How SOPA (as written) might kill ATS and free speech online (UPDATED)

This is exactly why I've been talking about learning to disconnect from the plastic box and start putting what you know to the test. I've said it many times, we need to go into survival mode. The time to fight is over, it's too late. We will fight later, but now, LEARN how to live life, communicate, and gather your resources now without sitting down behind a screen.

Start finding ways now, to communicate with one another outside of forums such as these. It was done in the past, it can be done again.

We all knew this was coming, and now it's just getting real.

I'm telling anyone who will listen.....we are not going to be able to stop this as much as we want to. This has been coming for years.

I remember a time before everyone had a plastic box in their homes to communicate on. I remember a time where people communicated differently and exchanged ideas and gathered. Hell, I grew up without a phone in my house in the 70's and 80's and we all managed to survive and communicate what was important.

Do it now.... and start putting aside food and get your medicines/herbs together.

Originally posted by hellzdoms
After so many years of running, the site hitting its peek and more people realising the truth. This cant end. I think soon enough we are going to be doing undeground meetings and other events that will be at secret to the world just so we may remain the ones that know

Exactly. I grew up without internet, I grew up in a volatile time, where we had to learn how to meet with one another, gather up resources, and communicate. Time is now where we will have to get back to that.... they can't stop that as much as they want to. They are going to control the internet ..... why??

FOR WHAT THEY ARE PLANNING. Think about this. Information can be exchanged at lightening speed during an uprising. People can organize faster than hell if need be thanks to the computer age.

Take this away and they think it's going to put a dent in that. It won't though... things might move slightly slower but people will learn how to go underground again.

Also - STOP talking about your personal life on the internet. STOP sharing your plans, and what not. And don't run to your facebook and delete stuff you're worried about cause it's too late. They have it all on a cloud. You cannot even delete your facebook either, you can only disable it.

The more personal information you share on the internet, the more you've shot yourself in your own foot. Learn how to share information differently....

I'm going old school. Good luck to everyone. The next two years are going to get real interesting for Americans.

Originally posted by something wicked
You say the blacklist is 'stupid' but then say the sites it blocks are promoting child pornography? Is that stupid? I would like to think that is a good thing, wouldn't you?

Yes, there is no question...but you missed the point!

It's about the "bendability" of a bill which is worded so vaguely that you can interpret/bend and APPLY in all kinds of ways.

While we certainly can agree that child pornography is a bad thing, when it comes to other things on the web its not always clear "what is is good, ethical, still allowed" etc. since this often depends on THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER.

Let me give some examples.

The laws and the view of what is ethical, "good", "dirty" can and DO vary, depending on what society you live in, what country you live in - YOU, your neighbor, me etc..we can have a totally different idea what we think is tolerable and what not.

A typical example would be the (IMO) over-the-top sensitivity in the united states whatever concerns "nudity", eg. in movies, online etc. - it is not even REMOTELY comparable to what's going on in "liberal" Europe.

So..the question is whos standard is being applied..who DECIDES what is "bad" and what is getting blocked and censored?

If i make a site with a few bikini girls...there might be a bunch of people not even thinking anything about it..while another bunch of people might be OFFENDED since they see the bikini girls as smut which needs to be blocked.

Don't you see the problem here? So...who's standard is the one being applied? Yours? Mine? The "government's" standard? Your neighbors?

Its similar with SOPA since the bill is worded fuzzy and its pre-destined that its taken for blocking everything under the GUISE of "copyright violation" - every lawyer can find some minor thing on a web site and can bring a site down based on something trivial.

Your avatar? Copyright violation? Someone posted a link/image...copyright violation?

And you can BET that there are certain "powers" who would be all over this and find plenty of reasons to shut "inconvenient" sites where the reason of "copyright violation" is just a pseudo-argument given.

Reason being that SOPA (in reality!) will not do ANYTHING against piracy, in fact its pathetically un-effective from a technical point of view.

*
By the way...the danger that someone is "scanning" inconvenient sites and just looking for a reason to shut a site down..is VERY REAL.

How big do you think that on a site like ATS there is a chance that ONE single avatar or image posted is violating a copyright, unintentionally of course? It's almost a given. This is how lawyers make money! Some lawyers are doing nothing else than looking for such trivial things on web sites, sending C&D letters and getting rich by collecting "fees".

To prevent this, many webmasters are indeed offshore hosting their sites in other countries since its way harder to have control over sites hosted in other countries. Do you want to support the slime lawyers who make money with such unethical methods?

SOPA would make it irrelevant where a site is hosted...and it would be a very real threat to any webmaster/site owner.

So i guess thats what that warning thing is that pops up from time to time when clicking to browse specific sections?

Originally posted by Invariance
Can people from other countries sign the petition?

Sign away! Who's stopping you? As if the petition is going to make any difference.

