Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA • Hacker News Board

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#181

Post by Karunamon » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 1:48 PM UTC

sriramk wrote: post #136

Karunamon wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Encyclopedias should not just switch off for political reasons. Characterizing this as a "political reason" does a huge disservice to what the events of the 18th are all about. This "political reason" has the potential to ruin the internet forever . The point of the blackout is to give people a taste of what could happen under SOPA/PIPA/etc. And get them to call their representatives, and get the word out. Reddit an…

There are a lot of political issues that could ruin the internet forever. The example I've been throwing out in this thread - nuclear weapons. Could destroy all of humanity. Does Wikipedia step in to get all countries to destroy nuclear weapons? How bad does some political issue have to be for Wikipedia to get involved? And note that SOPA is far down on the list of "universally thought of as evil for all humanity" th…

Nuclear weapons are not an immediate threat to the internet and Wikipedia's existence. SOPA/PIPA is.

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#182

Post by notahacker » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 2:05 PM UTC

sequoia wrote: post #111

mduerksen wrote: post #100

The train has been stopped, but it's still on track. Time to push it into the other direction and maybe even let it derail spectaculously. But there is more needed than raising awareness with this blackout. This awareness should be exploited (in a good way) appropriately. - We as those that do understand the issue have the responsibility to explain the problem to the majority. I still find it very difficult to effect…

"The USA still is the most influential country in the world, and this fight is international, just as the web is international." As a US citizen, I didn't want to be the one to say this (in response to e.g. https://twitter.com/#!/foxhuntingx/statuses/1589645062094274... ) because it might sound arrogant, but seriously, Herr Duerksen is correct: People in Australia, UK, and other non-US places affected by the en.wikip…

It's not about whether it would affect us, it's about we can affect it. Speaking as a Brit, I can't wait for Wikipedia's advice on how to contact my local Congressional delegation.

(Footnote: Wikipedia points out that 55% of people supporting a blackout wanted it to be global, and its true this option had the plurality of votes. It's also true that the majority of people participating voted for something less than a global blackout. Not sure it would have been the Concordcet winner!)

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#183

Post by YetAnotherAlias » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 2:52 PM UTC

maeon3 wrote: post #10

Last week I said I would donate money to wikipedia if they did this. I just donated $50 just now via credit card through the main page.

I made an additional donation to Wikipedia because of their stand on this issue.

Seth Godin was right when he said "If the user supports it, she owns it. If support comes from anonymous government money, or some corporate sponsorship, then the interactions don't matter so much, and it's more distant from you." I have never felt closer to Wikipedia than today.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2010/12/who-owns-wik....

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#184

Post by sequoia » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 3:01 PM UTC

notahacker wrote: post #182

sequoia wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"The USA still is the most influential country in the world, and this fight is international, just as the web is international." As a US citizen, I didn't want to be the one to say this (in response to e.g. https://twitter.com/#!/foxhuntingx/statuses/1589645062094274... ) because it might sound arrogant, but seriously, Herr Duerksen is correct: People in Australia, UK, and other non-US places affected by the en.wikip…

It's not about whether it would affect us, it's about we can affect it. Speaking as a Brit, I can't wait for Wikipedia's advice on how to contact my local Congressional delegation. (Footnote: Wikipedia points out that 55% of people supporting a blackout wanted it to be global, and its true this option had the plurality of votes. It's also true that the majority of people participating voted for something less than a…

This is a really good point and something that the anti-SOPA movement should address better (or at least publicize better). I imagine phoning into the American consulate or embassy tomorrow couldn't hurt! They will say "we don't control that" but you can just let them know you are upset about WP being out, upset about SOPA, and liable to stop using US 'net services if becomes clear that the US market is "unsafe" for 'net business. I'll edit if I find more specific information for how non-US people can oppose SOPA.

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#185

Post by vaksel » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 3:21 PM UTC

kevinpet wrote: post #159

vaksel wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They should capitalize on the momentum and create an organization that can get everyone mobilized quickly in the future. Politicians kiss up to tiny groups just because they are somewhat influential...think of billions going to subsidies for farmers or even tiny 1 issue groups. Surely together, the tech community is much more influential than them.

This organization is the EFF. If it can't do what you dream of, it's just an indicator that internet freedom is not a hot button issue for a large enough percentage of the electorate.

EFF is powerless, it needs the big tech companies to be it's muscle

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#186

Post by onemoreact » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 3:35 PM UTC

sriramk wrote: post #134

jayzee wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am responding to your point (a). Not acting is not being neutral. Not acting is taking a stand.

That's a question of semantics. When you have a policy on not taking a stand on any issue which you stick to, you are not taking a stand.

When Wikipedia blocks an IP address for abusive behavior they are taking a stance in defense of their goals which are to provide a high quality, free, open, and unbiased repository of knowledge.

PS: Read http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_Online_Piracy_Act it's fairly neutral if a little long.

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#187

Post by meta-coder » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 4:42 PM UTC

innernette wrote: post #92

The RfC is not closed yet, so there is still time to vote: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:SOPA_initiative/Actio...

1800 Wikipedians have already voted.

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#188

Post by nkassis » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 5:06 PM UTC

intended wrote: post #167

TheSOB88 wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's just one day . Are you really that reliant on Wikipedia that you can't go a single day without using it? It seems to me a lot of the people against the blackout don't have any long-term reasons why it might be bad, only discomfort.

My previous firm depended on wikipedia. We would often have to get up to speed on very diverse industries and their core metrics overnight, and wikipedia was the first source that was available and easily searched. With the English site black out, this will affect the world far more than just America. As a matter of fact this is probably something that we should study and be prepared for. How do the other data/encycl…

" the blackout should not affect visitors from countries where SOPA makes little difference."

I'll make the claim that most english speaking countries in the world will be affected by this. This bill is supposedly targeting foreign website. It could mean a European site getting blocked by PayPal because of an American law.

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#189

Post by timwiseman » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 5:08 PM UTC

badclient wrote: post #30

So, what happens when I call my Congressman after learning about this on wikipedia and his office says "oh SOPA, that bill has been put on hold already since last week"? Won't many people get pissed at wikipedia? Edit: I actually think they should call it off at the last moment . Save the nuclear option for another time.

SOPA has been put on hold, not completely removed from discussion. And even if (hopefully when) SOPA is completely removed, it is likely that something similiar might be introduced in the future.

Now that the topic has been brought up. a very strong showing of oppositions to the concepts contained in SOPA as well as SOPA itself is a very useful thing.

Re: Wikipedia to Shut Down on Wednesday to Protest SOPA

#190

Post by nkassis » Tue, Jan 17, 2012, 5:22 PM UTC

stephank wrote: post #93

outworlder wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, because even if the law is something US-specific, its effects (should it pass) are not.

That's cute, and we 'foreigners' know that. But there's nothing we can do, and to us it's just an annoyance we have to sit out. Note that I otherwise support Wikipedia on this.

Not true, your government can through diplomatic means have an impact. You could call whomever represents you or even call the US embassy.