of power is simply too much. Self regulation and removal of illegal material,  instead of a nanny state is preferred.

  • BunksBunks Member Posts: 960

    I find it interesting that most of these guys who back this are older than me(thats old). This is the 3rd attempt under another name they have tried to slip this into law without anyone noticing.

     

    The very "free" internet we have right now is the only thing that stopped it from getting signed in the middle of the night. Which is why they want it. Dont kid yourself, Wall street corps want this, they will keep changing its name till one day no one pays much attention. Then one morning you will wake up and say WTF happend to my websites.


  • MindTriggerMindTrigger Member Posts: 2,596

    Originally posted by Cacaphony

    I guess no one noticed this

    Shelving is a tactic they use to get things pushed through with little fanfair when everyone stops paying attention.  This does not mean SOPA is dead.  It must be nuked from orbit.

    A sure sign that you are in an old, dying paradigm/mindset, is when you are scared of new ideas and new technology. Don't feel bad. The world is moving on without you, and you are welcome to yell "Get Off My Lawn!" all you want while it happens. You cannot, however, stop an idea whose time has come.

  • IkedaIkeda Member RarePosts: 2,751

    Originally posted by Meltdown

    Meh, everyone feels that way about things they understand and the common-man doesn't. I feel the same way often about computers and the ingorance of something that probably more people use than vote in my country. If everyone was educated on all the issues and all the inner-workings of the government, we could abolish the representation system altogether.

    I could accept that response 30 years ago where figuring out how things worked required a trip to a library.

    With Google (prior to SOPA), you can find the answers in a simple google search.  Hell wikipedia has a GREAT section on how a bill gets passed.

    Ignorance with Google makes things willful and deliberate.  The info is at your fingertips EASY peasy.  To not know means they don't care enough to GOOGLE it.

Sign In or Register to comment.