4 ms·

Would you consider open-sourcing the preparation of your address? You'd still retain full control of what you actually say (how would anyone stop you?) but you

Would you consider open-sourcing the preparation of your address? You'd still retain full control of what you actually say (how would anyone stop you?) but you could potentially have a lot of very sharp researchers/designers/copywriters (hilariously enough, I suspect pure programming skills would be the least useful here) going over every inch of it and providing statistics, infographics, drawings, suggestions, etc. Between HN and /r/SOPA, it could very well be helpful.

niels_olson 15y ago
Well, since he can do whatever he wants, why not just see if the internets can do it for him regardless? https://www.stypi.com/niels/kn0thingComments https://www.stypi.com/niels/kn0thingComments update after 30 minutes: 12 people have visited to stare and possibly replay my one abandoned attempt. No one has done anything. Anyone care to help?
kn0thing 15y ago
I tried this with a Google doc on /r/technology before my last trip to DC and it failed miserably, but I'd love to try again. http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/meg8w/im_hoping_to_testify_before_congress_on_thursday/ http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/meg8w/im_hoping_...
- pvarangot 15y ago
  I know your personal convictions in crowdsourcing this kind of stuff may be completely opposed to my recommendations... but please consider contacting specialists who you may know by their contribution to social sites instead of relying on crowdsourcing. It's my belief that the true power of online social communities rely on the kind of people that wouldn't interact with each other if it not where because of the internet. I particularly think that for example tptacek or trotsky (the HN user, however she/he has himself called as in meatspace eludes me) would be interesting people, where I in your position, to discuss this with at least briefly. I myself have certain first hand experience with internet protocols, information security, and left leaning politics, and my arguments would look like crayon written babbling compared to what they may come up with in a discussion about SOPA.
- invalidOrTaken 15y ago
  What happened with the Google doc? Did it just get inundated with memes or something? A GDoc might not be the answer here (my mind is actually drawn to Google Wave for some reason---something with a short feedback loop), and there may be no technological answer(someone smart [who may even end up being me]: this is a pain point worth pursuing), but I do know that without a core basic skeleton and background info (if all you've got so far is a list of points you want to hit, that's the "source" of your address), there's nothing the community can do. I'm not trying to be pushy, just realistic. Good luck!
- Natsu 15y ago
  Well, we can at least arm you with all the helpful information we can dig up. Personally, I would hammer on a few main points: SOPA is ineffective, expensive and dangerous. Build from there. Lead with your best arguments, cull the weak ones, hammer on them with the points they're least able to refute. * Ineffective Australia had a bill like this (which is dead... for now), but also did some trials. Read the reports to see how big a failure that was (scroll down to "Live filtering trials"): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_Australia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_Austral... Even if you have full control of a network, it's not so easy to keep pirates off of it. Why else would there be pirates on the RIAA's own network? https://torrentfreak.com/riaa-someone-else-is-pirating-through-out-ip-addresses-111221/ https://torrentfreak.com/riaa-someone-else-is-pirating-throu... And there are already countermeasures, so the law has been rendered obsolete even before being passed: