Once in a while a cause comes along that you simply can’t ignore, and standing up against the threat to the Internet that SOPA and PIPA present is one of those causes.
ISPSD will be joining the January 18 Internet protest against the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA) by going “dark” for the day.
From 8 AM EST/5 AM PST to 8 PM EST/5 PM PST this Wednesday, ISPSD will publish no fresh content on our site or YouTube channel. This is our small way of protesting these proposed, over-reaching acts by the United States Congress which, if voted into law, could have a severe impact on the Internet as we know it today. If you are unfamiliar with what these bills could potentially do, we highly recommend reading This is SOPA. You Might Want to Protest It by our own Noah Kravitz. You can also learn about PIPA at the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
If you’re curious what you can do to join in the fight, here are a few ways to start:
- Contact your Senators and Representatives if you’re a U.S. citizen.
- If you’re active on any social networks, put out a message about SOPA/PIPA. Do everything you can to educate those people in your life who may not know what is happening. These acts have the potential to impact anyone who uses the Internet.
- Bloggers in particular could be hit hard by these laws, so writing a post on your own blog would certainly not be out of line. If you run a self-hosted WordPress blog, there are several SOPA-protest plugins available that will handle everything for you automatically if you’d like to join in that way.
- Write a letter to the editor of your local paper. Believe it or not, even in this day and age letters printed in newspapers are a trigger to action for many.
There is a lot you can do to protest SOPA and PIPA, and we encourage you to do so. ISPSD going dark for 12 hours is one way we can make our voice heard, and we hope you will make your voices heard as well.
What are your thoughts on SOPA and PIPA? Are you for or against them? Post Your Comments..
Fighting Against SOPA (Video)
Source: Technobuffalo