As you travel the net, tomorrow, you might notice that some of your favorite websites are inaccessible.
The reason is simple, some websites are Going Dark, to protest Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA). I’ve read about these two bills last year, and over the past few months the outrage amongst those not wishing to be silenced has picked up momentum.
Although written about a month ago, 1st Webdesigner Foundation has written a great article about SOPA/PIPA and how it can affect you.
Several of the big name tech companies like Wikipedia, Boing Boing, Reddit, and Google are joining in the protest…
“Like many businesses, entrepreneurs, and Web users, we oppose these bills because there are smart, targeted ways to shut down foreign rogue Web sites without asking American companies to censor the Internet,” a Google representative said. “So tomorrow we will be joining many other tech companies to highlight this issue on our U.S. home page.”
In response to questions about how the protest link would be displayed on the page, all Google would say is that the link would not replace the company logo.
The White House has spoke out against SOPA
Right now, Congress is debating a few pieces of legislation concerning the very real issue of online piracy, including the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), the PROTECT IP Act and the Online Protection and Digital ENforcement Act (OPEN). We want to take this opportunity to tell you what the Administration will support—and what we will not support. Any effective legislation should reflect a wide range of stakeholders, including everyone from content creators to the engineers that build and maintain the infrastructure of the Internet.
While we believe that online piracy by foreign websites is a serious problem that requires a serious legislative response, we will not support legislation that reduces freedom of expression, increases cybersecurity risk, or undermines the dynamic, innovative global Internet.
Any effort to combat online piracy must guard against the risk of online censorship of lawful activity and must not inhibit innovation by our dynamic businesses large and small.
Last week, I read about a protest that’s been scheduled for Wednesday, 01/18/12. Perhaps some of the politicians who’re trying to pass this bill don’t care too much about some websites going dark. I do believe some of them will care if their constituents start calling them complaining about the bill that they read about online, and so I’ll be participating. Go Dark, is the Word Press Plugin I’ll be using to join the protest against SOPA/PIPA.
References
- CNET: Google will protest SOPA using popular homepage
- The White House: We the People
- ABC news: ‘Wikipedia Blackout’, SOPA and PIPA explained
Photo Source: XBMC