http://www.itnews.com.au/News/285170,firefox-add-on-circumvents-sopa-blocking.aspx http://www.itnews.com.au/News/285170,firefox-add-on-circumve... * Expensive As you of all people know, these new requirements would be incredibly taxing for startups, preventing new jobs from being created. This would require every site to implement filters, slowing everything, raising costs and blocking innocent things by mistake. The CATO institute has shown, using the MPAA's own research, that it won't even save one job all told: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120104/04545217274/cato-institute-digs-into-mpaas-own-research-to-show-that-sopa-wouldnt-save-single-net-job.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120104/04545217274/cato-i... Their numbers are overblown: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20100801/17431810439.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20100801/17431810439.shtml http://www.publicknowledge.org/blog/playing-numbers-why-sopa-still-wont-solve-int http://www.publicknowledge.org/blog/playing-numbers-why-sopa... How much will this cost? I could make up a number. Indeed, a lot of numbers have been made up in support of SOPA already. We've already established that it will be ineffective, so the benefits are approximately zero, making it difficult to justify any cost. So rather than inventing numbers, I will point instead to what I do know, that these are the people who will be paying the price: https://www.cdt.org/report/growing-chorus-opposition-stop-online-piracy-act https://www.cdt.org/report/growing-chorus-opposition-stop-on... * Dangerous Whether they're trying to hijack DNS requests or web pages, censoring firewalls are bad for security, because if you control the device doing the hijacking, you can use it for whatever. Incidentally, existing products like SmartFilter already perform MITM attacks every time you try to visit an https page. In theory, the organization is supposed to add their key to everyone's computer and then they sign a bunch of fake sites with the firewall. When they don't bother doing that, you see it attempting to hack your connection all the time. http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20111214/18075617093/former-dhs-assistant-secretary-stewart-baker-sopa-20-still-disaster-cybersecurity.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20111214/18075617093/former... Or you can refer to these: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120109/10413817347/co-chair-congressional-cybersecurity-caucus-says-sopa-would-interfere-with-online-security.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120109/10413817347/co-cha... http://www.publicknowledge.org/blog/managers-amendment-sopa-doesnt-fix-whats-aili http://www.publicknowledge.org/blog/managers-amendment-sopa-... Also, it undermines our own State Department's efforts to promote freedom & democracy abroad. http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120105/13282317290/us-state-dept-dont-censor-internet-unless-we-order-you-to-as-we-did-spain.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120105/13282317290/us-sta... Anyhow, I hope this is enough. Please make any use of this you can. Good luck!
- rst 15y ago
  Possible topic: bogus take-down requests from the entertainment industry. Some examples: * Phony copyright claim suppressing a news report (about this very issue): http://boingboing.net/2011/12/15/universal-music-uses-false-cop.html http://boingboing.net/2011/12/15/universal-music-uses-false-... * A blog that got seized for a year (under the current DHS program) for putting up four clips that had been given to it _by the record company_ for promotional purposes: http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-57339569-281/dhs-abruptly-abandons-copyright-seizure-of-hip-hop-blog/ http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-57339569-281/dhs-abruptly-... There's plenty more; EFF probably has a more complete list on file someplace...

