Stop SOPA From Becoming Law

[Neurotoxin]

Originally Posted by IDukeNukeml

That said, the entire act is just a gateway in my eyes for more govermental control to eventually lead the country more toward a socialist nation.

Hey whoa there buddy. Don't fall into the Gingrich-style mentality of using "Socialism" as a code word for a fascist dictatorship or right-wing nationalist worker party. He doesn't even know what Socialism is, especially because there are many different forms and versions of it. There is no excuse for that kind of ignorance, though I can say that the Smith Act and McCarthyism scared Socialism/Communism out of the US public and made them seem like dangerous dirty words that will summon the Political Boogeyman, and so thinking that "Socialism" is the enemy of "Democracy" has been part of US culture for a couple generations.

When I think "Socialism" I think of a properly direct democracy where everyone has a say in the political system, where everyone in the nation participates. Believe it or not, little old Cuba actually had 9 million of its 11 million population participated in a long (months to years long) national debate and decision to determine how private capitalism can be expanded in the country. If we had THAT kind of Socialism, the debate about what to do about online piracy would be open to full national participation, not left to be decided and forced upon us by a few key industries and the corporate-sponsored government.

I'm not gonna say more on the subject, other than that you may want to check out Marxian economist Richard D Wolff to get a better understanding of the difference between Capitalist systems and Socialist/Communist systems.

Back on topic:

Down with SOPA, down with PIPA, down with malicious short-sighted legislation. If this happened in any other country, the US media would call out the government setting up these laws as a fascist dictatorship that doesn't consider it's people and their rights. And yet here we are, staring down the barrel of a bill that is going to ruin the internet for everyone but corporate attack-dog lawyers.

[Firefly]

Originally Posted by Neurotoxin

I don't mean to be a turd in the punchbowl, but... Is this a possible conflict of interest?

http://judiciary.house.gov/issues/Ro...Supporters.pdf

3 SOPA supporters come from Sony music.... so does Sony as a whole support SOPA?

John Smedley's Facebook page features the following:

John Smedley added a new photo.

So if you're foolish enough to believe that Sony Music has 3x supporters and thus the whole of Sony, including SOE, supports SOPA, then I will be foolish enough to believe that because SOE CEO's private FB page indicates he's against it, that SOE itself - and thus the whole of Sony - is against SOPA.

It appears, sir, that we are at an impasse. Fisticuffs at dawn?

[Neurotoxin]

Originally Posted by Firefly

So if you're foolish enough to believe that Sony Music has 3x supporters and thus the whole of Sony, including SOE, supports SOPA, then I will be foolish enough to believe that because SOE CEO's private FB page indicates he's against it, that SOE itself - and thus the whole of Sony - is against SOPA.

So then its the whole "Sony" part that makes it confusing.

I'm glad to know that SOE is on the right side of the struggle, but it just seems to me like a conflict of interest underneath the Sony umbrella for Music divisions to support it and the Games division to reject it.

So if I'm punching you with one hand and calling an ambulance with the other hand... aww forget it. Corporate bureaucracy is a big nasty beast. Good for SOE to be against it these bills!

[Kran De Loy]

Originally Posted by Neurotoxin

Hey whoa there buddy. Don't fall into the Gingrich-style mentality of using "Socialism" as a code word for a fascist dictatorship or right-wing nationalist worker party. He doesn't even know what Socialism is, especially because there are many different forms and versions of it. There is no excuse for that kind of ignorance, though I can say that the Smith Act and McCarthyism scared Socialism/Communism out of the US public and made them seem like dangerous dirty words that will summon the Political Boogeyman, and so thinking that "Socialism" is the enemy of "Democracy" has been part of US culture for a couple generations.

Unfortunately, yes. Well, mostly. Good thing that the younger people here (~20-40 I would guess) seem to be a bit more well informed.

Originally Posted by Neurotoxin

When I think "Socialism" I think of a properly direct democracy where everyone has a say in the political system, where everyone in the nation participates. Believe it or not, little old Cuba actually had 9 million of its 11 million population participated in a long (months to years long) national debate and decision to determine how private capitalism can be expanded in the country. If we had THAT kind of Socialism, the debate about what to do about online piracy would be open to full national participation, not left to be decided and forced upon us by a few key industries and the corporate-sponsored government.

Dude, that's a Republic. Socialism... mostly I'd say it's common understanding here is as a term indicating the level of interference that government places on the day to day lives of it's people. Far less than the absolute control of a communist state, but still in the same vein of Government having too much control over it's people.

[Kalbuth]

Originally Posted by IDukeNukeml

First of all, you sound like you are pro-socialism and that alone spits in the face of every american ever created.

Wow, explains a lot about the will of censorship as seen in US ....

[Warborn]

Oh fuck it. Anyway, what was this thread about again? Oh yeah. Stop fucking things up for the rest of the world, American politicians. Thanks in advance.

[Kran De Loy]

So, flipping through the channels I see a piece of news on some channel I forgot what about Mega Upload being charged by the US for piracy. Total segment was less than 30 seconds long.

Look it up now on the PC and I find,
http://torrentfreak.com/megaupload-shut-down-120119/

Two corporations – Megaupload Limited and Vestor Limited – were indicted by a grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia on January 5th, 2012, and charged with “engaging in a racketeering conspiracy, conspiring to commit copyright infringement, conspiring to commit money laundering and two substantive counts of criminal copyright infringement.

According to the Department of Justice, the individuals named in the indictment face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on the charge of conspiracy to commit racketeering, five years in prison on the charge of conspiracy to commit copyright infringement, 20 years in prison on the charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering and five years in prison on each of the substantive charges of criminal copyright infringement.

So PIPA and SOPA still haven't even left the big white building and yet some this still happens?

Edit: WTH?
--Deleted a section of my post--

BTW: More concrete details:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16642369

Edit 2: My brother just had me look up Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). All I can say is holy shit.

[Kalbuth]

Yes, ACTA is the next fight, incoming Jan 26th in EU parliament
See here : http://www.laquadrature.net/en/acta-...ment-committee

[Forsaken One]

Hey guys, guess what? now to add to ACTA, SOPA, and PIPA. theres a new one in town called OPEN. lol. here

http://www.infowars.com/sopa-and-pip...ll-joins-them/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_...ital_Trade_Act

[Crator]

And the fight goes on :|

[VioletZero]

Thankfully, OPEN isn't AS bad as SOPA was, but it's up there.

But ACTA is the worst of them all. And its gets better, it has the highest chance of getting passed.

[Kalbuth]

Watch the painfully obvious ACTA vote live here : http://www.europarl.europa.eu/ep-liv...I&vodtype=Live
Live right now...

[Vash02]

http://youtu.be/Tw3DjJJhEjM
Oh bugger noes!