Democratic Underground will go dark at 3am ET January 18 to protest SOPA and PIPA

[Skinner]

This discussion thread was locked by Skinner (a host of the Announcements group).

Democratic Underground will go dark for 18 hours on January 18, from 3am ET until 9pm ET, to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA). During that time visitors will not be able to read or post on the site. We know that you depend on Democratic Underground to be there for you, and we did not take the decision to join this protest lightly.

Democratic Underground is an open, community-based website that depends on content provided by our visitors. That includes original content created by our members, and excerpts and links to content published elsewhere. Because of the work our members put into their posts here, and also because of our dependence on excerpts and links from elsewhere, we have a deep appreciation for content creators, and we understand the importance of protecting their work. The DU Administrators understand the importance of protecting copyrights -- we have always made a good faith effort to respect copyrights on this site, and we expect our members to do the same.

However, we here at Democratic Underground have first-hand knowledge of what it is like to be unfairly harassed in the name of copyright enforcement. Over the last year we have been a defendant in a high-profile copyright-trolling case in which we were threatened with tens of thousands of dollars of damages and the loss of our domain name, because one of our members posted a brief five-sentence excerpt of an article. The experience has made us extremely sensitive to the issue of out-of-control copyright enforcement, and we feel that we have a responsibility to add our voice to the protests taking place across the Internet.

During the downtime, we hope that you will take a moment and contact your representatives in Congress to let them know that you support an open Internet, and you oppose SOPA and PIPA. You can look up your representatives on the EFF website.

Thank you,

David Allen
Dave Allsopp
Brian Leitner
DU Administrators

[flvegan]

1. Blammo! Rockin, Skinner. Well done, sir.

[Renew Deal]

2. Tomorrow is going to be a long day

[mattvermont]

20. indeed.

[Ecumenist]

21. Yeah, I understand, Renew Deal....

Yay DU A- Rah-Rah-Rah!!

[fishwax]

42. yes it will

[hlthe2b]

3. I strongly support this move...

and will plan accordingly..... Luddite Day tomorrow...

[AnOhioan]

4. Good job :)

[NRaleighLiberal]

5. well done - K and R.

[elleng]

6. Thanks.

We'll miss eachother.

[originalpckelly]

7. Two words:

You rock!

[Justice wanted]

8. Thank you for supporting the Protest.

[Seedersandleechers]

9. I have problems getting DU to load at 3:00am

most mornings regardless. However, glad they are taking a stand.

[Autumn]

10. Oh my GOD no DU for 18 hours!!!!!

Thank you for your support. You guys are awesome.

[Sedona]

11. BRAVO SKINNER!

I'll miss this place, fortunately I've downloaded a few good movies to keep me occupied.

icefilms.info

[OhioChick]

12. Good n/t

[onehandle]

13. DU is pandering to Big Free Speech.

Sellouts.

[mattvermont]

25. ???? What is wrong with that??

[greyl]

90. I do believe that was sarcasm. ;) nt

[onehandle]

96. No way. Big Free Speech is just another fat cat lobby.

Fight the Power!

[Capitalocracy]

148. Yes, fight the power!

Quietly.

[Vanje]

14. Thankyou!

I'll miss DU.
But THANK YOU!
Tres AWESOME!

[Liberty Belle]

15. Redistricted? Contact your new and old reps - those gaining new voters want to know your views.

I have heard this from our own soon-to-be Congresswoman whose neighboring district will include my area next year.

[lonestarnot]

16. Right on.

Thanks Skinner!

[Orrex]

17. Mostly I feel bad for the people who won't get to read my wisdom tomorrow

I suppose that they can simply browse Wikipedia in the meantime...

[dixiegrrrrl]

38. I see what you did there.

Very droll, that.

[Liberal Veteran]

18. Does this mean no jury duty for 18 hours?

Count me in!

I wholeheartedly support going dark in solidarity.

[Solly Mack]

19. K&R

[MADem]

22. So, will there be some sort of notice that explains what is happening for the oddball who

has been offline for a few days and turns up tomorrow? Or will they be "in the dark" as well?

If you had a bit more lead time, you could have run a "protest sign" contest!

[maddezmom]

23. well done guys

[Nova.]

