Now that SOPA has been shelved, is Reddit still going to participate in the blackout on the 18th?

farmersam · 4 months

Probably, because what this guy says is probably right:

Do not take this concession as a victory! This is an old trick. Please spread the word and call them out repeatedly. 1: Make crazy offer (SOPA) 2: Client rejects crazy offer (us) 3: Make a "reasonable" offer (PIPA) 4: Client accepts offer because it seems reasonable compared to crazy offer. Don't let up.

hueypriest · 4 months

Yes. Senator Reid made it clear in an interview Sunday that Protect IP is still going forward in the Senate. We should be encouraged by recent developments, but this fight is far from over.

jakotheshadows · 4 months

PIPA hasn't been shelved yet, so I say the blackout should still happen. Hell, even if both got shelved I would still say carrying out the blackout would be a good idea. It would just serve to further highlight how dangerous and all-encompassing these types of legislation are. I think that the blackout would raise awareness particularly in people who might not be paying attention to the news as much. For this reason, I think that the blackout would make it that much harder for the government to justify bringing this type of legislature back onto the floor in the near future.

CheesesOfNazareth · 4 months

If opposition lets up SOPA will just get slipped in to the next military appropriations bill as an amendment. That's what Congress does routinely because almost no one votes against military appropriations bills.

tdov · 4 months

The blackout absolutely must go on. Halting the blackout because SOPA is probably dead, while PIPA is still going forward, sends a terrible message: that we're not in support of SOPA, but we're perfectly fine with a slight modification of it.

raskolnikov- · 4 months

How about you turn your attention to copyright reform? The law ALREADY is draconian. If you want to make the world a better place, focus on solving problems, not just repeating headlines on the current hot button issues.

Here is why copyright is already awful, and why you should be concerned:

When you sue someone for a copyright violation, you are entitled to statutory damages which bear no relation to the harm caused. You can be liable for $150,000 for willfully downloading one song. This makes asserting your rights, like the fair use defense, and actually litigating against the copyright holder, insane. Best to just settle -- you can't afford to lose. This regime gives way too much power to copyright holders. Beyond that, copyrights last too long. Nobody should be entitled to income for 70 years after their death. That hurts the public and it only benefits layabouts and leeching corporations that do nothing other than hold copyrights. Far less restrictive means could sufficiently encourage content production.

So yes, pressure the government on SOPA, but also pressure them on the laws that already exist, and shouldn't.

el_cheato · 4 months

They could be lying. They're politicians, it's what they do.

comment_filibuster · 4 months

I agree, PIPA and ACTA should replace SOPA on the 18th. Remember, ACTA...

PabstyLoudmouth · 4 months

Shelved means they can bring it back to the table at anytime. Keep fighting folks, it is working, but don't stop now. Maybe my favorite quote will keep you inspired.

"Crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentations of their women." -Conan The Barbarian.

OpenThirdEye · 4 months

PIPA is still bopping around the Senate. I prefer to think that SOPA has been "delayed" if nothing else.

It'll rear its ugly head again - I say keep the blackout in place!

mindglitch · 4 months

*Ctrl+F "SOPA", replace "PIPA"

henry82 · 4 months

Lets just do it anyway, might get some work done :(

lanceicarus · 4 months

PIPA is still out in full force and there's nothing to say SOPA won't ever reemerge, so the fight is never over to keep the Internet free.

Great_Gig_In_The_Sky · 4 months

PLEASE DON'T MAKE ME GO OUTSIDE

unsensible · 4 months

This isn't over yet, they want us to think we've won and that we'll forget about it and PIPA. We have to remain steadfast, and continue pressuring them to stop trying to pass this type of legislation.

MusicMissionary · 4 months

When you got a man by the balls don't let up for a better grip.

