SOPA and PIPA Are Stalking Horses for Silencing the Powerful Voice of Democracy

MARK KARLIN, EDITOR OF BUZZFLASH AT TRUTHOUT

All you need to know about SOPA and PIPA are that they are intentionally harmless-sounding acronyms that would further encroach on the informational freedom of the Internet.

Yesterday, BuzzFlash at Truthout wrote a commentary on the growing transfer of our constitutional rights to the executive branch and the military. One of the last bastions against such a consolidation of power is the openness of ideas, reporting and networking on the Internet.

It is easy to argue, as do some supporters in Congress, that SOPA (the Stop Online Piracy Act) and PIPA (the Protection IP Act) are necessary to protect copyright. Like the erosion of our civil liberties, however, SOPA and PIPA are also more menacing steps in "policing the Internet."

As "CBS News" describes the bills:

There are already laws that protect copyrighted material, including the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). But while the DMCA focuses on removing specific, unauthorized content from the Internet, SOPA and PIPA instead target the platform - that is, the site hosting the unauthorized content.

The bills would give the Justice Department the power to go after foreign web sites willfully committing or facilitating intellectual property theft - "rogue" sites like The Pirate Bay. The government would be able to force US-based companies, like Internet service providers, credit card companies and online advertisers, to cut off ties with those sites.

What we are seeing is a cumulative legal assault to consolidate the Internet under the control of corporations by empowering the government to intervene in the web without due process. An article from "ColorLines" reposted on Truthout states it more bluntly:

If you create or consume content on the Internet, under SOPA the government would have the power to pull the plug on your website. If you're a casual consumer, your favorite websites could be penalized and shut down if they seem to be illegally supporting copyrighted material.

This is especially important for human rights groups and advocates in communities of color, who could faced increased censorship if the bill is passed. The language of the bill makes it easy for the US Attorney General to go after web sites it simply sees as a threat.

The Internet has become virtually the sole source of uncensored information and opinion that reaches the entire world - and a technological worldwide network of people, who can instantly communicate with each other about personal and political issues. As such, it poses more than a copyright threat to the status quo.

SOPA and PIPA are stalking horses for silencing the powerful voice of democracy that is just a click away.