SOPA/PIPA POSTPONED

[fannishliss]

Hey guys, I thought I'd share with you what the more awesome of my two Senators passed along by email this afternoon:

Dear Dr. [Fannishliss]:

Knowing of your recent interest in the PROTECT IP Act (S. 938), I am writing to update you on the status of this bill. 

I am happy that the Senate will not vote on this bill in the coming days.  While illegal downloading of movies, TV shows and music is a serious issue, the solution can't be worse than the problem.  Any efforts to strengthen the protection of copyrighted materials must be well planned, avoid unintended consequences, and must not stifle free speech or innovation. 

I will not vote for the PROTECT IP Act in its current form. I believe in the Constitution and free speech.  Congress needs to go back to the drawing board to fix the problems with the bill. 

Knowing of your views is helpful to me, and I will keep them in mind as Congress continues to debate this issue.

Thanks once again for writing.  Please let me know if I can be of assistance in the future.

Sincerely,
Barbara A. Mikulski
United States Senator

Preach it Babs!!!

So I guess that means I do not need to spend all next week calling them?

This idea of selectively boycotting the egregious supporters of SOPA/PIPA has appeal.  A selective boycott has more teeth.  Friend digitalwave  also suggests that we spend March patronizing independent musicians.  I think I smell a meme coming on -- we should spend March trying to recommend indie artists.  I hope CD Baby is not on the list of SOPA offenders???

Comments

[yumimum.livejournal.com]

Excuse me while I break out my happy dance...

[fannishliss.livejournal.com]

that is indeed a very happy dance. :D

[azephirin.livejournal.com]

Aw, man! I wrote to Babs and Ben too but didn't get a response. WOE.

I would definitely rather spend March patronizing independents (authors, musicians, filmmakers, etc.). Here are two independent labels I like: Deep Elm, which features a breathtaking variety of artists and gives away a ton of free music (along with having very reasonable prices), and Asthmatic Kitty, Sufjan Stevens's label, which has all kinds of interesting stuff.

[fannishliss.livejournal.com]

ooh awesome... i think an indie meme would really bring some awesome recs out of the woodwork!

btw, I very much enjoyed your mix Cd -- yours is made and ready for my eventual trip to the PO. I am terrible at January.

[azephirin.livejournal.com]

Another indie rec while I'm catching up on belated correspondence: Noisetrade. You download, you listen, you give $ if you like, artist gets $, all completely legal. Because it's kind of the musical equivalent of a fanfic archive (but with donations), there's some dross to wade through (as well as a lot of preachy Christian music that is not always clearly labelled as such), but there are a lot of gems as well, enough to make wading through the dross worthwhile.

In the horrifying event that I did not thank you for your CD, THANK YOU! I especially loved the liner notes! Some new things by familiar artists, and some artists who were completely new to me. I loved it!

[tahirire.livejournal.com]

I also like roguebitch's suggestion to fund public libraries - they often carry music and movies and they could use our help.

[fannishliss.livejournal.com]

Yes, this is definitely a good suggestion. I get a lot of movies from the libraries, since I don't have a netflix account..... especially since there is almost no one in any of the Big Media who aren't supporting SOPA.

[datenshiblue.livejournal.com]

Um, I did not suggest that. You're giving me someone else's credit, though it's a cool idea.

I guess I just have one of those faces?

[fannishliss.livejournal.com]

oops, was it digitalwave?

people who begin with the same letter.... I am so easily confused. :P

[davincis-girl.livejournal.com]

Great post!

[fannishliss.livejournal.com]

thanks!