The Times They Are a-Changin'

There's a new force in town, a force who's time has come, where tech enables the common man to fight back and make his voice heard, thanks to the net, the last bastion of freedom in the world. Additionally, this is not to say the web is perfect because the net, if not properly understood, can hurt, humiliate and steal you blind yet, at the same time, if properly managed, becomes a gateway to knowledge, collaboration and creativity at levels unimagined just a few years ago. Based on just what has happened, the possibility of us taking back our country becomes real because the internet and the hardware and software constructs that drive it, enable our voice to be heard at levels the insular bought and paid for politicos in DC can no longer safely afford to ignore in spite of K Street bribes and surreptitious corporate funding of campaigns to keep these compliant fools in power. 

Yet on Wednesday this formidable old guard was forced to make way for the new as Web powerhouses backed by Internet activists rallied opposition to the legislation through Internet blackouts and cascading criticism, sending an unmistakable message to lawmakers grappling with new media issues: Don’t mess with the Internet.

As a result, the legislative battle over two once-obscure bills to combat the piracy of American movies, music, books and writing on the World Wide Web may prove to be a turning point for the way business is done in Washington. It represented a moment when the new economy rose up against the old.

Last rejoinder, if SOPA/PIPA passed, my posting of Dylan's album cover, even though it's being used under fair use auspices, would be illegal, something to think about when talking about the net and Article One of the Constitution - the right of free speech.