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Scott Anderson
United States
Casper
Wyoming
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THE WEEKEND GAMER (#3)
The part where I rant about something . . .
As I started working on this column last week, it was going to be a summary of H.R. 3261 and S. 968 - more commonly known as SOPA and PIPA. I was going to fill you with plenty of informative links and a call to action. But as the week went on, opponents of the bills won some minor victories... and then some major victories!
As it stands now, both SOPA and PIPA are shelved. The bills’ upcoming votes have been cancelled and even some legislators who were recently supporters of the bills are calling for substantial discussions and revisions before letting the bills get back to the table.
The internet-wide blackouts were obviously very influential and successful. Following the blackouts (by websites such as Wikipedia, Reddit and many others) no less than 19 senators voiced their opposition to PIPA, 7 of whom were formerly co-sponsors of the bill. Check out this impressive image from ProPublica that gives a pretty good impression of just what can be accomplished when people (along with prominent companies) take a stance.
Hollywood got a little pissed. Chris Dodd (former U.S. Senator and current lobbyist/head of the Motion Picture Association of America) released a statement calling the blackouts an irresponsible, dangerous gimmick and an abuse of power. On the bright side, Mr. Dodd’s statement inspired the entertaining ‘Tweet of the Week’ below!
One of the most disheartening aspects of this issue for me has been the fact that the Entertainment Software Association was one of the bills’ sponsors, despite the fact that many of its member organizations had voiced opposition. Penny Arcade took a pretty strong stance against the ESA for their position, and I especially appreciated last Friday’s comic:
Extra Credits, which is broadcast on Penny Arcade’s PATV, even posted a video urging the gaming community to boycott E3 unless the ESA changes its stance. It worked! (at least to some degree) -- The ESA released the following statement on Friday:
the Entertainment Software Association wrote: From the beginning, ESA has been committed to the passage of balanced legislation to address the illegal theft of intellectual property found on foreign rogue sites. Although the need to address this pervasive threat to our industry's creative investment remains, concerns have been expressed about unintended consequences stemming from the current legislative proposals.
Accordingly, we call upon Congress, the Obama Administration, and stakeholders to refocus their energies on producing a solution that effectively balances both creative and technology interests. As an industry of innovators and creators, we understand the importance of both technological innovation and content protection and are committed to working with all parties to encourage a balanced solution.
It isn’t exactly a total change of stance... The ESA clearly still wants some sort of legislation to be passed (once some revisions have been made). We can claim some victorious battles, but the war still isn’t over. Both bills still have support in Congress. If SOPA and PIPA do not survive, there is still a high possibility - if not probability - that they will be resurrected under different names.
So the call to action is still necessary. If you are in the United States, you can contact your representatives at one of the following links:
If you are not in the U.S., you can contact companies that support SOPA and PIPA and voice your concerns -- and keep in mind that many other countries are considering similar legislation!
We’ve got time to catch our breath, but the fight isn’t over yet...
Snippets and Tidbits . . .
Tweet of the Week: courtesy of @beach_fox
”Beach Fox” wrote: MPAA calls the Internet going dark in protest of SOPA "An abuse of power". In related news, the Eye of Sauron accuses Hobbits of terrorism.
Video of the Week: (not actually posted in the last week, but timely nonetheless...)
What I played last week: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Trine 2.
Parting thought: "The Internet is becoming the town square for the global village of tomorrow." -- Bill Gates
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