Are we for or against the new internet bill?

[moltobene]

The bill is very vague and would be a legal nightmare..

[Doug]

It's not enough to stop using copyrighted images. Miami Beach 411 would have to filter all its content. No open forum, no links to other web pages that might or might not have approval for their material....It's a quagmire.

[Doug]

Do you know that the Church of Scientology copyrights certain of its words and phrases so it can prevent critics from discussing their religion? What's to stop the government from doing the same? It could virtually outlaw dissent.

[Catt]

Perhaps the execution wasn't tactful enough to gain widespread approval. This version may have been shot down, but I think this is not the last we've heard on the matter.

yeh for me that's kinda the whole point. the way this bill is written is indeed a legal and constitutional quagmire, with regard to our same ole same ole issue of free speech. And it shows little understanding of how the internet actually works, the ramifications it would cause, or how to appropriately protect intellectual property.

I support protecting intellectual property - but any bill with that intention HAS TO BE done in such a way that it doesn't destroy the entire internet, and eff up the general public globally. It seems like the Constitution is taking a back seat these days, to individual agendas - which i can't abide.

Get this crap shot down - and let them go educate themselves, and come back with something that will actually WORK. Until that time i'm not supporting this poorly written PoS.

[Christy]

I think the bill gives way too much power for government interference in the internet. The gov't can use existing copyright laws to go after those who violate the law. The gov't should instead have internet task forces to go after scammers like Monica Brown, spammers, people peddling child pornography. Sites like ours, wikipedia, and youtube allow free speech and we do a great job controlling inappropriate posts with our moderators. Do we really want to be like China with no useful internet sites? So I think Gus is going a great job, and our tax dollars could be better used funding education, giving aid to third world countries, and providing aid for needy people and homeless animals.

Honestly I think the Republican candidates want to get twitter and other sites shut down before they become useful tools to mobilize non-Republican supporters.

[Doug]

That's a good point, Christy. Sites like Facebook and Twitter are often used to coordinate government protests. How convenient it would be for the government to be able to shut them down under the pretext of protecting the public's creative interests. When someone wants to take your rights away, they never say they want to take your rights away. They usually claim that they're protecting you against some bogeyman, like child predators or drug cartels.

[rk]

It's not enough to stop using copyrighted images. Miami Beach 411 would have to filter all its content. No open forum, no links to other web pages that might or might not have approval for their material....It's a quagmire.

So you think if MB411 could not filter content it may have to shut down? I've never been member of a site that was banned by the Feds.

BTW, you could have made out well if you had only copyrighted monotemperatural and other words you invented.

[Doug]

So you think if MB411 could not filter content it may have to shut down? I've never been member of a site that was banned by the Feds.

BTW, you could have made out well if you had only copyrighted monotemperatural and other words you invented.

I'm just relaying what the news is reporting: under SOPA and PIPA, websites are responsible for filtering their content, and would be held responsible for any violations of copyright posted by their members. Shrugging it off by saying, "Oh, they probably wouldn't ever actually shut anything down" is a bit of a risky position to take.

[rk]

No, not shrugging it off. Just thinking it will be interesting.

[Doug]

There's a lot of weird stuff that's been bandied about in government circles lately. This....the indefinite detention bill...

[coach]

I find it interesting, particularly here in Miami and Miami Beach. SOPA is based around the idea of punishing the innocent to get to the guilty. Lots of innocent people are going to suffer because some people steal stuff on the internet. So, almost everybody is against SOPA.

This is the same principle being applied to Urban Beach Weekend here in Miami Beach. A few of the attendees (a very small percentage) misbehave, so people want to shut the whole thing down, punishing those who do nothing wrong. But, almost everybody is in favor of that. It's an interesting juxtaposition and one people should really consider.

