Columnist remarks on piracy acts and Colbert’s plans.
Wikipedia blackout: What piracy has to do with
Wikimedia’s Wales tweeting for students to start
homework early
David Demic
The U.S. Senate is currently working on some bad news for copyright pirates, namely the PROTECT IP Act and Stop Online Piracy Act. PIPA and SOPA were designed to give copyright holders and federal enforcement the power to shut off access to foreign websites that host pirated movies, music and all other illegal study distractions.
Sure, this reminds one of how the U.S. criticized China for blocking Google, but at least anti-piracy big brother measures uphold the virtuous laws of protecting the purses of the super rich.
The homework double-whammy comes in the form of protests by popular internet sites including Reddit, Minecraft and the Wikimedia foundation, which all will join in a blackout protest on Wednesday. So, if you were thinking about using Wikipedia as your premier research, better get it done soon. Senate majority leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) scheduled a critical cloture vote on PIPA for Jan. 24.
Either cross your fingers or join in on the protests, college pirates. The alternative will feel much like your high school computer firewall against Facebook and such. Except on a national scale.
A joke within a joke: Why Stephen Colbert plans to run for President of the United States of South Carolina
In case you had your hopes up after the Jan. 12 episode of “The Colbert Report,” where Colbert announced his plan to run as “President of the United States of South Carolina,” get ready for a big disappointment. South Carolina does not allow for write-ins. Of course, Colbert’s announcement was nothing more than satiric commentary.
Stephen Colbert announced he would run for "President of the United States of South Carolina on his satirical program, "The Colbert Report".
In 2010 the Supreme Court gave corporations free-speech rights that allow them to spend unlimited amounts of money in political advertisement. This also allows for political action committees to receive unlimited donations from anonymous donors.
Colbert referred to the concept as a “campaign finance glory hole,” where “you stick your money in the hole, the other person accepts your donation and because it’s happening anonymously, no one feels dirty.”
According to the Colbert PAC Wikipedia entry (look it up before it’s too late!), Colbert is currently looking for a billionaire donor, or “sugar daddy.”
How corporations got away with being “people” is beyond the scope of this column, but it sure makes the U.S. political system seem like even more of a joke.