24. :)

[ChromeFoundry]

26. Occupy Internet! K&R

Bravo, sirs! Bravo!

[DavidDvorkin]

27. This is pointless and foolish

I wish you hadn't made this decision.

[MilesColtrane]

56. I agree. I'll have to rethink supporting a site that is fighting pro-union legislation.

dammit

[a2liberal]

84. Huh?!

There's a censors union?

[Muskypundit]

99. No, but there is a police union.

Close enough, eh?

[cbayer]

125. While your cause is righteous, this law is not the way to achieve it, imo.

Let's work for a law that protects you without impeding your ability to express yourself in other ways.

[FSogol]

28. Do you have some grief counselors lined up to help the more prolific among us deal with withdraws?

Additionally, I expect the quality of Yahoo "Answers" to greatly improve from 3 am to 9 pm.

[jannyk]

29. Bravo, Well Done - see you on the other side.

[Ruby the Liberal]

30. Yay! Thank you! nt

[Terra Alta]

31. Thank you.

You guys rock!

[handmade34]

32. ...

[Better Believe It]

33. I support this move.

[cliffordu]

34. Most Excellent.

[bluedigger]

35. Well done!

I fully support this action.

[Stinky The Clown]

36. Good

[customerserviceguy]

37. I disagree

We don't need to hold our breath until we turn blue to protest something. We need to continue to be the voice of reason, and we cannot do that while we remain silent.

[Old and In the Way]

39. Cool!

I might actually have a productive day tomorrow.

[YvonneCa]

40. Excellent choice...

...

[dixiegrrrrl]

41. Actions speak louder than words.

[Tikki]

43. YAY.....I love DU..

Tikki

[sabrina 1]

44. Good for you DU!

[Cleita]

45. Good for you. I will be sad, but it's for a good cause.

Time to take back what belongs to us and not them.

On edit. I also said before I wouldn't miss Face Book or Twitter, maybe Google a bit, but I definitely would miss DU and I will miss you if only for a day.

[JDPriestly]

46. We are all on board with that!

[jdadd]

47. I support this Move......

Maybe I'll get off my ass and clean out the basement.....

[one_voice]

48. This is good news...

bad news...now I gotta clean tomorrow.

[amerikat]

49. Unoccupy the net.

Thank you. A million small sacrifices or actions can change the world.
I hoped DU would participate. Thank you DU!

[GoldenOldie]

50. Would be more surprised, if you didn't!

One of the reasons why I joined DU.

[Arkansas Granny]

51. Well, guess I'll see you all tomorrow night.

[AllyCat]

52. Will miss DU, but would miss open internet more. Thanks for doing this!

[Javaman]

53. Good for DU! However...

I think I'm starting to hyperventilate. LOL

[Vanje]

54. And, oh! K &R! nt

[99th_Monkey]

55. Solidarity. This is particularly sweet

in light of how the MPAA is whining about it ... solidarity.

I will totally miss DU, but am willing to suffer for the cause.

[HuckleB]

57. OK.

Whatever.

Sorry, but this whole blackout thing seems to be about as pointless as it gets.

Enjoy yourselves!

[William769]

58. K&R!

[Paka]

59. Down news day for me...

but it is an important cause to support. Way to go!

[limpyhobbler]

60. Visitors to DU during the blackout should be presented with a form to contact congress.

Or just the list of phone numbers for the congressmen who are on the fence about SOPA.

[KT2000]

61. You do know better than most

what this is all about. I support your move 100%.

[uppityperson]

62. Aw dang, huge snowstorm bearing down on us tomorrow, have to go outside and play.

[cbayer]

63. Well done, Sirs.

[ProfessionalLeftist]

64. I'm gonna miss it but KUDOS to DU for doing this!

[rocktivity]

65. I'll miss you all

Especially since I just got home from a business trip made a LOT less stressful because I was able to reach DU by Wifi AND "drill down" for advice about local transportation and entertainment from some "natives." I'm also grateful for those of you who made the ninth annual "You Call This NEWS?" awards -- posted on both DU2 and DU3 -- the most viewed ever.

