Some websites will go dark today in protest of SOPA.
SOPA is a bill working its way through Congress which could lead to censorship of the internet regardless of its original intent.
The intent is to put a stop to piracy of content. Movies, music, entertainment in general has been a prime target for online piracy. Foreign countries have, for years, been grabbing this stuff and selling it overseas thus robbing American artists and industries of profits.
I think we can all agree that those products should be protected- but SOPA, according to its critics, goes way too far.
The problem is in the language of the bill. “Search Engines” is a VERY broad term and one that is prominent in the SOPA bill.
We could go into great and confusing detail over the legal language and the possible meanings of it – and other sites have done that – but there is something much more basic which should be said.
With this bill, SOPA, and it’s somewhat less intrusive Senate Bill, PIPA, the internet would become, either in small or large part, regulated by Congress.
That should not be allowed to happen.
