NNSquad - Network Neutrality Squad
[ NNSquad ] SOPA/PIPA Protest Blackouts Are Misguided
SOPA/PIPA Protest Blackouts Are Misguided
http://lauren.vortex.com/archive/000930.html
A number of major Internet sites have announced plans to "blackout"
this coming Wednesday -- that is, block users from most or all access
to their normal site resources -- to protest against SOPA/PIPA for up
to 24 hours.
Since it is widely known how strongly I oppose these legislative
nightmares, a number of site owners have asked if I would recommend
that they join in this form of protest.
I have told them that I definitely advise against this protest method.
Most widely used Internet sites in particular have spent a great deal
of time and effort to create reliable destinations on which users can
depend -- for applications related to communications, work, school,
and all manner of queries, concerns, and discussions.
As much as I abhor SOPA and PIPA, I do not feel that voluntarily
cutting the Internet community off from important resources for
significant periods of time is an appropriate course of action. It
penalizes vast numbers of Internet users around the globe, not
specifically the proponents of SOPA and PIPA.
Rather than "blacking out" a site (and presumably only displaying
information about how to fight SOPA/PIPA. with access to normal
functions unavailable), a far more logical, sensible, and prudent
approach, that would likely be even more effective in this battle,
would be for protesting sites to display a "splash page" with
information explaining how to contact your Congressional
representatives and express your displeasure with these legislative
efforts.
Splash pages could either time out automatically and continue through
to the normal site after some number of seconds, and/or permit users
to click through to the regular site resources after some specified
period of time (again, some number of seconds).
It's possible to present an "in your face" protest of SOPA/PIPA, with
meaningful links and information for battling these abominations,
without cutting off users from the site resources themselves.
The website resources blackout approach is misguided and -- even with
the most laudable of motives -- essentially irresponsible.
That's my opinion, anyway.
All the best to you and yours on this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein (lauren@vortex.com): http://www.vortex.com/lauren
Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility: http://www.pfir.org
Founder:
- Network Neutrality Squad: http://www.nnsquad.org
- Global Coalition for Transparent Internet Performance: http://www.gctip.org
- PRIVACY Forum: http://www.vortex.com
Member: ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
Google+: http://vortex.com/g+lauren
Twitter: https://twitter.com/laurenweinstein
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800 / Skype: vortex.com
_______________________________________________
nnsquad mailing list
http://lists.nnsquad.org/mailman/listinfo/nnsquad