If you haven’t heard about the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) so far, most are bound to have noticed Tuesday, January 18, 2012 when they were unable to get to many of their favorite sites from Wikipedia to Reddit to WordPress to Mozilla to Craigslist.
NEW: Where do members of Congress stand on SOPA
MUST WATCH VIDEOS: CBS C/Net Complicit in Piracy
SOPA LOSING SUPPORT VIDEO
Do not fall for the red herring that these bills – both SOPA (in the House) and Protect IP Act (PIPA) (in the Senate) are ONLY about stopping “renegade pirate sites”.
ANY site could be taken down!
MUST READ post: Click Image for MPAA Rant against SOPA Blackout
SOPA and PIPA are NOT only a threat to big sites.
See this MUST WATCH video:
Look at all the videos that have been removed from YouTube because of copyright violations. That could be YOUR blog or any site you visit!
“This bill is about using the government to shut
down the competition from bloggers, podcasters,
Web TV and other independent content creators.”
~ Rick Calvert, BlogWorld Co-Founder ~
SOPA and PIPA would make it simple for YOUR blog or favorite site to be “reported” and taken down or cut off from PayPal and other payment gateways without proof of wrongdoing or any chance to defend your innocence.
Wikipedia SOPA Blackout - What Wikipedia Looks Like Wed Jan 18 12:46 a.m. CST
Did you know that it is ILLEGAL to sing Happy Birthday in a restaurant
unless that restaurant pays royalties to the people who wrote that song?
Or that you could be found guilty and sentenced to up to FIVE YEARS
in prison for posting a video on your site or YouTube or anywhere else
online that contains any part of that song?
And some actually believe you should report others and
PAY UP if you unknowingly sang Happy Birthday to anyone!
GOOGLE SOPA BLACKOUT LOGO:
Google SOPA Logo
Google is NOT going dark – but they did post a message
“Tell Congress: Please don’t censor the web!”
MEDIA IN DENIAL:
As has been their usual response, major media ignores what they don’t want the public to know about for as long as they can:
“Living in what can only be described as pure denial, the MPAA announced today that the SOPA/PIPA protests “failed to enlist big sites.” Honestly, there’s really not much more to say about that. Google. Wikipedia. Facebook. Amazon. Craigslist. All participating. Let’s just stare in wonder at the MPAA’s hubris and ability to deny reality.” ~ TechDirt ~
HOW TO JOIN SOPA BLACKOUT:
- INSTANT >> Twitter Blackout SOPA Avatars
- WordPress SOPA PIPA Plugins
- How to SOPA Strike
- How To Blackout Your Site (For SOPA/PIPA) Without Hurting SEO
- Participating in the SOPA Black Out? Don’t Forget to SEO
- Stop American Censorship SOPA Strike – site includes huge list of participants in strike, ways to participate, and SOPA infographic with NO OBVIOUS WAY TO SHARE IT so go see their SOPA INFOGRAPHIC at WebProNews!
- Zachary Johnson’s blackout page
- ProtestSOPA.org
- CloudFlare’s Stop Censorship app
- SOPA Strike WordPress Plugin
- Did you make something? Tweet it to #StrikeTools
MORE INSANE LAWS
- SNOPES: Happy Birthday is STILL Protected by Copyright! Sing Happy Birthday and We’ll Sue!
- Techdirt: The Happy Birthday Copyright Saga: Generating Millions On A Copyright That May Not Exist
- Techdirt: Senators Want To Put People In Jail For Embedding YouTube Videos
- Techdirt: New Anti-Streaming Criminal Copyright Bill Could Mean Jail Time For Lip Synchers
WHAT IS SOPA?
- XLNT: The Super PIPA-SOPA Action Info Flowchart Reference Guide
- What All Marketers Need To Know About SOPA – The Stop Online Piracy Act
- The Big List Of SOPA Links
- Factbox: The ‘Stop Online Piracy Act‘ explained
- Kikolani: About SOPA and Today’s Blackout – Infographic, Video, and Call to Action
WHAT IS PIPA?
- TodayIRead: SOPA and PIPA will BREAK the Internet!
- ThatBaldChick’s position on SOPA PIPA Blackout
- AHens’Nest Videos and Details about Protesting Internet Censorship
WHAT IS COPPA?
- Proposed FTC COPPA Changes to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act includes yet ANOTHER call for a National ID – does NOT protect children but does threaten privacy, free speech and freedom.
