[All] Fwd: Blackout - Save the Internet today

[dw dietrich]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Dalia Hashad - Avaaz.org" <avaaz at avaaz.org>
Date: Wed, 18 Jan 2012 14:08:49 -0500
Subject: Blackout - Save the Internet today
To: "ddpyx3 at gmail.com" <ddpyx3 at gmail.com>

Dear friends,

Today could be the day we save the free Internet.

The US Congress was poised to pass a law allowing officials to censor
access to any website around the world. But after we delivered our
1.25 million strong petition to the White House, it came out against
the bill and with public pressure at a boiling point even some bill
backers are switching sides. Now, the Wikipedia - led blackout protest
has rocketed the public campaign to the top of the news.

We are turning the tide. But the dark forces of censorship are trying
to revive the bill right now. Let’s bury it for good today. Click to
sign this emergency petition to save the Internet now and if you've
signed already, to email, call, Facebook, and tweet Congressional and
corporate targets. Then send this to everyone:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_internet_action_center_b/?cl=1514191402&v=12083

The bill would make the US one of the worst Internet censors in the
world -- joining the ranks of countries like China and Iran. The Stop
Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) would allow the US
government to block any of us from accessing sites like YouTube,
Google, or Facebook.

We got the White House to switch sides and now our global campaign and
the growing public pressure is forcing Congress to abandon the bill.
Last weekend, Senator Cardin, who cosponsored the legislation,
announced he will vote against it! Then six prominent Republicans
penned a letter requesting that the bill be shelved. Now the lower
house vote is reportedly on ice.

Just days ago we were told it was impossible to stop the corporate
censorship cabal, but now this is at a tipping point and amazingly we
could win! Let’s stop US censorship today. Sign this emergency
petition to save the internet now and forward it to everyone:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_internet_action_center_b/?cl=1514191402&v=12083

This US legislation could infringe on all of our freedoms. But if we
win, we will show that when people unite with one voice from all over
the world we can stop the abuse of power anywhere. We have brought
this bill back from the brink. Now, if we amplify our voices today, we
can put an end to the most powerful Internet censorship threat that
the world has ever seen.

With hope,

Dalia, Ian, Alice, Ricken, Diego, David, and the Avaaz Team

Sources:

White House statement:
https://secure.avaaz.org/whitehouse_internet_statement

Wikipedia joins web blackout in SOPA protest (BBC):
http://www.avaaz.org/bbc_sopa_wikipedia

American Censorship's fact sheet on SOPA:
http://americancensorship.org/infographic.html

Everything you need to know about Congress's online piracy bills in
one post (Washington Post):
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/everything-you-need-to-know-about-congresss-online-piracy-bills-in-one-post/2011/12/16/gIQAz4ggyO_blog.html

SOPA and PIPA sponsors caving in to opposition (Talking Points Memo):
http://idealab.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/01/sopa-and-pipa-sponsors-caving-into-opposition.php

White House will not support SOPA, PIPA (Huffington Post):
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/14/white-house-sopa-pipa_n_1206347.html

Controversial online piracy bill ‘shelved’ until consensus is found (The Hill):
http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/204167-sopa-shelved-until-consensus-is-found
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