As I understand how SOPA is currently written, ANY kind of linking -- with or without "fair use" excerpts -- could be legally defined as "piracy" or "copyright infringement." And even if that were not the case, SOPA is also devoid of constitutionally guaranteed due process.

So I'll suck it up, dedicate the 18 hours to working on my other projects, and will see you on the other side.


rocktivity

[tkmorris]

66. I am so proud to be a member here tonight

It's the right call I think.

[deutsey]

67. Great! (Although I'll miss DU) n/t

[csziggy]

68. Thank you for your support!

It will be a good time for me to contact my congress critters to complain about SOPA and PIPA.

And maybe while this site is black, I'll get something done around the house.

[TygrBright]

69. This is only the kind of principled action I'd expect from you guys. Thanks. n/t

[joshcryer]

70. Hells yeah.

[highplainsdem]

71. Bravo! K&R

[KamaAina]

72. Man, is tomorrow gonna suck...

...it's not like I even have that much real work to do!

[BiggJawn]

73. I'm with y'all, Skinner!

Let's make a point that won't be missed.

[onestepforward]

74. Awesome! Thank you!

[mike_c]

75. well done....

Thank you.

[JBoy]

76. Righteous.

[MilesColtrane]

77. The unions of the AFL-CIO that represent professionals...

...in the Arts, Entertainment and Media Industries (AEMI) include Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), the American Federation of Musicians (AFM), the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA), the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employes, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts (IATSE), the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU), the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) are wholly in support of the widest possible access to content on the Internet and the principles of net neutrality, so long as intellectual property rights—and the hundreds of thousands of jobs that are at stake—are respected.

Some would like to portray the debate over Internet theft as one in which a few wealthy artists, creators and powerful corporations are concerned about “giving away” their “product” because they are greedy and cannot change with the times to create new business models. The hundreds of thousands of people represented by the AEMI unions of the AFL-CIO are a testament to the falsity of that proposition.

Online theft and the sale of illegal CDs and DVDs are not “victimless crimes.” Digital theft costs jobs and benefits. It is critical, at this important moment in the evolution of the Internet and potential Internet policy, for union members and leaders to publicly and visibly engage in a sustained effort to protect members’ livelihoods, the creation and innovation that are the hallmark of their work and the economic health and viability of the creative industries in this country. The AEMI unions and other unions in U.S. entertainment stress that pirated content is devastating to the entertainment professionals who create the underlying works.

The AFL-CIO strongly supports the efforts of the AEMI unions and the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO, to combat piracy. It commends their work with government and industry to develop workable solutions to protect the interests of their members. The AFL-CIO urges its affiliate unions to educate their members about the adverse impact of piracy; to support efforts to ensure that government officials and lawmakers are aware of, and support the protection of, entertainment industry jobs that will be lost to online theft; to encourage their members to respect copyright law; and to urge their members, as a matter of union solidarity, to never illegally download or stream pirated content or purchase illegal CDs and DVDs.

http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/pdf/Almeida%2011162011.pdf

[EarlG]

85. Opposing SOPA and PIPA isn't about supporting piracy

These are bad bills that if passed could have extremely dire ramifications for the entire Internet.

Together, Fair Use and Safe Harbors allow for innovation because they create safe space for both free expression and honest mistakes. But content providers hate Fair Use and (more importantly) Safe Harbors because providers think these exceptions take the teeth out of enforcement, creating loopholes you could drive a truck through.

SOPA/PIPA gets rid of Safe Harbors. There is no safe space. A copyright holder can initiate a "private right of action", convince a judge to issue an injunction (which we now know is way too easy to do) get your domain blocked, your advertising pulled and your finances frozen.

And thanks to to SOPA/PIPA's immunity provisions, a copyright holder wouldn't even need a court order shut you down, just a letter to your service providers threatening to.

Much more: http://veniceforchange.blogspot.com/2012/01/confessions-of-hollywood-professional.html?spref=tw

[MilesColtrane]

86. You gotta do what you gotta do.

So do I.

I stand with my union.

[joshcryer]

107. Why Unions Should Not Support SOPA

http://www.pbs.org/idealab/2012/01/why-unions-should-not-support-sopa011.html

If I was with a union that supported SOPA I would register my misgivings, not unquestioningly support them.

