Wikipedia protest against proposed US laws

[Ivo]

This almost sounds like strike action - but I would fully support this one. Even if a lot of it is erroneous (and occasionally made up or puerile), Wikipedia is still a useful tool for finding a simple fact you might need, like a dictionary is for words, meanings and spellings. And it is benefit for finding references too, as others have said. It is very easy to learn a lot from Wiki and others.

Not so sure I would agree if Youtube were the only vulnerable party though On the other hand, if those goes through is it bye-bye to Bulbapedia? :cry:

Non-quiz post #3,333

 

[Schnellzug]

YouTube is about the only thing I watch nowadays; although I'd have thought they should surely be concerned about any legislation about copyright infringement.

 

[Heinz57]

You never reference directly from Wikipedia, but it is a very useful tool for finding multiple other sources to reference in one place.

Indeed, I know a lot of people who do quite a bit of their reasearch using Wiki's references (Including me, I've done it a few times before).

The article itself may not be reliable but the references and external links mostly are.

If its a subject you don't know much about, the wicki article gives you a good base to get your basic knowledge on the subject, so you know what you're looking at. From there you can do your proper reasearch from whatever website you want.

 

[chris89]

Im Glad that Wikipedia is doing this as well. As SOPA and Protect IP would bring the end to the internet, and give full control to the copyright holder (so bye bye Youtube etc)

Orginally Reddit.com was doing this which i am a member on and regularly visit.

Also quite a lot of games companies are for the bill to be passed e.g. Activision and EA. Some from the ESA group have spoken against the bill even though the main company is for it. Those being include Epic Games (Behind Unreal Tournament and Gears of War series)

Chris

 

[Oswyntail]

....
Universal values? What are they then? everyone the same the world over are they? No I didnt think so, so because we are culturally different the world over who are you to then try and push your morals and your values onto someone else who maybe doesnt share them? .....

No one is trying to push morals and values onto someone else. All I am maintaining is that the debate about this whole area is less than thorough, there are lots of questions that do need an answer on both sides of the divide, and it does no one any good to ignore them. The question of whether there are universal values is one that has taxed philosophers since the dawn of thought, and you obviously have your opinion on that. You maintain there is no solution, so laissez faire is the only answer. You are welcome to believe that, though I do find that approach depressing, sadly like much of the "debate" on this issue.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Excuse the naivity, but what time in Britain does 05:00 UTC equate to ?

What is the jurisdiction of any law passed in the USA outside its national boundaries?

 

[Schnellzug]

Excuse the naivity, but what time in Britain does 05:00 UHT equate to ?

It would probably say on Wikipedia ....

 

[SS4]

Excuse the naivity, but what time in Britain does 05:00 UHT equate to ?

Not sure about UHT (except in milk) but 05:00 UTC is 05:00 GMT.

What is the jurisdiction of any law passed in the USA outside its national boundaries?

In theory it doesn't make a difference but in practice the US has various one-sided extradition treaties.

 

[sprite]

Excuse the naivity, but what time in Britain does 05:00 UHT equate to ?

What is the jurisdiction of any law passed in the USA outside its national boundaries?

The structure of it is such that they can block US based servers from accessing the sites blacklisted. As many worlwide internet routes go through the US, a person trying to access a site from the UK hosted in Canada may find the site blocked as the US are blocking it and their data is routed through the US. The design of the internet is such that this should be avoidable, however the issue comes in when the US start harrassing other countries to pass simmilar laws or to enforce a US law in their country (directly, or via extradition).

 

[Schnellzug]

In theory it doesn't make a difference but in practice the US has various one-sided extradition treaties.

particuarly if they decide someone is a "terrorist".

 

[SS4]

particuarly if they decide someone is a "terrorist".

The UK is one of these countries that has a shameful treaty with the US. Do they even have to show any sort of evidence nowadays? Or just accuse and that's that?

Can't see either of these bills being debated before the election in November though since, like our lot, their politicians care more about themselves than those they're meant to represent
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Im Glad that Wikipedia is doing this as well. As SOPA and Protect IP would bring the end to the internet, and give full control to the copyright holder (so bye bye Youtube etc)

Orginally Reddit.com was doing this which i am a member on and regularly visit.

Also quite a lot of games companies are for the bill to be passed e.g. Activision and EA. Some from the ESA group have spoken against the bill even though the main company is for it. Those being include Epic Games (Behind Unreal Tournament and Gears of War series)

Chris

XDA will be having a blackout too

 

[table38]

What is the jurisdiction of any law passed in the USA outside its national boundaries?

Ask Richard ODwyer

 

[NSEFAN]

Hopefully a protest of this nature will demonstrate to the US government how stupid internet censorship is.

Mind you, if this means that the likes of Google bring their business to the UK, then perhaps it's not such a bad thing. This is of course assuming that the US don't subsequently declare us to be a terrorist nation. :roll:

 

[WestCoast]

Mind you, if this means that the likes of Google bring their business to the UK, then perhaps it's not such a bad thing.