HireALLTheThings · 4 months

If they don't, it's going to make us (and other sites participating) look like we aren't serious. Moreover, PIPA hasn't been shelved yet, so the battle is only half-over, and the war doesn't end until SOPA AND PIPA are both scrapped entirely.

shadowslayer978 · 4 months

These blackouts need to still happen.The world needs to understand the dangers of internet censorship, and a show of force such as an internet blackout is the best way to do it. SOPA/PIPA aren't the first bills aimed at censoring the internet, and they certainly won't be the last. The world needs to see what internet censorship means so that everyone remains vigilant enough to fight these kinds of bills in the future.

random_digital · 4 months

SOPA down, PIPA next and then I think this momentum should be used towards copyright/patent reform. Don't stop now.

immortalagain · 4 months

shelved like infinite denention was? the protest must go on

Sevii · 4 months

The blackout should continue.

Hand-on-Dans-Man · 4 months

They don't want global, mainstream attention on the contents of the bill, so they've shelved it for now because it was getting too much attention.

That's the exacts reason to go ahead with it. They know if people were aware of it they'd never be able to get it through. And they know Wikipedia and Reddit going dark would make worldwide news.

Once the mass of people know what they're trying to do, it's over. So they're going to do it quietly, like NDAA. When your guard is down and you've no time to mount a defensive. Go on the offensive and force the issiue.

Jaboomaphoo · 4 months

Protect IP still exists. The blackout moves forward

akpak · 4 months

Keep the blackout. The fight is NOT over.

deeptime · 4 months

Shelved does not mean dead. They did the exact same thing with NDAA, before rescheduling a vote!

mileylols · 4 months

"Can't turn back now, I'm haunted." ~ Taylor Swift

banderwocky · 4 months

It's been shelved. Not killed. Also, PIPA is still there.

epsd101 · 4 months

Yes, definitely - I confirmed this with Reddit GM Erik Martin (hueypriest) this morning.

EDIT: He also confirmed so here.

DjKaiserCharles444 · 4 months

I was going to ask the same but I say do it anyway. People need to know how serious this was and also that way it won't happen in the future.

kyleyorkke · 4 months

It absolutely should. Shelving legislation is just a way to get it out of the public eye. A lot of environmental (or, I should say, anti-enviornmental) legislation is passed this way. Shelve it. Wait for the public to forget. Pass something very similar to what they were protesting in the first place.

goldenrod · 4 months

Just because it's shelved does NOT mean it's gone. They'll try again.

Cmrade_Dorian · 4 months

Just change it to say its protesting both SOPA & PIPA

Raijer · 4 months

PIPA is the new SOPA

taniquetil · 4 months

This absolutely must move forward (sorry, working Redditors), because demonstrating that we are willing to stand back and activism because the government is giving us an "only-marginally-less-shitty" offer is not a good idea.

For this to succeed we must be full steam ahead until Congress stops trying to fuck with the internet as we know it.

Normally, I'm not really the activist type, but when Google, Yahoo, Facebook, and eBay (and to some extent Microsoft and Apple) come together and agree that a piece of legislation is bad, I vote that we listen to them.

k9pyro · 4 months

To parrot the rest so far, it should. Any attempts to control the internet, especially by politicians who have proven they don't understand even the fundamental concepts of the internet industry (not to mention the 'series of tubes' moment), should be resisted. SOPA and PIPA should be removed from consideration, and should be treated as laughing-stock legislation for decades to come.

"Can you believe Congress tried to pass THAT?! hahahaha!"

cryonine · 4 months

Even if both PIPA and SOPA are shelved, the 18th should still happen across the internet but the general message should be changed. This should have never been about a singular bill having an impact; it should be about the impact tampering with any form of freedom the internet gives. People often forget what they have until they lose it, and honestly this should be a yearly movement.

topapito · 4 months

SOPA must be eliminated completely. If they can have this kid from England extradited for the same shit, why do they need SOPA?

binksy92 · 4 months

I vote yes

J-TEE · 4 months

Of Course. PIPA still exists

gusssy · 4 months

I've got an exam on the 19th, so yeah, go ahead!

L-dubz · 4 months

It shoud because that is the first day of classes for me.

noagendaproducer · 4 months

Turns out that SOPA has NOT been killed. Apparently calls have been made to the representatives office and apparently they are going to continue working on the bill in hopes of coming up with something that isn't so bad. So the fight is still on!