[Muskypundit]

78. Solidarity

[man4allcats]

79. K & R!

Thanks for standing up!

[Angry Dragon]

80. Glad to hear it...........

Bring on the light through the darkness

[2Design]

81. how does one make their site go dark if Wordpress - don't want to mess it up

[cry baby]

82. Wrote to reps. Proud of your decision! Nt

[bigwillq]

83. Very cool!

K and R

[Tx4obama]

87. AND be sure to send a THANK YOU note to President Obama too :)

The White House Labels SOPA Censorship And Refuses To Support It

http://www.politicususa.com/en/obama-opposes-sopa

[MannyGoldstein]

132. He won't sign SOPA.

Like he won't sign NDAA, more "free" trade agreements...

[donheld]

88. You have my complete support in this move!

[47of74]

89. Good

[Why Syzygy]

91. Bravo

Stand with you 100%.

[CC]

92. Glad to hear it. n/t

[Taverner]

93. Understood.

[CherokeeDem]

94. Great move!

Proud that DU is taking a stand.

[Dragonbreathp9d]

95. While I may not like it nor see it necessary I agree and support 2000%

Good move loved ones

[Blacksheep214]

97. United We Stand!

Let's put the downtime to good use!

Later!

[jwirr]

98. I wondered why we were not joining the protest. Glad to be part of this.

[kas125]

100. Thank you!

[alp227]

101. Good night then! Without DU and Wikipedia,

I'll have time to go to the library and study SolidWorks then bookmark links for posting tomorrow evening.

[Canuckistanian]

102. Good on you, guys

I support this all the way. This is an important fight.

[applegrove]

103. Whatever you do we will follow. You are great leaders.

[Change has come]

104. Beautiful!

[Gormy Cuss]

105. Thumbs up. n/t

[Smilo]

106. Thank you for standing

up against those that would use SOPA and PIPA as an excuse to stifle free speech.

[dmr]

108. Solidarity

[RevStPatrick]

109. Good idea.

Thanks for doing this.

[NYC_SKP]

110. K/R (nt)

:kick:

[bigtree]

111. well, you got my attention

I'll look to see the extent of the protests and the impact tomorrow in the other media. Best wishes . . .

[silverweb]

112. So proud to be a part of DU!

[tinymontgomery]

113. Withdraw will be unbearable

Total support. Will there be a support group somewhere I can go to?

[Rhiannon12866]

145. There actually is a support group! LOL.

Don't know if you're familiar with it, but the DU Panic Room has been where members could always get info if DU is down. It's been awhile, but it still looks viable to me...

http://dir.groups.yahoo.com/group/DUPanicRoom/

[tinymontgomery]

163. Thanks,

found you post after DU went dark. Will book mark for future. Thanks again.

[Rhiannon12866]

165. Well, there wasn't much there when I checked it last night

But it was awfully late. Someone posted the notice that DU was going dark, good idea for those who might not have seen the announcement. I was afraid you might not have seen it in time, but at least we now know it's still active.

[2banon]

114. Bravo!

[murphyj87]

115. Also include

Canadian Bill C-11 analogous to SOPA in the US.

[nolabear]

116. Solidarity.

[tawadi]

117. k&r

[tavalon]

118. I am so fucking proud of us

Woot. Thanks for joining in on this one, guys!

[Arugula Latte]

119. Hellz Yeah!

[spin]

120. Good!!!!! It's better to shut down for a few hours than to be shut down in the future. (n/t)

[Tx4obama]

121. Looks like Google.com is staying up, they're only blacking out their logo. n/t

[UnrepentantLiberal]

124. What a load of crap.

[Capitalocracy]

131. You wouldn't actually expect them to lose market share to Bing and Yahoo...

for something as silly as actually standing up for something.

But in all honesty, it will still raise awareness.

[UnrepentantLiberal]

122. Good for DU!

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

123. Bravo!

[Matariki]

126. Bravo.

[PETRUS]

127. Thanks

I'll miss y'all, even for just a day.

[denbot]

128. Right on!!

Hmm.. what to do?

[me b zola]

129. K&R

[MannyGoldstein]

130. I am stunned. In a good way!

Be tough.

