By Jueseppi B.
It seems the information site Wikipedia has decided to protest the S.O.P.A. legislation by shutting down it’s site Wednesday, the 18th, of January.
In recent weeks, there has been talk in Washington about legislation that would seek to crack down on the pirating of television shows, music and movies on the Internet. Seems reasonable right? The fine print shows something a little different.
Wikipedia will black out the English language version of its website Wednesday to protest anti-piracy legislation under consideration in Congress, the foundation behind the popular community-based online encyclopedia said in a statement Monday night.
The website will go dark for 24 hours in an unprecedented move that brings added muscle to a growing base of critics of the legislation. Wikipedia is considered one of the Internet’s most popular websites, with millions of visitors daily.
“If passed, this legislation will harm the free and open Internet and bring about new tools for censorship of international websites inside the United States,” the Wikimedia foundation said.
The Stop Online Piracy Act in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Protect Intellectual Property Act under consideration in the Senate are designed to crack down on sales of pirated U.S. products overseas.
Supporters include the film and music industry, which often sees its products sold illegally. They say the legislation is needed to protect intellectual property and jobs.
Critics say the legislation could hurt the technology industry and infringe on free-speech rights. Among their concerns are provisions that would weaken cyber-security for companies and hinder domain access rights.
The most controversial provision is in the House bill, which would have enabled federal authorities to “blacklist” sites that are alleged to distribute pirated content. That would essentially cut off portions of the Internet to all U.S. users. But congressional leaders appear to be backing off this provision.
Tech companies such as Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Twitter, eBay, AOL and others have spoken out against the legislation and said it threatens the industry’s livelihood. Several online communities such as Reddit, Boing Boing and others have announced plans to go dark in protest as well.
The Obama administration also raised concerns about the legislation over the weekend and said it will work with Congress on legislation to help battle piracy and counterfeiting while defending free expression, privacy, security and innovation in the Internet.
Wikipedia’s decision to go dark brings the issue into a much brighter spotlight. A group of Wikipedia users have discussed for more than a month whether it should react to the legislation.
Along with stopping the Internet-wide problem of piracy, the new litigation would allow the censorship of websites and could lead to the shutdown of websites without reason. The The Los Angeles Times reported that several websites, including Wikipedia, Reddit, Craigslist and more intend to go dark and shut down for 24 hours (from January 18 to January 19) to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA).
The “SOPA Strike’s” official page is encouraging people to speak out against the bill all day during the blackout and to share the news via other sharing and social networking websites. A call to action was posted on the website urging supporters to sign a petition against the bills and protect their freedoms. “On Jan 24th, Congress will vote to pass internet censorship in the Senate, even though the vast majority of Americans are opposed,” posted the website. “We need to kill the bill – PIPA in the Senate and SOPA in the House – to protect our rights to free speech, privacy and prosperity.”
Wouldn’t it be something if the Occupy “Movement” were th get involved and support this movement to stop liberties from being usurped by Congress? You know, get organized, and Occupy Washington to bring attention to this vote on January 24th. “Occupy Congress”….that should be the war cry for every Comgressional obstruction, every Congressional filibuster, every time Congress fails to get it’s work accomplished. Show Congress what “We The People” want from our elected officials.
“Disagree Intelligently, Use Facts, Truth & Common Sense.”
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Filed under: Business, Causes, News, Politics Tagged: | Boing Boing, Celebrity Cafe, EBay, Senate, United States, United States House of Representatives, Wikimedia foundation, Wikipedia
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