niels_olson 15y ago

Well, since he can do whatever he wants, why not just see if the internets can do it for him regardless? https://www.stypi.com/niels/kn0thingComments https://www.stypi.com/niels/kn0thingComments update after 30 minutes: 12 people have visited to stare and possibly replay my one abandoned attempt. No one has done anything. Anyone care to help?

kn0thing 15y ago

I tried this with a Google doc on /r/technology before my last trip to DC and it failed miserably, but I'd love to try again. http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/meg8w/im_hoping_to_testify_before_congress_on_thursday/ http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/meg8w/im_hoping_...

pvarangot 15y ago
I know your personal convictions in crowdsourcing this kind of stuff may be completely opposed to my recommendations... but please consider contacting specialists who you may know by their contribution to social sites instead of relying on crowdsourcing. It's my belief that the true power of online social communities rely on the kind of people that wouldn't interact with each other if it not where because of the internet. I particularly think that for example tptacek or trotsky (the HN user, however she/he has himself called as in meatspace eludes me) would be interesting people, where I in your position, to discuss this with at least briefly. I myself have certain first hand experience with internet protocols, information security, and left leaning politics, and my arguments would look like crayon written babbling compared to what they may come up with in a discussion about SOPA.
invalidOrTaken 15y ago
What happened with the Google doc? Did it just get inundated with memes or something? A GDoc might not be the answer here (my mind is actually drawn to Google Wave for some reason---something with a short feedback loop), and there may be no technological answer(someone smart [who may even end up being me]: this is a pain point worth pursuing), but I do know that without a core basic skeleton and background info (if all you've got so far is a list of points you want to hit, that's the "source" of your address), there's nothing the community can do. I'm not trying to be pushy, just realistic. Good luck!
Natsu 15y ago
Well, we can at least arm you with all the helpful information we can dig up. Personally, I would hammer on a few main points: SOPA is ineffective, expensive and dangerous. Build from there. Lead with your best arguments, cull the weak ones, hammer on them with the points they're least able to refute. * Ineffective Australia had a bill like this (which is dead... for now), but also did some trials. Read the reports to see how big a failure that was (scroll down to "Live filtering trials"): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_Australia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_Austral... Even if you have full control of a network, it's not so easy to keep pirates off of it. Why else would there be pirates on the RIAA's own network? https://torrentfreak.com/riaa-someone-else-is-pirating-through-out-ip-addresses-111221/ https://torrentfreak.com/riaa-someone-else-is-pirating-throu... And there are already countermeasures, so the law has been rendered obsolete even before being passed: http://www.itnews.com.au/News/285170,firefox-add-on-circumvents-sopa-blocking.aspx http://www.itnews.com.au/News/285170,firefox-add-on-circumve... * Expensive As you of all people know, these new requirements would be incredibly taxing for startups, preventing new jobs from being created. This would require every site to implement filters, slowing everything, raising costs and blocking innocent things by mistake. The CATO institute has shown, using the MPAA's own research, that it won't even save one job all told: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120104/04545217274/cato-institute-digs-into-mpaas-own-research-to-show-that-sopa-wouldnt-save-single-net-job.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120104/04545217274/cato-i... Their numbers are overblown: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20100801/17431810439.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20100801/17431810439.shtml http://www.publicknowledge.org/blog/playing-numbers-why-sopa-still-wont-solve-int http://www.publicknowledge.org/blog/playing-numbers-why-sopa... How much will this cost? I could make up a number. Indeed, a lot of numbers have been made up in support of SOPA already. We've already established that it will be ineffective, so the benefits are approximately zero, making it difficult to justify any cost. So rather than inventing numbers, I will point instead to what I do know, that these are the people who will be paying the price: https://www.cdt.org/report/growing-chorus-opposition-stop-online-piracy-act https://www.cdt.org/report/growing-chorus-opposition-stop-on... * Dangerous Whether they're trying to hijack DNS requests or web pages, censoring firewalls are bad for security, because if you control the device doing the hijacking, you can use it for whatever. Incidentally, existing products like SmartFilter already perform MITM attacks every time you try to visit an https page. In theory, the organization is supposed to add their key to everyone's computer and then they sign a bunch of fake sites with the firewall. When they don't bother doing that, you see it attempting to hack your connection all the time. http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20111214/18075617093/former-dhs-assistant-secretary-stewart-baker-sopa-20-still-disaster-cybersecurity.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20111214/18075617093/former... Or you can refer to these: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120109/10413817347/co-chair-congressional-cybersecurity-caucus-says-sopa-would-interfere-with-online-security.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120109/10413817347/co-cha... http://www.publicknowledge.org/blog/managers-amendment-sopa-doesnt-fix-whats-aili http://www.publicknowledge.org/blog/managers-amendment-sopa-... Also, it undermines our own State Department's efforts to promote freedom & democracy abroad. http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120105/13282317290/us-state-dept-dont-censor-internet-unless-we-order-you-to-as-we-did-spain.shtml http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120105/13282317290/us-sta... Anyhow, I hope this is enough. Please make any use of this you can. Good luck!
rst 15y ago
Possible topic: bogus take-down requests from the entertainment industry. Some examples: * Phony copyright claim suppressing a news report (about this very issue): http://boingboing.net/2011/12/15/universal-music-uses-false-cop.html http://boingboing.net/2011/12/15/universal-music-uses-false-... * A blog that got seized for a year (under the current DHS program) for putting up four clips that had been given to it _by the record company_ for promotional purposes: http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-57339569-281/dhs-abruptly-abandons-copyright-seizure-of-hip-hop-blog/ http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-57339569-281/dhs-abruptly-... There's plenty more; EFF probably has a more complete list on file someplace...