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I have read them. Why? Because this is right in my field (I'm in network security, and a lot of the work if something like this were to pass would fall to people like me to architect, implement, interpret, etc.).
I've already explained to you exactly what this bill means. That you choose to ignore it means that you don't want to hear a conflicting statement, you just want to put your fingers in your ears.
What exactly do you find troublesome in those bills?
President Obama could face an anti-SOPA backlash from some of his traditional backers in Hollywood over his administration's stance on the controversial anti-piracy bills that have sparked a massive online protest.
Two senior entertainment executives and Obama donors, who declined to speak on the record, said they would not give the president's reelection effort further financial support because of his opposition to key parts of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA).
Yup, Hollywood is cutting off the spigot, and cancelling their appearances at Michelle's fundraisers.
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The boycott even extends to many of the moguls’ families who also are big Obama and Democratic Party donors. The situation is serious because many moguls and/or their families comprise Obama’s top bundlers in the TV/movie/music biz. Bundlers as defined by opensecrets.org as “people with friends in high places who, after bumping against personal contribution limits, turn to those friends, associates, and, well, anyone who’s willing to give, and deliver the checks to the candidate in one big ‘bundle’.” These donors direct more money to the candidates than anyone else. As of September 2011 these 357 elite bundlers were directing at least $55,900,000 for Obama’s re-election efforts — money that has gone into the coffers of his campaign as well as the Democratic National Committee, according to opensecrets.org. That figure by now has significantly increased and will continue to do so.
SOPA will pass eventually, just not as it's written today.
And regarding the comments about artists who make "millions", do you realize what a tiny minority they are? The vast majority of content creators (musicians, writers, filmmakers, etc.) have very average incomes. They rely on sales of their work in order to make a living, and if they're successful, they employee others. Piracy and illegal downloading not only decreases their incomes, it makes it impossible for them to provide jobs for others.
Do you not understand that the generation preparing to take over, MY generation, has rarely been without internet access? Not to mention the thousands of younger ones behind me, some who depend on the internet for most things they do.
Do you REALLY think my generation will allow this? Some of the people I know that are my age are powerhouses in my community to STOP this.
OK I am going to confess something here. I am a thief. I am not a thief now but I used to be. I used bit torrent and Piratebay.net and I used to download songs. Mostly stuff from the 60s and 70s. So let's take the case of an artist that I swiped some music from, Neil Diamond. Piratebay did not SELL me anything nor did Bit Torrent. Neither of them asked for a dime from me ever. So you say it cost jobs. Who's job? Certainly not the Neil Diamond's job. He is still employed and doing pretty well. Since it was a download from a file server, their was not any physical labor involved in making the product as their would be for a CD or vinyl record sold in a store. So no job loss there. So the only 2 things left are the technicians, engineers, mixers and others that recorded the songs in the studio. But they already were paid so no job loss there. That only leaves the greedy record company executives who are leeches that live off the work of others. And I don't care about them.
Just because someone is not making money doesn't make it any less illegal. One of the original cases goes back to the early 90's or maybe even the late 80's where a bunch of college students were arrested for operating a BBS that offered software for free. Those were criminal charges becsue of the huge volume of material they were providing.
You can call the execs what you want but those people have invested money. Do you think every act they invest time and money in makes huge profits for them?
Do you think websites that offer music as pay for downloads don't employ people? Granted it's much smaller footprint that traditional sales of physical media. One of the reasons you don't see the job loss is because you're piggy backing off personal bandwidth, those costs are paid for by all consumers. There is also the maintenance and time involved of the people that are making these files available.
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In reality, not even Neil Diamond lost money here because I ALREADY paid for his songs on vinyl which I still own. I have every album he ever made. So I already have a "license" for the songs I stole. I just wanted them in digital form.
You're getting into a grey area because you legally have the right to make copies of the music you own, this was clarified in the Home Recording Act. It should be noted there is no such provision for video other than the Betamax case which allows you to record broadcasts for later viewing. A lot of these laws are becoming moot because of copy protection. The legality of making a copy becomes irrelevant because you need to break the encryption to produce a copy.
Something needs to be done to strengthen copyright laws. You do not have a Constitutionl right to free entertainment.
You don't have the Constitutional right to free entertainment, but you also do not have the Constitutional right to take your neighbors yard and force him to turn it into a minefield because someone who robbed your house ran through his yard while doing so.
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Originally Posted by AnUnidentifiedMale
SOPA will pass eventually, just not as it's written today.
Fat chance, and even if it does the first time its used it will ignite the mother of all legal battles since it basically seizes property without due process. Anyway I am glad my representative is dead set against this.
Last edited by Randomstudent; 01-18-2012 at 07:22 PM..
Many of these artists who are claiming to be losing so much money to online piracy are making some big assumtions. In fact, many are not losing sales at all. And may be gaining sales through the free exposure.
Say a friend tells me about a new band he's heard. I've never heard of them at all, but since I won't buy an album without hearing some of it first, I go to one of these sites and download a few songs. They have not lost a sale to me, because there was no sale to lose. They have gained some exposure and potential future sales, because if I like what I hear I will buy that album or maybe even the next. Even if I don't, they still have lost nothing because I would not have bought their album anyway.
They have also gained potential concert ticket sales. I may not buy their album, but if I like the music I am likely to go see them live. But I wouldn't if I hadn't heard those few pirated songs first.
SOPA is like trying to get rid of a rogue lion by roasting some kittens with a flamethrower. Copyright infringement is already illegal. Filesharing of copyrighted material is already illegal. The worst of it is that it forces a website to remove content based on unsupported allegations or they will lose money they legitimately earned through advertising. It will not have the effects which are the stated intention, it will have far reaching unintended consequences, and it is likely unconstitutional. It is horrible legislation at best.
What exactly do you find troublesome in those bills?
So that post you were able to read just fine, but the post I made to you that stated EXACTLY what was wrong with these bills, you have seemingly blocked from memory?
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Boycott Supporters of SOPA?