EFFECTS of SOPA / PIPA:
- SOPA and PIPA bills could threaten natural health websites with government-ordered shutdown
- ?US Chamber Of Commerce Appears To Argue That SOPA & PIPA Apply To NO Websites At All
- ?If SOPA’s Main Target Is The Pirate Bay, It’s Worth Pointing Out That ThePirateBay.org Is Immune From SOPA
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Twitter: dmcileasing
January 24, 2012 at 11:28 pm
Twitter: @dmcileasing
I guess the internet is now try to get rid all of the spammers in the internet! As well as the internet users who steal copyrights!
Juphet Mislang would love you to read ..Six-Point Priority Site Audit For Large Websites on a Post Panda Update
Twitter: guidinginstinct
January 24, 2012 at 4:47 am
Twitter: @guidinginstinct
Let’s hope these bills will be forgotten once and for all! The internet is key to the lively hood of all. Thanks for the post!
Jordan would love you to read ..The Health Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar
Good to see many people have joined hands to wipe out this bill. What we should do is continue our effort and gather as much support as possible against SOPA and the congress who is keen to pass this bill. Internet should not be controlled by anyone.
Twitter: dmcihomesonline
January 24, 2012 at 3:17 am
Twitter: @dmcihomesonline
Yeah I heard too about the blackout of wikipedia. Is the blackout already done? I guess many wanted to remove pirates over the net!
Twitter: travelrinserept
January 23, 2012 at 7:55 pm
Twitter: @travelrinserept
It was so awesome to see all the solidarity from the internet on this issue.
John would love you to read ..ABCs of Travel
Twitter: process_blue
January 23, 2012 at 1:02 pm
Twitter: @process_blue
Question is…which other fileserver is next?…Thanks for the article
Twitter: tophatmoney
January 24, 2012 at 1:38 am
Twitter: @tophatmoney
wasn’t it though, really cool! it feels like there is a real change happening, these people who are supposed to represent ‘the people’ and who have been purely serving their own interests for so long, now with the protests in Times Square, the protests online people are finding their voices representing themselves, way to go!
tom buck would love you to read ..Payday Loan: Daily Mail Article
there have been many arguments on both sides. What I found most interesting is who supported who and what they gave in support. That shows you who and what is truly trying to be derived from such a law. I think the “copy write” laws can be made more specific without damning the general population for sharing knowledge and information.
private server would love you to read ..Microsoft Virtual Server Specifics
Twitter: tophatmoney
January 23, 2012 at 7:00 am
Twitter: @tophatmoney
need to say a big thanks to everyone that wrote to their representatives or lobbied in some way and all the sites that took part in the black out. It’s impossible to know how much this affected the SOPA and PIPA bills being thrown out but thank goodness they were thrown out, and thank goodness they can be made to listen sometimes, nice work.
tom buck would love you to read ..Payday Loan: Daily Mail Article
Megaupload.com also joined and hackers hacked government sites I guess their way to protest SOPA. I hope this would really work and I will be glad if you keep us updated. No to censorship!
Twitter: tophatmoney
January 24, 2012 at 8:16 am
Twitter: @tophatmoney
exactly, there are plenty of perfectly decent existing anti copyright laws alread, simply use those properly, there are no need for additional, easy to abuse laws designed to make it simple to wipe out independent sites
tom buck would love you to read ..Instant Payday Loans
I thought the support to SOPA was phenomenal! I never thought that they lost the battle, Infact I’d like to believe that these small steps will help us in getting together and making a step that will help us in having a free & independent internet. With out no one blocking or stopping us!
I might be a bestselling author, but I personally have a varied taste and I would love to have my freedom in what I want to see and what I dont!
Twitter: wsiabelpardo
January 22, 2012 at 4:59 pm
Twitter: @wsiabelpardo
I’m from Europe, but I guess all around the world there is a wave of happiness because of SOPA is not going on.
Abel Pardo Fernandez would love you to read ..Cursos a distancia en Marketing Digital
Twitter: blogstashdotcom
January 22, 2012 at 3:04 pm
Twitter: @blogstashdotcom
It is really sad to see how little by little our freedom is being taken away by big corporations and basically by money.
I do hope that all the blackouts and protest will make more people aware of the sopa bill and hopefully it will never pass.
Satrap would love you to read ..101 Small Business Ideas
Twitter: kyro010
January 22, 2012 at 3:02 am
Twitter: @kyro010
I really hate this bill..I’d rather Hollywood stop making films than SOPA get through.?.
