Maybe this will fall on deaf ears, or maybe someone will actually take the time to read it.  Either way, as an entrepreneur working to advance technology and innovation, and as a “job creator,” I feel compelled to make this final plea.

As a business owner, I fully comprehend the intellectual property rights of US corporations, and I support their right to take action against infringing content.  I also believe that when presented with a dichotomy between unalienable human rights and the rights of corporations, human liberties must always prevail.  Anyone who disputes this need only look to a history book for evidence of why.

Why do we seem fated to repeat the same cycles, same patterns of thought, and same flawed ideologies?  Why is it that in our modern post-intellectualist society where we have made such dramatic leaps forward in technology, we still can’t seem to find the foresight or awareness to fully comprehend the consequences our actions will have?

By passing legislation that grants corporations unilateral power to remove content from the public internet, you are effectively creating a ticking time-bomb.  The effects may not be noticeable or significant at first, but as corporations continue to dismember the internet without due process, they will effectively censor, control, and fragment the last true forum we have for innovation.  Is that something we can afford to do?  Especially right now when our economy is only barely beginning to recover?

I would be sympathetic if any impartial party truly believed SOPA would mitigate piracy.  But there is no room for naiveté when you are dealing with legislation that has the potential to affect nearly 7 billion people.  The reality is that SOPA will have an insignificant effect on piracy at best, because the restrictions & blocks it looks to implement are so easily bypassed (hint: Google “bypass SOPA”–first result).  More importantly, it will–notice, will, this is not merely conjecture–have a catastrophic effect on the foundation and global infrastructure of the internet.

So I have to ask, what is the upside?  The corporations are granted unilateral authority to kill websites at will, yet having this ability will still do little to combat piracy.  If someone’s favorite warez site suddenly becomes inaccessible, how long do you think it will be before tutorials to configure Google DNS are spreading virally on Facebook and Twitter?

But overall, what I am most disappointed with is the blatant anti-intellectualism being displayed by the majority of our congress members and elected representatives.  Not only do they not understand or consider the appeals from technology experts that have been brought in to speak, but worst of all, they show no desire to learn.

Not understanding is forgivable; Having the opportunity to learn and consciously choosing ignorance is not.

But mostly, I’m tired…

I’m tired of rational logic consistently falling upon deaf ears…  I’m tired of the petty ideological finger-pointing that has become symbolic of American politics…  And most of all, I’m tired of watching this country systematically destroy and repeal the very rights our constitution was formed to protect.

Sincerely,

A Concerned Citizen and Job Creator

Help Fight SOPA »

Leave a Comment