Save the Internet!!!!

very good post, thanks for sharing

Dr. Kate Ross, Chicago Lumbar Radiculopathy  Hospital  Therapist

Dear Geeks,

I hope this letter makes it to you on time.

You see, 

The government is certainly hoping you put this letter aside.  Throw it in the trash.  Assume I am exaggerating the threat they pose to your freedom.

Don't make that mistake.

What they don't want you to know is 



Government censorship?  Government control over what you can see, hear, and read online?

If they get their way, your news online could look a lot like the above.  That's why it's vital you complete the UrgentGramto your representative and senators.

There isn't a moment to waste.

Right now, the same folks that brought you the so-called "Patriot" Act, indefinite detention of American citizens, and an unaccountable TSA and an invasive Department of Homeland Security are preparing to wage war on your freedom online.

The government is fully prepared to take unprecedented power over the internet unless you and I stop them today.

Two bills - SOPA (HR 3261) in the House and Protect IP (S 968) in the Senate - are being pushed by the Big Government leadership of both houses.  Action on one or both bills could happen any day.

What is the government trying to do?  Gain a foothold in the last truly free place on earth - the internet.  It's no secret that websites, social media, and other online communities are a hotbed of anti-government, powerful activism.

From cafes in Cairo to bloggers in Beijing, those living under oppressive regimes organize, spread information, and fight for their freedom with their words and deeds online.

And here at home, from anti-war activists to homeschoolers, anti-tax proponents to civil libertarians, Patriots fight for their freedom online.  In addition, these actions by the government will harm the one place where capitalism and the free market are most flourishing.

Entrepreneurship and small business creation are at an all-time high online. An idea and a lot of hard work can launch anything from a good side business to a worldwide enterprise online.

Minimal startup costs.  Fewer regulatory hurdles.  Lower tax burdens.  All of these factors contribute to a thriving online economy - and one that would be directly and massively harmed by SOPA and Protect IP (which should really be called Destroy IP).

The bills give the government the power to put someone out of business for even minor copyright violations.  In fact, as originally drafted, these bills give the government the power to shut down websites on even a private allegation of a violation.  No investigation.  No charges.  No trial.  No jury.  No verdict.  Entire websites could be shut down for inadvertent violations, malicious attacks, or a made-up claim.

Campaign for Liberty could be shut down virtually overnight if someone - say a Federal Reserve official - claimed a YouTube video we promoted was a "copyright violation.

You don't need to think very hard to imagine what a hostile government agent or bureaucrat could do with this power.  Our economy AND our freedom are threatened in one massive takeover.

SOPA and PIPA purport to give the government the power to shut down websites and disable search engines in the name of stopping "piracy.

Right.  And they say they are only spying on foreign terrorists.  Nothing for us law-abiding Americans to worry about.

But let's be honest…

If the government takes the power to regulate the internet and shut down information, no matter what the stated reason, you and I cannot control what they do with that power.

Has the government EVER taken a power it didn't use to stifle freedom?  To paraphrase Madison, we are not governed by angels.  That's why you and I must act today.

I hope you will take a minute to complete your UrgentGram I have prepared for you.

I hope to deliver yours - along with hundreds of thousands like it - in the coming days.

There is only one hope to defeat SOPA and Protect IP, and that is a massive public outcry and the spotlight of public attention, coupled with strong action in Congress by friends of liberty like Senator Rand Paul.

Already, public reaction has slowed the statists' plans, and proponents of these takeovers are desperate to quickly stop the bleeding.  That's why they are trying to speed their power grabs through Congress.

And please, don't be fooled by the bill's authors claiming to have "fixed" SOPA to better protect online freedom.  Any claim that SOPA or Protect IP can be fixed is FALSE and should be ignored.