Congress has to be shaking in its boots this past week. It seems that they can’t just do anything they want after all. At least not when the public gets wind of what they are up to.
As we all know SOPA, or the Stop Online Piracy Act, was shit canned this week. This did not make its sponsors or the powerful lobbyists, especially those representing the Motion Picture Industry of America, American Federation of Musicians, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, the Directors Guild of America, and the Screen Actors Guild, happy.
The American public seemed to be paying attention to their nonsense for a change. Now, before I get the supporters of this bill railing at me, saying that we need to stop the wholesale ripoff of creative assets, let me be the first to say I agree. Remember, I live my life as a writer and getting ripped off robs me of my livelihood. I get it.
What I don’t get is this bill. It is a wholesale attempt to make a land grab on anyone who posts what turns out to be copyrighted material. For instance, if I share a YouTube video here on RobZerrvations, and it turns out to be copyrighted, the government can shut me down, seize the domain name and put it all on hold indefinitely while an investigation is made. This can occur if just a single person, even someone who has a bone to pick with me, makes a complaint. There’s no due process, just a potential shutdown.
There are other ways to do this. In the old days, someone would just write a letter (usually from a lawyer) saying that the offending material needed to be removed or a lawsuit would result under the existing copyright laws in this country.
Yes, that’s right. We already have laws that protect the wholesale rip off of creative assets. For example, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act immediately comes to mind. Many of these laws have been on the books for years, if not decades. The Screen Actors Guild and the Motion Picture Association of America know of these laws. They are responsible for putting many of them in place over the years. And now, through their lobbyists and the paid puppets in Congress, they want a bigger slice of the power pie.
What I truly love about this whole event is that the social aspect of social media is really beginning to show its stuff. Thanks to a push by Internet companies to make the public aware, a huge outcry on the Internet — from the darkened pages of major websites to the shared postings on Facebook — and letters to Congressmen, the bill was tabled.
That, my friends, is democracy in action. The special interests behind this bill undoubtedly poured a lot of money into the pockets of the sponsors of this idiocy. But the power of the people was exercised online, on the very medium that these jokers were trying to manipulate and control.
This is a red letter day for the Internet. We should all be proud of hitting the share button and making everyone aware of the dangers of this bill. And we should give each other a high five for giving Congress an ear full.
I imagine every Congressman rued the day that they created a Facebook page. They were flooded with public outrage last week. They got caught with their pants down on an election year.
Now, I’m not saying that something doesn’t need to be done. But kids, let’s put some due process in there. Let’s let those who shared a copyrighted file inadvertently have the chance to pull it down. If they don’t, then use the power of our existing laws to really sock it to them. Don’t create yet another law that gives the government (and de facto, the bill’s sponsors in Hollywood) the power to become the Internet police, shutting down anyone they want to, including anyone who disagrees with them.
That is the real issue here. If someone files a complaint against your site, you can have it suspended. As a blogger here at RobZerrvations.com, I have pissed off people several times in the past year. I have received some nasty hate letters. The last thing I need is to have these yokels find a new avenue for their complaint, one that could shut me down.
While Hollywood wants to say it’s all about keeping their movies, TV shows, music and other digital assets from being shared illegally through foreign sites, SOPA also walks a very fine line in the area of Freedom of Speech. Each nail we put in the coffin of his basic freedom is one step closer we come to losing our voice, and eventually all our other rights.
I am sure our Founding Fathers are smiling right now because we have a new tool to spread the ideals of democracy. Rather than posting handbills on trees and initiating change over the course of weeks or months, we can do it in minutes and hours.
I hope that everyone will continue to keep watch on what Congress is up to. It’s not hard to follow the bills they are introducing. We should be watching them like a hawk these days as they continue to make wholesale changes in laws that undermine our basic freedoms. Keep these people out of the wombs of women, stop them from eavesdropping on the average American, keep them from pandering to special interests and most of all, prevent them from taking away our most cherished rights.
Good job America on defending our rights. You have restored some of my hope for the country’s future. Since many in the media have sold out to one political philosophy or the other, it’s up to us to watch the devils in government and keep them honest.
SOPA was a great start. Soldier on America. The future of our country is truly in our hands and I think the power base is starting to shift. Those in Congress know we’re watching them now. Vote with your Share button and don’t let injustices in the guise of legislation become law without your assent.
Out in the Emerald City, sharing this opinion without fear of being shutdown by the devils of democracy,
– Robb