SOPA / Protect IP

I'll be posting links to videos where they apply. First one, right here, watch it before you read the blog post. (I'll be writing about it as well in case you can't play the video.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjrPuYLAIkk&feature=player_embedded

So, a few days ago I heard about a bill being rushed through the American Senate called Protect IP. Being Canadian, there's not much I can do, but what I can do is let you know what the bill is, and why America wants to pass it, and why it wouldn't be a good thing. (This is certainly biased, but not too many people are happy, so I'm clearly not the only one with this opinion.)

Essentially, SOPA / Protect IP is a bill that searches the entire internet for infringing stuff, like links to sites that have infringing content, sharing music, movies, books, games, even reviews of movies and books. And once it finds infringing content, it will block the site, or the owner of the site could be sued for the so-called "infringing content." And it won't just be in America, it'll be all over the world. It'll apply to any site ending in .com or .net, so you could just be happily typing away on your computer in Italy, or England, or even Germany, and all of a sudden you'd get an email saying your site, which probably has nothing to do with the conviction in question, has been shut down.

Not only is this tinkering with the core elements of the internet, but it could potentially destroy lives. People make money by reviewing products, linking to where you can buy them, whether it's good or bad. If this bill passes, you won't be able to get these reviews anymore, and therefore, a lot of people who make a living on being well-known (writers, actors, musicians, bloggers, etc), will have nothing to ground their work on. Sure, there are official advertisements, but let's be really honest here people - how many commercials do you actually pay any attention to?

For sure, America doesn't have control over all the web sites, like .co.uk, or .ws (English and German sites), but most sites up on the internet are registered in .com and .net. While America is busy assuming innocent people guilty and shutting them down for no reason, other countries in the world will be assuming control of the internet, and essentially taking the internet economy away. I know a lot of people would either visit Canadian sites, or just move here altogether. Personally, I wouldn't stay in America as long as I couldn't use the internet freely (it's also why I don't like China, and how they're monopolizing our manufacturing and trade industry).

So not only are American Senators shooting themselves in the foot by handing over their internet economy to other countries, but they're also going to lose billions of dollars worth in advertisements and promotions of their products, and they're going to lose thousands of jobs for their fellow Americans.

Come on, America. Why would you hand everything over to the entertainment industry? Some of those entertainers want people to promote and link to their stuff. Stop helping, you're going to destroy your own economy if you hand all control over to the recreational industry, because they will have about 70% less promotion than they used to, all from reviews and recommendations from other consumers. It'll be ten times harder to get rich, and it'll be ten times harder to keep from being poor, given that around 30% of jobs around America is purely recreational. A list of jobs that could be affected I came up with on the fly, in three minutes flat:

Radio show hosts
Talk show hosts
Actors
Writers
Bloggers
Artists (In the drawing sense)
Music Composers
Directors
Singers
Photographers
Wedding Planners
Chefs (This is a HUGE one, and I'll cover it in a second, I'm not done.)
Car Dealers
Theatres
TV shows
Antique Stores
Jewellers
Video Game Producers
Cell Phone Providers
Real Estate Agents

And that's just a small list. There are many more jobs that could be affected, and all of the jobs up there have something in common - they are all advertised on the internet, everywhere, by everyone. And for certain, they're all really important jobs (who doesn't enjoy buying their first car, or buying their first house, or getting married?), but the most important one I think on this list is the chef, and if chefs can't be promoted, they can't provide their tasty dishes to you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go_QOzc79Uc

Chefs are a big one of this list because of the food industry everywhere around the world, and if they can't be promoted, they can't help fix the problem of obesity. Like Jamie Oliver, he's trying to get people to eat healthy. And he's using the internet to his advantage, and like he says in the video, "America is the most influential country in the world. I believe if America reforms the way they eat, other countries will follow."

So, I think I've made my point. Virtually everyone will be affected, mostly in a bad way (unless you don't use the internet, then it doesn't matter).

What do you think about the bill? Why would/wouldn't it work for you, and for your loved ones? Comments below.

P.S. If you feel like me and you don't want it to happen, I'll link to some petitions for the big call-in on Tuesday, and one of the Senators is going to filibsuter the Congress.

http://americancensorship.org/index.html#infographic

http://stopcensorship.org/?source=fb

http://fightforthefuture.org/pipa/artists/