So, today the internet is supposed to be taking its stand against SOPA and PIPA by blacking out their sites. For a few reasons, I am not doing so. To be honest, I think it is silly to do for a smaller site like the ones I run.
Wikipedia and the larger sites blacking out their websites are doing so as a symbolic gesture and bring awareness to the masses (I’m sure there are many users out there who still have no flipping idea what SOPA or PIPA is or what it could mean for them). They can get away with it because millions of people view their site everyday seeking information or content that the SOPA/PIPA bill may affect. But the smaller sites who are attempting to make the same gesture? I’m not really convinced it does much of anything. My audience are net savvy people, and pretty much know what is going on out there in the world. They know that SOPA/PIPA is something that could pretty much damage the internet as we know it today. Will they honestly give a flying fuck if my blog is down? Most likely not. Maybe one or two individuals will, but in the overall grand scheme of things it doesn’t really do anything. It is like taking out one grain of rice out of a bowl full of them. Are you really going to miss it? Is that ONE grain going to make a difference? Even if you take out many more, what message does it really send? Its just gone and gone for a short intermittent amount of time. In a few hours (or a day), the grains of rice will come back into my bowl and I don’t have to really concern myself with, “Fuck, I have no more rice.”
Now, I’m not really saying that I am against people taking action or that I am for SOPA/PIPA (that couldn’t be further from the truth). I’m just saying to do something that is actually meaningful if you really care all that much. I can’t really push myself to do something that a.) I don’t feel right about and b.) doesn’t logically make sense to me no matter how I slice it. And trust me… I can easily bend things to make things seem justifiable. Blacking out my sites? I can’t. Even though SOPA/PIPA has the potential to adversely affect the things I love to do online besides gaming, my webpages being blacked out temporarily isn’t really proving to do anything that is meaningful to the cause against these propositions. Cause let us be honest with ourselves here; the people who will be putting to vote on this damn bill aren’t looking at all these webpages thinking, “Well, damn, son. We gotta git this bill turned down cuz these durn webpages are going offline ‘ere.”
This here? This is what I am going to do. I am going DIRECTLY to the people who will shape our future. Not the ordinary Jack and Jill. The people I voted into power will care if I reelect them or not. Keep tabs on WHO votes for or against it, or who is going for or against it and let them know you support or are against them and why. They are there to serve you because, hey, they were voted into that power. Talk to em. Cause taking down a page for a day ain’t really doing shit, and I think if you want to really make a difference then going the extra mile to contact the powers that were voted to be will go a much longer way than taking down your website for a day.