Threats To Internet Freedom All Too Real

Here's an article in regards to attempts being made to regulate or even possibly shut down the world wide web, as we know it today. These attempts are in light of the RIAA's seeking to criminalize all Internet file sharing of any kind, thus shutting down the internet, due to copyright infringements.

prisonplanet.com
The Internet is the last true unregulated outpost of freedom of speech but moves are afoot to stifle, suffocate and control the world wide web. These threats are not hidden nor are they hard to deduce and yet a significant minority of truth seekers and activists remain naive as to their scope.

Following our publication of yesterday's article, RIAA Legal Ruling Could Shut Down The Internet, we received a mixed response. Many were aware of the imminent dangers that threaten to change the face of the Internet but others were more hostile to the supposition that the world wide web could be devastated by landmark copyright case rulings as well as plans to develop "Internet 2."

Some accused us of yellow journalism and scaremongering yet the warning that the Elektra vs. Barker case could criminalize the very mechanism that characterizes the Internet was not concocted by Alex Jones or Paul Joseph Watson, it was a statement made by the very lawyer fighting the case, Ray Beckerman.

It was a danger also reported on by one of the UK's biggest technology news websites, the Inquirer, which also yesterday highlighted the frightening development in an article entitled, RIAA wants the Internet shut down.

I find it odd that this topic hasn't been discussed a little bit more widely than it has been. The RIAA is in fact seeking to press the "copyright infringement" issue to it's fullest extent. If they are successful, the RIAA would actually shut down the internet as we know it today.

I'm sure that there are many people that think Alex Jones is a nutjob, but you've got to keep in mind that they have been working on a "new" internet for a while now. Look it up here.

The deployment of the new Internet2 Network continues on schedule, with the first 10 gigabit per second (Gbps) wavelength operational between New York and Chicago. Routers at the two locations can ping each other and will be meshed into the existing nationwide Internet2 IP infrastructure over the upcoming few days. The goal was to have this first link of the network alive before the Fall 2006 Internet2 Member Meeting. Achieving that goal just 5 months and 8 days after signing the agreement with Level 3 Communications is the result of dedicated, persistent teamwork by many people – particularly those at the Global Research NOC at Indiana University, Level 3, Infinera and Ciena. The team is on target for full deployment by August 2007 of what will be the most advanced nationwide research and education network that can be easily scaled to provide not only IP, but also static and dynamic dedicated wavelength services. The Internet2 Network website and blog provide the latest news, announcements and updates.
source

The internet is our last source to exercise our 1st Amendment Right, Freedom of Speech, without censorship. Don't let them take this away from us!


[edit on 1-12-2006 by UM_Gazz]

and there's the "internet 2" thing. freedom of speech is a beautiful thing. stand up and fight for your rights masses. i *used* to be thankful i was born in modern times, now i have to wonder sometimes...

edit: didn't see your ref' to internet 2.
good post.

[edit on 21/12/2012 by zooplancton]

Imagine what it would be like... all of us, crawling out from our dark holes to inhabit the planet again... lol hahahahhahahaha

The internet Isn't a freedom its a privlage. You dont need the net to be free, yes informed and connected but not free.

the internet is a privilege?? in what way?

With all the major interests in the E-commerce sector it is most likely the RIAA will be "shut down" long before the Internet will.

I can´t begin to imagine the protests that will follow if the Internet is "shut down".

Imagine around 700 million people screaming in the street for starters.

No, it will start by selective IP filtering first. Technology is already in place... More and more sites use it to block foreign traffic to their sites. "We´re sorry, this content is not meant to be displayed outside the United States". Happens a lot lately. Nothing an anonymous proxy can´t fix though, but still......

Next step is isolating IP segments which have hosts in it with shared copyrighted material. Remove it or be marooned.....

Originally posted by AMANNAMEDQUEST
The internet Isn't a freedom its a privlage. You dont need the net to be free, yes informed and connected but not free.

That is a correct statement and an incorrect statement at the same time. The internet is a "privilege". No one has to use the internet, but you can. Everyone that accepts the privilege to use the internet has the ability to voice themselves without censorship. The federal government and independent agencies are currently grasping at straws to enact laws, enact restrictions, or to enact regulation of the internet. They, the government and other independent agencies, have seen that we are able to use the internet to say our peace, to voice our concerns, and to research many vast articles... without prejudice or whom it would benefit.

The RIAA is trying with all their might to pursue this case, which would actually ban (criminalize) any type of file sharing. Do you understand what that means? If you have a family member that loves *anything goes here* (their religion for example)... and you find an article on the web that was published from... oh let's say... www.miraclechildren.com (just so happens to be a religious site), you find something that is on that site, and you send it to your family member... without written prior consent... you are in fact breaking the law. How messed up is that!?

For the second part of your statement... how could you possibly be free... or even informed? If the internet was censored and/or regulated in any fashion or form... you will not possibly have an unbiased source for your information. There, today, is no federal regulation that states you cannot speak your mind freely.

If by chance you don't fully understand your "right to speak freely"... read the constitution, and pay particular close attention to the 1st Amendment Right that we all share. Do not allow the door to be closed on your God given, and unalienable right.

they got some nerves to tell you that file sharing is ilegal like mp3's for example...

pear 2 pear is a choice and if i want to share my files with others in order to get other files for free then it's not breaking stupid laws.

seriously... how can it be a criminal act to openly share my things with others.... they have no right to stop anything even if they do stop it, they don't actually have the right.... they take the right. well i take the right to not stand for their opinions on what is my right or not.

