So. By now, I am certain anyone who reads this has heard of the United States Of America *mutters* bloody ungrateful colonials *mutters* Stop Online Piracy Act. SOPA for short. *mutters* impinging my freedoms *mutters*
Anyway. What it is, is, well. On Paper it be a... Who am I kidding. On Paper it be a bloody awful idea.
The full text of the bill is available from the US Library of Congress website. Here, in fact.
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c112:H.R.3261:
Now. I will admit, freely, to being no expert in legal documents. My Legal experience consists of ONE (1) High School course on the Canadian Legal System, way back in high school. Which was about six years ago now. At least. However. So far as I was able to determine, it gives the US Government (A fair and equitable association with ABSOLUTELY NO historically verified tendency to swing their weight around unjustly.) (Re. Anyone who believed my previous statement, I have some nice beachfront to sell you. Your choice of Mare Imbrium, or Mare Tranquillium.) ANYWAY.... It gives the US government the power to force US IP Providers, Search Engines, Server Hosts, and basically any US corporation in any way associated with facilitating the Internet, to cease doing business with any website they can prove to have breached copyright in some way.
Now. At first glance, if you don't live in the States, you'll be fine, right? You'd think so wouldn't you. On accounts of the States are so very tranquil about the behaviour of the rest of the world. Never interfere, never stick there noses into other peoples business... (It's prime property, out of the way, quiet, no neighbours to speak of...) Ahem. No. Because. The Internet came into being in America. And most of the worlds... lets call it Internet Facilitation Equipment... All that stuff required for the Internet to be the Internet (I'm no computer geek either. I'm a biologist. A Marine one. I understand Fish. I dabble in other things...) is in, guess where? YUP! The States. So. Basically, if this bill goes through... Quote something copyright on your blog? They can blacklist your blog. You'll never get it hosted. Especially if it is on Blogspot, like this? Owned by... Google? An American Company. Post a video of you doing a cover? They can blacklist your site. These days, there are copyrights on almost everything.
Will things hit that stage, even if the bill goes through? I doubt it will be as bad as it could be. However. The Legal basis for such a massive infringement of free speech, will be there. And speaking of freedom of speech, how is this law not blatantly unconstitutional? Well. Were the US bothered much with the Constitution (Patriot Act anyone?) WEll. Thats what Title II, Section 2 (Savings and Severability Clauses) (a) (Savings Clauses) (1) (First Amendment) is for. It reads, and I quote. "Nothing in this Act shall be construed to impose a prior restraint on free speech or the press protected under the 1st Amendment to the Constitution." Again, this time with some emphasis. "Nothing in this Act shall be construed to impose a prior restraint on free speech or the press protected under the 1st Amendment to the Constitution." Note how they don't even try to claim the bill is Constitutional. No. They simply state, right there in the Bill itself that it shall not be Construed (Seen, viewed, taken to) to impose a Prior Restraint (basically causing people to be careful what they say. Lest the government come down on them like a ton of bricks.) on free speech.
Anyway. There is an internet petition against this bill. I ask that anyone with an interest in freedom of speech sign it. For.
"As the American People learned so painfully in the final years of the 21st Century, Free flow of information is the only safeguard against Tyrrany. Beware he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart, he dreams himself your master"
Academician Prokhor Zakharov, University of Planet
(Taken from Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. Used without Permission. Something that could get my blog shut down under SOPA...)
Anyway, that petition...
http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_internet/?fgDdocb&pv=170
On a final note... I wonder how 4chan is going to take this bill...
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