[Digit]

133. Way to go!

I am glad DU is doing this.

[The Genealogist]

134. I fully support this protest

I thank the administrators for choosing to protest in this manner!

[xocet]

135. Excellent. n/t

[Surya Gayatri]

136. Right decision, guys...

Bravo for taking a principled stand and showing solidarity. The next 18 hours will be tough, though. SG

[Kablooie]

137. Get some rest while you're at it.

Good luck guys.

[Joe Shlabotnik]

138. K&r Stand for something or step aside. Kudos...... n/t

[Populist_Prole]

139. It's gotta be done, then so be it.

[bermudat]

140. I'll really be productive at work tomorrow.

[backscatter712]

141. I'm behind you 100%!

SOPA MUST DIE!!!

[LibertyorDeath]

142. Excellent!

Thank You!

[Duer 157099]

143. That's gonna hurt

but in a good way

[usregimechange]

144. I fully endorse this action

[McCamy Taylor]

146. K&R for free speech!

[ellisonz]

147. Sounds good. n/t

[Dead_Parrot]

149. I'll finally get around to cleaning out the garage.

I hate you. But, my wife thinks you're awesome.

[Tuesday_Morning]

150. a great big fat

THANK YOU!

[AverageJoe90]

151. To Skinner, and all the other admins......You have our complete support. =)

I'll be logging out of here not long after 2:00(Central). Hope this works out for us.

[suffragette]

152. Agree with you and support this action

K&R

[Capitalocracy]

153. 200th rec, less than 10 minutes to go. See you guys in 18 hours!

[Firebrand Gary]

154. See you in 24 hours my friends. I am personally going dark as well.

[The Wielding Truth]

155. Yay! DU is back!

[Papagoose]

156. Welcome back DU!

Now that I've numbed my fingers from writing scads of emails to Congress and calling the Capitol until I could talk no more, it's good to have DU back.

[Wistful Vista]

158. Same here. I really think DU and many other sites will kill off this vile critter!

[Maven]

157. OMG. I GOT THE SHAKES FROM WITHDRAWL

[Capitalocracy]

160. *Crawling in gasping for air*

DU! *gasp* DU!

[cstanleytech]

159. I am not sure how much of a success the effort was.

It seems like the media in general gave the event little to no coverage or atleast thats my opinion.

[littlewolf]

161. good job

Glad to hear it, also Google has joined the protest.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

162. I really like associating myself with this community

Ethics. I like them.

Thanks for walking the talk, Admins

[AsahinaKimi]

164. Wow! I survived it!

Hung out on imvu all day! But, I did manage to get three friends to sign the petition!

[FailureToCommunicate]

166. It felt like the paperboy AND the milkman skipped delivery...

(Yes I remember them. Least I didn't say the ice man or the coal truck!)

Writing and phoning to Congress critters always seems as useful as putting a message in a bottle and tossing it into the ocean. But we do it anyway, cause here in the US we have democracy, right?


Thanks David, Dave and Brian, et alia, for solidarity.

[avaistheone1]

167. Very proud moment for DU

Nice to see an organization taking a stand based on integrity.

Kudos to DU! Wow!!

[TBF]

168. I finally have clean carpets.

All in all a good day. Thank you for protesting - I did read on Forbes (while DU was down) that Pres Obama is also opposing those bills in their current form. I was very happy to hear that.

[slay]

169. I am EXTREMELY proud of DU and the admins for doing this

this is a badge of honor - to have been on the side of a free internet - one of THE most worthy causes these days in the way it will shape the entire future - that's what is at stake with SOPA. Bravo DU, Skinner, Elad, and EarlG. This is STILL more important to the future than most people can even comprehend

[sumi12]

170. Democratic Underground will go dark at 3am ET January 18 to protest SOPA and PIPA

SOPA(Stop Online Privacy Act) is good rules but now a days internet is one of the most important part of Human life. So i think it can be change.

[sumi12]

171. Democratic Underground will go dark at 3am ET January 18 to protest SOPA and PIPA

But it was awfully late. Someone posted the notice that DU was going dark, good idea for those who might not have seen the announcement. I was afraid you might not have seen it in time, but at least we now know it's still active