The other thing I find interesting is that this would not even be an issue if people would stop stealing stuff in the internet. I realize there are always going to be criminals, but internet theft is far more rampant. People who would never go into someone home and take their credenza will happily go downloading music, images and video that they do not pay for. How many of these rabid anti-SOPA people on Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and all over the web have actually stolen stuff on the internet, I wonder?

[Doug]

I can see the danger in a site like the old Napster, but what's the harm in finding an old clip like a 1969 interview on "The Mike Douglas Show" that nobody would actually go out and buy? Sites like youtube provide an invaluable repository of knowledge, like a library, that having access to enriches our collective existence. As long as nobody's making a buck off something at someone else's expense, so what if we share this kind of stuff?

[Catt]

coach i take your point about the similarity and i agree with the principle - but it seems to me that it's more than just a 'few' at Urban Beach weekend who cause the trouble. And, even if it's a relatively small amount of trouble, it's a VERY dangerous kind of trouble; regardless that it's not the majority doing it.

So imho, what goes on at UBW is more damaging, in actual reality, than the pirating of intellectual property -- there are no weapons involved in stealing music online, and it's not a crime that can harm or kill others on a crowded street.

[Catt]

"SOPA and PIPA dead – for now."

"House and Senate leaders abandoned plans to move on SOPA and PIPA on Friday — the surest sign yet that a wave of online protests have killed the controversial anti-piracy legislation for now and maybe forever.

SOPA sponsor Lamar Smith, the Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said his committee won’t take up the bill as planned next month — and that he’d have to “wait until there is wider agreement on a solution” before moving forward."


http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0112/71720.html

[coach]

Internet thievery causes an estimated 77 billion dollars in loss. (Someone might want to fact check me there, that's from memory.) As someone who makes a living from intellectual property, that's pretty damn dangerous.

And regardless of the danger, the principle is the same. It is not okay to punish innocent people for the crimes of the guilty.

Also, you might want to check your statistics. Look at the number of troublemakers during UBW vs the total number of attendees. Then, do the same for internet theft.

[Christy]

Of course I think that writers and photographers have rights to their original material. I doubt this bill is going to protect the freelance writers on this site. They'll be protecting large music and entertainment companies. Like Doug, I see youtube as a library with lots of great content, and it would be sad not to be able to access sites like that. We live in a democracy!

[Matt Meltzer]

Looks like the point is moot, since the bills in their present forms have failed.

Even had they passed, I think the bulk of the "punishment" would have been cease and desist letters. A whole site probably wouldn't get shut down unless it had summarily ignored the requests to have things removed.

[Michael Miller]

Looks like the point is moot, since the bills in their present forms have failed.

Even had they passed, I think the bulk of the "punishment" would have been cease and desist letters. A whole site probably wouldn't get shut down unless it had summarily ignored the requests to have things removed.

Not quite, it could have been much, much worse if these were to ever pass in any shape or form. I'm glad these are getting low balled now in a sense personally and Matt I like you however your perspective here and http://www.miamibeach411.com/news/for-sopa is completely off base... I mean I understand where your coming from in a sense as I myself even have some of my work and modifications re-distributed on sites where I never gave permission so seeing as how I've actually had work "stolen" much as music artists etc I feel that I have a right to speak out and say this isn't just about piracy. I strongly feel that you need to do quite a bit more reading on the subject so you don't sound like those in the House and Senate that currently have no clue what they are trying to pass, even someone on capital hill was quoted saying such and it's sad honestly to think that things like this may come to pass because a group of people feel their perspective and course of actions on the matter are more logical than another groups when stupid is just that, stupid.

Apparently we don't even need SOPA or PIPA... Why?
The United States Government seems to be able to extend it's long arm of the law overseas all the way to New Zealand so why try to go overboard with SOPA/PIPA?

http://www.neowin.net/news/megauploa...racy-shut-down
http://torrentfreak.com/megaupload-shut-down-120119/

Related http://www.neowin.net/news/anonymous...egaupload-news

Just my 2 cents, no refund needed :p.