Incoherentrant · 4 months

I think so, even if it was publicly announced that SOPA is a bad bill and will never be passed by everyone that currently endorses it, it is still important to blackout. Here is my reasoning...

Despite us here at Reddit and other sites, knowing about it, literally NO ONE outside know a thing about it. Try it ask around to non internet friendly or redditors. I would argue us average American goes to work, love our families, and only concerns ourselves in the political process when something we interact with is directly threatened.

Because of how most average Americans use the internet, most couldn't be aware of it. Facebook hasn't said anything, CNN and Fox News haven't posted many if any stories on the topic...and they don't say anything about it on the TV or in mainstream papers.

If this gets shelved without a blackout, what will happen is the local papers will put a small blurb on page 37 in the corner of the paper, saying "Bill failed to get required votes. XXX Bills Passes...blahblahrant about other bill." And that will be the end of it. Know one will be any more enlightened on what Congress and Hollywood still want to pass in one form or another in the future. Giving them the opportunity to readdress how they need to get this bill passed. Probably by including provisions slowly through other widely accepted bills, until eventually all the requirements are in place to enforce what and how they want on the internet.

The Blackout needs to be big, and coordinated. It needs people talking about what is going on. It needs people to understand this is a big issue, so when you bring it up, people aren't staring blankly at you wondering what the hell you are talking about. The Blackout needs to mention how important it is to care and discuss this regardless what is said by our Congressmen and Congresswomen.

acangiano · 4 months

YES!

viticuss · 4 months

If redditors actually read things, we would know that both PIPA and SOPA are dead in the water.

leafeator · 4 months

I was wondering the same thing. I support still going with a blackout to stir the media pot and spread the word more about this whole event.

vsync · 4 months

Has PIPA been shelved yet?

Have all the legislators that supported either of these been run out of office yet?

chunchuck2000 · 4 months

short answer : yes

long answer : fuck yes

BiGirl1 · 4 months

Dont fall for this! They are not gonna just shelf this!

emerald232 · 4 months

They put it on the shelf and then bring it back when everyone is preoccupied with something else ... like war with Iran or something of that nature and then pass it. Don't give up the fight now. This is just the first quarter!

vivvav · 4 months

SOPA's been shelved? That mean postponed again?

GhostedAccount · 4 months

SOPA is not shelved, it has only been rescheduled to a TBD future date.

JTIEMO · 4 months

We didn't stop boycotting godaddy when they "dropped" their support for SOPA. We shouldn't stop fighting SOPA and the idea behind it just because it was shelved.

MedeaDemonblood · 4 months

Still do the blackout for PIPA, ACTA and NDAA.

jumpyspinnything · 4 months

Who's Pipa? She sounds hot!

Goggles2114 · 4 months

The thret exists, no matter how slim. Let's pull the plug on the web. Show the hill rats what happens if they try anything like this again.

No not throw a hissy fit. I mean pull the plug and show the Joe Average voters that haven't been in the loop due to it getting no TV coverage what will happen.

viwrastupr · 4 months

They still should.

With public ignorance on their side it is only a matter of time before a law like this gets pushed through. What about the next republican administration? Do you think they'll be nearly this kind? And shelved is hardly forgotten. They can wait till the public is distracted by something else and push it through. Its not like it was even partisan in the first place. They can tack it on to some other bill, rename it something even more opposite to what it does, make it a hollywood fight, tell seniors that the internet is stealing, do one of a thousand things to get support.

As an earlier reddit post pointed out. It is no longer ok for these old bastards to not know how the internet works. We need to show them and the public at large the consequences of their actions, and inspire other sites to do the same.

shewhisperedtome · 4 months

the battle is won but the war continues...stay vigilant!

theantirobot · 4 months

Let it be an Internet holiday for the purpose of encouraging civic engagement.

Brodecahedron · 4 months

Still should happen.

pompousjohn · 4 months

Not only that but we also need to remove the people who tried to remove our freedom from office. Let's not forget who's on their way out of office.

knut01 · 4 months

DON'T LET THIS DROP, REDDITORS!

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