Good news – somewhat. The extremely dangerous SOPA bill has been delayed. The Judiciary Committee began hearings on the bill on Thursday, but the outnumbered opponents of the bill prolonged the process as much as possible, forcing the entire text to be read out loud and bringing up amendment after amendment. The hearing continued on Friday where it was abruptly ended. Initial reports suggested that the bill had been delayed until at least January, but apparently they are going to try to have another meeting this coming Wednesday – apparently the issue of piracy is so important that it cannot wait until after Christmas. (Word on the Internet is that the lobbyists just want to sneak the bill through while no one’s paying attention, just like they did with the Federal Reserve act back in 1913 or something.)
So the fight will continue but at least it’s dragging out longer than expected, giving the entire Internet more time to mobilize defense against it. Also, Lamar Smith – the bill’s uncompromising leader – apparently seems open to letting actual technology experts talk about the potential consequences of the bill.
Throughout this battle I’ve repeatedly seen it claimed that while it’s great to fill out a form or email your Congressmen, making a phone call is what you can really do to get their attention. Now we have proof: Zoe Lofgren, one of the heroes in Congress opposing this bill, actually got on reddit to say:
People should realize that incredible power they have to impact the thinking of their own Representative on the subject. For example, a very intelligent colleague who is not on the Committee approached me today asking about the bill. Why? He had received an urgent and forthright telephone call from a small business person in his district who is tremendously opposed. He wanted to know more about our Open Act Alternative. This is the power that each of you have with your own Representative.
I have noticed lot of commentary on line, many thoughtful comments, tweets, etc. But most Representatives are not as plugged into the net world as many of you are. To be heard, you must speak, directly and either by phone or in person. Tweets, emails, petitions are nice, but they don’t get the same level of attention…
If they represent you in the House, they most likely will be happy to take your call. Please remember if you do call to be not only forthright but also polite. It’s likely that the person answering the phone is some young person who is working long hours for low pay who does not deserve rude treatment.
So there you have it. There are old people who do not understand the Internet but want to decide its fate, and if you take the time to call them they will probably actually listen. Making a phone call is a little scarier and a little less fun than churning out blogs and tweets, but it has a much greater chance of making an impact.
As a conservative, I’m a little disappointed that this bill is spearheaded by a Republican (Lamar Smith, R-TX), but at least the opposition is solidly bi-parisan, including Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Jared Polis (D-CO), Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), and Darrell Issa (R-OH). It’s always nice to prove that at least some Republicans actually don’t want the government colluding with corporations to dictate laws for their favored interests. It’s also always nice to prove that all Democrats don’t want to destroy the country and turn it into communism or something. (A small part of me is actually glad that the bill is led by a Republican because I think it might be galvanizing the left on the Internet a little more strongly against this bill than they would be otherwise. The Tea Party Internet on the right is used to rallying against statist Republicans.)
As for the bill itself, it still seems likely to eventually make it through the Judiciary Committee, which seems to have at least 20 of its 39 members strongly in support. Hopefully the efforts of the underdog opposers and the backing of everyone on the Internet will continue to have an impact. I just called my Congressman Todd Akin – out of office for the weekend, but I let a message. Now it’s your turn.