I wanted to show you guys something. It’s going to look strange because the real MPAA site (where I got this content) is pulling their blog in an IFRAME. So… bear with me.
Article is here: http://blog.mpaa.org/BlogOS/post/2012/01/17/Senator-Dodd-On-Troubling-Developments-of-Blackout-Day-.aspx
Only days after the White House and chief sponsors of the legislation responded to the major concern expressed by opponents and then called for all parties to work cooperatively together, some technology business interests are resorting to stunts that punish their users or turn them into their corporate pawns, rather than coming to the table to find solutions to a problem that all now seem to agree is very real and damaging.
It is an irresponsible response and a disservice to people who rely on them for information and use their services. It is also an abuse of power given the freedoms these companies enjoy in the marketplace today. It’s a dangerous and troubling development when the platforms that serve as gateways to information intentionally skew the facts to incite their users in order to further their corporate interests.
A so-called “blackout” is yet another gimmick, albeit a dangerous one, designed to punish elected and administration officials who are working diligently to protect American jobs from foreign criminals. It is our hope that the White House and the Congress will call on those who intend to stage this “blackout” to stop the hyperbole and PR stunts and engage in meaningful efforts to combat piracy.
Chris Dodd (who is, in no way currently a senator, by the way) has the audacity to call out sites that blacked out today during the Anti-SOPA demonstrations. He calls it an “abuse of power”, saying there’s a lot of “PR stunts” happening.
So, let me get this straight, not-so-senator Dodd: A website doing whatever they please, hurting only their own bottom line and well-being, is a “PR stunt”… but giving yourselves the power to terminate someone else’s website’s access based on baseless accusations and assumed guilt… well that’s just fine.
Technology is advancing, and it is the entertainment industry that is being left in the dust. Bands are sidestepping the traditional label to go solo or independent with fantastic results. YouTube allows aspiring directors and movie producers to spread their words and message without the need for a traditional clearing house or publishing studio. Whereas the record labels used to control what was popular, now it is the American people (how else could Nickelback have gotten so good, I mean, really [and yes, that is a joke]).
Google collected 4.5 million signatures today. People are sick of corporations buying their congressmen, and the dissent is growing.
This next year will be an interesting one. But for now, Internet, enjoy a small victory and keep posting those pictures of cats. You earned it.
For tomorrow the revolution continues.