Kyro would love you to read ..Discover how “No Poo”
This is going to put the world in unrest. This affects everybody, not just Americans. This is dictatorship and they know it.
Twitter: devjosephite
January 20, 2012 at 3:28 pm
Twitter: @devjosephite
Hey guys congratulation no SOPA this is the power of blogging.
Keep blogging..
Dev would love you to read ..Email Etiquette
Twitter: mikenicklas1
January 20, 2012 at 2:06 pm
Twitter: @mikenicklas1
It was great to see some extremely powerful websites fight SOPA. It really was a great day in history to show the power of the internet and how much support honorable businesses can give. All in all, it’s good to see Congress has practically thrown this bill out.
These kind of laws really makes me hate USA Government.
Robe absolvire would love you to read ..Inchirieri robe absolvire Bucuresti
I was so happy that blackout of big internet sites went effectively, hope Lamar Smith won’t push this kind of Bill.
Twitter: webisodestudio1
January 19, 2012 at 12:58 pm
Twitter: @webisodestudio1
I was glad to hear that, following all these websites shut-downs, support for these bills if decreasing. but lets face the facts, if the people who control the money want these bills passed, sooner or later they will be passed and there’s nothing we can do about it. You can write to your congressman or senator and it wont change a thing because these people get elected using campaign contributions made by companies trying to get these bills passed. If these elected officials want to get re-elected or run for better positions they better do what their campaign contributors say. Money rules the world. Sad but true.
Twitter: tophatmoney
January 19, 2012 at 1:29 pm
Twitter: @tophatmoney
money runs American politics does not equal money rules the world fortunately.
tom buck would love you to read ..Payday Loan: Daily Mail Article
Twitter: GrowMap
January 19, 2012 at 3:34 pm
Twitter: @GrowMap
Hi Tom,
Well, actually it does. I can see I am going to have to write a post about the big picture soon.
growmap would love you to read ..Every worthwhile Small Business IS doing important work – How YOURS could go viral #smbiz
Twitter: tophatmoney
January 20, 2012 at 1:01 am
Twitter: @tophatmoney
I’m not saying money doesn’t rule the world, just that the argument that it runs American politics THEREFORE it rules the world is not true. The world is significantly larger than one corrupt system of government. Money is an abstraction, to make it possible for everyone to trade with everyone else, otherwise potato growers could only trade with people that wanted potatoes, so by design it is universal. Greed corrupts that, money isn’t evil; greedy, selfish people are evil.
tom buck would love you to read ..Payday Loan: Daily Mail Article
Twitter: GrowMap
January 19, 2012 at 3:46 pm
Twitter: @GrowMap
While it IS true that they will let the outrage die down and then quietly try to slip these laws through any way they can – often by tacking them onto some totally unrelated piece of legislature they’re rushing through Congress, I am encouraged by the fact that so many actually DID SOMETHING about this. That is unusual.
The political system is so corrupt that even the Judicial branch has been bought off. (Note the decision they made yesterday to extend copyright protection in spite of overwhelming opposition or there increasingly ridiculous rulings that defy all logic.)
There IS a solution – the masses refusing to take it any more – and it appears they are dumb enough they are going to be what causes that solution to happen because they just keep on stepping in it over and over and are probably even surprised that more and more are willing to speak out.
That is why they need to censor the Internet and they will keep trying to do it. So be prepared, people. Get contact information for key people you respect and make sure you can reach them as many ways as possible (phone, email, blogs, forums, Skype, IM). While they control all the major sites they do NOT control every independent site until they use their kill switch (yes they CAN do that) or take all the sites down.
If they do that we will have to get around it. We could use bulletin boards and dial in or see if the Ham radio folks have a satellite working and might let us use a little of their bandwidth or create physical communities of people who want to come out of the world.
growmap would love you to read ..Why We Need Group Geo-Targeted Niche Blogs
Twitter: tophatmoney
January 20, 2012 at 1:11 am
Twitter: @tophatmoney
Really? How would that even work? Are there so few routes into the country that the government could close them all out? Like shutting down in country data centres doesn’t sound too tricky but every route in? Or is it a frequency type thing, just shut out all data communication across the whole network?
tom buck would love you to read ..Payday Loan: Daily Mail Article
Super complicated argument. If it passes in the US, then we’re going to get it here in Canada.
Cliff would love you to read ..Why I Love Social Media – A Story About Jeremy Roenick
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