I wouldn't count on that if I am honest. They'd probably head to somewhere like Luxembourg for corporate incentives (like eBay/PayPal).

 

[Aictos]

As much flak that Wikipedia gets; I'm firmly supporting their stance simply because if these laws go then where will it stop?

 

[NSEFAN]

I wouldn't count on that if I am honest. They'd probably head to somewhere like Luxembourg for corporate incentives (like eBay/PayPal).

True, but either way it would be bad for the US to lose such a valuable company, let alone several of them.

 

[chris89]

Good to hear XDA are as well SS4. As they need to be even though the open nature of rooting on Android devices.

Also imgur are also taking part tomorrow as well.

Chris

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Ask Richard O'Dwyer

A most interesting article. I see that it states that Richard O'Dwyer made an estimated total of £147,000 in advertising revenue over a period of three years.
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In theory it doesn't make a difference but in practice the US has various one-sided extradition treaties.

How did this "one-sided-ness" ever come to pass?

 

[Schnellzug]

How did this "one-sided-ness" ever come to pass?

because the U.S. is Big, and Powerful, and anyone Big and Powerful enough can do whatever it wants. This is why they're so anxious to control the Internet, of course, since that might be a means of subverting the Big and Powerful dinosaurs in Washington.

 

[table38]

I read somewhere today that it seems odd that we live in a country where we can't deport foreign criminals such as Abu Qatada, yet we happily hand over our own citizens to the hands of a foreign jurdistiction with no hearing in the UK first.

Some might consider the arrangement Blair did with the US somewhat lopsided

 

[90019]

As much flak that Wikipedia gets; I'm firmly supporting their stance simply because if these laws go then where will it stop?

The discussion of where it could lead reminds me somewhat of the film Brazil.

 

[ralphchadkirk]

The discussion of where it could lead reminds me somewhat of the film Brazil.

Except the computers will be slightly more modern

 

[chris89]

Google will be posting a link about it tomorrow as well.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-31001_3-5...using-popular-home-page/?tag=mncol;topStories

Chris

 

[Eagle]

I'm surprised no one's mentioned this... hehe.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I'm surprised no one's mentioned this... hehe.

Well done for making this posting !

................................................................................................

I did carry out a test just after 0500 today to see if they had carried out their threat.....and they certainly have done what they said they would do, as I had but a brief view of the page that I selected, followed immediately by a transfer to their special notice that they have caused to appear.

 

[Lampshade]

The mobile site still works, just change the URL to en.m.wikipedia.org/(article)

Excuse the naivity, but what time in Britain does 05:00 UTC equate to ?

UTC is just a politically correct way of saying GMT.

 

[Harlesden]

I don't see the point of "blacking out" one website for 24 hours. Americans seem very fond of boycotting things where such action would have no overall effect. Thinking of all those American motorists who spoke proudly of boycotting BP filling stations as a result of the BP accident. So Wikipedia is gone for one day. People are only going to be inconvenienced as a result and will find their information elsewhere.

 

[Schnellzug]

I wonder if people might find other ways of finding out information, so perhaps they might find that Wikipedia's not quite so indispensable?
The thing with Weikipedia is, like Google, it's got so big (even if it's not profit-making) that it must inevitably become complacent, like anything in a monopolistic situation becomes.

 

[Clip]

No one is trying to push morals and values onto someone else. All I am maintaining is that the debate about this whole area is less than thorough, there are lots of questions that do need an answer on both sides of the divide, and it does no one any good to ignore them. The question of whether there are universal values is one that has taxed philosophers since the dawn of thought, and you obviously have your opinion on that. You maintain there is no solution, so laissez faire is the only answer. You are welcome to believe that, though I do find that approach depressing, sadly like much of the "debate" on this issue.

I havent got a laissez faire attitude to it at all. I live in the real world and understand that what you mention along with the war on drugs is a futile enterprise because it still happens and this material still is available should you really want to look for it.Yes I find it abhorrent as we all should do but reality has it that it is out there and always will be on whatever medium it is on.

And anyway this bill isnt even about trying to block access to these sorts of websites. It is being pushed by the media lobbyists who want to try and stave off piracy - not pictures/videos of child molestation/snuff films or anything like that. It is solely to protect thier interests and money through piracy of music and film. And the implications would be huge. Link a youtube video of a song someone has put up and the whole forum could be closed down for hosting Just the link. Does that seem fair to you?

And as I said before most of the bad stuff now is very underground which they cannot block due to it being available through TOR or similar and this cannot be blocked unless they get an ISP to try and throttle a users access to the web but again most will know a way round this via thier own servers and such like.

 

[Schnellzug]

never mind Wikipedia, I hear that Unilever, who make Pot Noodle, are on strike! That might be a real crisis!