What American government wants to do will affect the entire globe, not just one country! As it is, we can not get certain programming sites like Hulu for example to display in Canada. ...and while Openmedia.ca has their hands full fighting against government proposed internet atrocities, I'm afraid we would be helpless to do anything if government really wanted to pass the bill.

I don't see how the U.S. government can take such measures with property that essentially belongs to the world! The Internet should be 'international waters' so to speak. It's scary to think we're all so helpless?

Sceptic Overlord, perhaps if all else fails you could place ATS on a non-American server and see if they can still shut you down?

Either way you slice it, the American government's decision will affect us all.

Not sure how old you are or how much you know about the US. If the US thinks it can bomb other countries because the US doesn't like them, why do you think they would care that others are adversely affected by the decisions US government takes for controlling resources within the US which it is completely empowered to do?

Anyway, there is nothing scary about this, at least for non-Americans. The worst that can happen is that your domain may be blocked to US users. If you have your domain hosted on US servers, it may be completely blocked, but you can always move it to a server in another country. Yeah, if your life is dependent on accessing domains hosted in US, it may be scary, but it is a dependence you can and should move away from in any case.

Good to see ATS still kicks ass. This thing is bigger than the US. If SOPA is implemented in the US, how long do you think it'll take for the copyright lobbyists to spread it to other democracies in the world, like my own home country, Sweden, for example? Fight them at the beaches, ATS!

Incidentally, SOPA, or Sopa, in Swedish, translates to 'loser'.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord

You guys know whats at stake here.

Patriot Act, NDAA, SOPA, its all coming.

reply to post by Observor


ca.news.yahoo.com...

To put this in context, Canadian Internet providers rely on the Americas Registry for Internet Numbers, an U.S. allocation entity known as ARIN. Its territorial reach includes Canada, the U.S. and 20 Caribbean nations. Amending this bill will effectively treat all IP addresses within this reach as "domestic for U.S. law purposes

No one is safe from this proposed bill.

I just got a "this site has been blocked by the US government" page when I tried to enter a thread. I tell you it scared the life out of me but It is a good way to 'open eyes'.

ALS

Reaad the Bible.
There is "something" about destruction of Tower of Babel and existing communication between people.
History repeats. As a matter of fact, destruction of Tower of Babel started all history as we know it.

Originally posted by Catatonic
reply to post by Observor

 

ca.news.yahoo.com...

To put this in context, Canadian Internet providers rely on the Americas Registry for Internet Numbers, an U.S. allocation entity known as ARIN. Its territorial reach includes Canada, the U.S. and 20 Caribbean nations. Amending this bill will effectively treat all IP addresses within this reach as "domestic for U.S. law purposes

They may rely on the same agency, but I bet the numbers would be distinguishable as to which area they are serving. So it is possible to block requests only from the US visitors.

The US may decide to extend the treatment to Canada and the participating Caribbean states, but that they could do anytime whether a law exists or not.

No one is safe from this proposed bill.

No one is safe from the US, bill or no bill

If facebook decided to protest SOPA like ATS today then the public would wake up instantly to tyranny IMO. People would want to know why and the US government would be backed into a corner.

Originally posted by OmegaLogos
reply to post by SkepticOverlord

 

Explanation: S&F!

Personal Disclosure:

That was bloody spooky

... Good one SO!

I know scared me, I thought that this is the end to freedom for me.
This can not happen

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


I think there is no America as it used to be.

It is the third biggest action against American people after 9/11 and TSA.

Sorry people , those who used to be loyal to America are just betraying it.

And this is a sign that they are beyond government power. The Zionists.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


Just turned on computer, and up pops that box! I was like WTH???? Thanks for the wake up call Skeptic!

Any politician supporting SOPA should be VOTED OUT!!! And that includes Romney and Obama!!

Originally posted by SkepticOverlord

Originally posted by beezzer
What would the internet look like if this were to pass?

We're going to be running a "semi-dark" site-wide protest soon. That will help you visually understand what much of the Internet would look like.

"semi-dark" I logged in this morning and got the blocked page I was ready to grab my BOB and head for the hills.

All kidding aside if sopa go's in to play looks like sneakernet will come back into use. This wont stop piracy the suppliers of pirated material will just find other ways to distribute material whether its through hand to hand contact or by mail all the need to do is load some sort of digital media with files then hand off to the next person.But the net will still be on lock down. Kind of like the war on drugs, they make laws to get rid of drugs and now we have more drugs than before.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


Yeah...PEOPLE make posts WITHOUT giving credit...

Your solution??? Block legislation that PROTECTS the work of people, namely their INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY...

Just because it might shut down your site....

Hey, I got news for you....turn off ALL your advertising on the site....DEMONSTRATE through your ACTIONS that you could give TWO SHAKES about the legitimacy of site ownership and reaping of benefits through work and intellectual property...

I doubt I will see this happening anytime soon...

As usual, firing up ATS while I wait for my coffee to brew.

My heart is racing. You scared the HELL out of me. I'm too sleepy for this.