If the internet as I know it, was all of a sudden written off, I would revert to something
I did back in the 70s. have hundreds of overseas penpals.
When will they realise that they can cut off one method of communication but they can
never stop people communicating?
I think if the internet was shutdown, some smart little person somewhere in the world
would invent a nifty piece of software to enable website access via our mobile phones.
I have the absolute confidence in the fact that everyday people are one step ahead of governments who look absolutely incompetent and stupid beside a determined
computer geek.

In fact, I'm absolutely sure some clever person is already working on Internet3 to replace their internet2.

I have to disagree. This is really just the creation of a whole new animal.

The internet is far too profitable to be discontinued. Think manufacturers...what do they do to keep products selling?

They repackage, add items, take away items, streamline the product so it is ever consumable and marketable.

The internet will never die.

It will be broken up into sizable chunks. Sold off to the highest bidders and re marketed as new and improved.

here in Canada we'll see out own "regional internet"...the states will have theirs and in time...each state or province will be it's own entity on the web.

Think of it...the access fees, the zoned fees, the specific marketing that can be done and the amazing potential for profits to those who own it! Will it be government owned? of course not...there's no money to be had in state run internet...it will be corporate owned. Time Warner will one day own it's own regional chunk of the internet and will sell bits and pieces to others or subsidiaries...

Look at how the telephone cos, Television and Satellite, radio... started and how they have grown...same thing will happen to the internet. It's inevitable. It cannot stay wide open and free forever. There's not enough revenue for the telcos or for the gov. if it remains as it is...

Regulations are not the end of the internet. Regulations are the beginning of the "new" intenets (plural).

Seriously in less than ten years time, we'll not only be paying for the service but we'll be paying for "cross region" access...

Really if you are looking for the next big investment this will the one to watch for. Targeted marketing at it's finest. Highly regulated, highly controlled and region specific. You'll still have your ATS...though you may have to pay and additional system access fee to your ISP to get it. You may find you have to specify which regional internets you wish to access and then pay for that privilege...

So there you go. My personal one and only prediction for the future.

I don't post often at all, but I post on things I've been interested in, and I think we're headed towards the creation of an 'undernet' that instead of being run by corporations and the government, actively blocks them access.

Let's not forget the Internet was started by the government as a military network, I'm sure some hackers and computer wizards could create a completely untraceable, free, anonymous 'undernet' where peoples race, religion, location etc could be completely untraceable.

Seether, see that's the beauty of the plan. There is NO way for an underground net to occur. The copper, the fiber and the sat transmissions are all corporate/gov owned. Unless there is a HUGE number of people with some very specific engineering experience and a few truck loads of cash to afford the very specific equipment and splicers and monitoring devices etc...

The Gov and corporations own the whole main frame and every vein that runs through it. No doubt there will be hacks...but for the majority of users the scope of that is far beyond common knowledge. is the gov worried about a small group of scattered hacks tapping into their system? Not really...the scope of the profits to be made far outweigh any potential problem caused by a wanna-be underground.

They can already drive by your house and monitor your connections via the copper and twisted pairs in your living room. They can monitor your wireless comm, and your sat comm and your radio comms...

There is redundancy galore in current telco/hydro and cabled systems...they can turn you on and off with the flick of a switch. A hack system would be far too unreliable, un searchable and very very few would be able to or would want to spend hours trying to find an available uplink into the hacked net.

The whole system that has been built and laid in the ground for the past 15+ years since the invention and implementation of widespread fiber has been leading up to this. The sensing equipment, the monitoring, the grid itself...lends itself perfectly to absolute and marketable control.

I realy dont know if they any time will close the internet. for governments internet could be dangerous due to the free speech and the easy way how ppl can pass away secret informations, but in the other hand, the internet today is a huge Big Brother also!, they monitorize each one of us easly!i doubt they will want to lose this!

Originally posted by Umbra Sideralis
I realy dont know if they any time will close the internet. for governments internet could be dangerous due to the free speech and the easy way how ppl can pass away secret informations, but in the other hand, the internet today is a huge Big Brother also!, they monitorize each one of us easly!i doubt they will want to lose this!

I disagree Sideralis... I believe they (the government) is very willing to get rid of the internet as we know it today.

For today, we have the freedom of speech still intact with the internet. Today, we are able to research our incumbents, spread the word of wrongdoings, share family photos, create your own website and provide the information you choose to have there, and we have limitless choices of where we go and what we do (in a nutshell) on the internet, with the utmost unbiasedness.

With the Internet 2 (or any subsequent internet) the government will have their hands pocket deep into everyone's business being able to regulate in any and every form imaginable. That is not a good thing any way you construe it.

I believe there are many many issues on the internet today that the government wishes to get rid of... for example, the ability of me to state right here, "I whole heartedly believe the administration today is corrupt.", and to have it publicly known of my views. When the government is able to stop you from voicing your opinions, you've lost more than you'll ever know.


The internet is just a piece of the puzzle they (the government) is putting together to gain for themselves, supreme power over the people. The government is supposed to be here to represent the people, of the peoples own voice... not be here to control the people.



When, we the people, become afraid of the government we have all elected into office, that is called a tyranny... and we the people, lose.