An interesting development in the USA. The internet chapter of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, a secret copyright treaty whose text Obama's administration refused to disclose due to "national security" concerns, has leaked:

That ISPs have to proactively police copyright on user-contributed material. This means that it will be impossible to run a service like Flickr or YouTube or Blogger, since hiring enough lawyers to ensure that the mountain of material uploaded every second isn't infringing will exceed any hope of profitability.

That ISPs have to cut off the Internet access of accused copyright infringers or face liability. This means that your entire family could be denied to the internet -- and hence to civic participation, health information, education, communications, and their means of earning a living -- if one member is accused of copyright infringement, without access to a trial or counsel.

That the whole world must adopt US-style "notice-and-takedown" rules that require ISPs to remove any material that is accused -- again, without evidence or trial -- of infringing copyright.

This has proved a disaster in the US and other countries, where it provides an easy means of censoring material, just by accusing it of infringing copyright.
Mandatory prohibitions on breaking DRM, even if doing so for a lawful purpose (e.g., to make a work available to disabled people; for archival preservation; because you own the copyrighted work that is locked up with DRM)

[source]

OK... So it was nice knowing you, mr internet. You have been a great gift to humankind. As with all things, we the disgusting race, must put and end to your glory. The power of the elites is undermined with the internet so you must be censored.

Everyone, it is time to revolt!

I'm with you.

So, the question every guy is asking .... how will this affect online porn ?

This treaty is giving in to the corporation allowing them more tools to milk money from the citizens.

Superpowers flex their wings
Hold the world on puppet strings
Egos will feed
While citizens bleed
That's always the way it goes

When will the world listen to reason
I've a feeling it'll be a long time
When will the truth come in to season
I've a feeling it'll be a long time

I would see the worst case scenario/outcome as being Chinese-style net censorship in both the EU and the US. Bringing Russia into the fold is another matter altogether. Zbigniew Brezinski's son was interviewed by Russia Today (its on the dish) last night on this and several other issues. It was all quite disturbing. The Russian presenter and some 'objective' experts on the panel very basically had a great laugh and told the guy from Washington to go eat his liver! So there is this other perspective and the possibly insurmountably problematic fact of the global nature of the internet. Plus the Chinese 'style' of government allows for the enforcement and sustainability of net censorship -nerds in garages are, shall we say, disinclined when it comes to the continual task of circumventing firewalls. But then again, Obama must mean business, he is after all speaking in terms of "weapons of mass disruption" (direct quote, no joke).

Isn't it possible that we can create our own ISP,that has no organised structure,so that an attempt to shut it down would be impossible.

Data havens are going to be popping up all over the world,creating new multi billioniares .

Hear hear...

And again, we see that our nice governments are elected to protect corporations and multinationals, against us, taxpaying lowlifes.

With religion, we were born with the original sin (Its like being a slave to your debt by default, pardon the pun, so the very notion is indoctrinated into the minds of the sheep).

With laws such as these we will all be born with the original infraction.

There is wifi technology that can go a distance of over 100 miles,and can be put together using modified satellite dishes.

This might be a good opportunity for Nader, he already runs on an anti-corporatist ticket, he should latch himself to the plight of internet users's freedoms as well, it should be made plain to these governments just how much support they could lose if they try to crack down on the internet.

__________________
"The whig historian stands on the summit of the twentieth century, and organized his scheme of history from the point of view of his own day... He can say that events must be judged by their ultimate issues (teleology), which, since we can trace them no farther, we must at least follow down to the present."


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"Those who control the present, control the past and those who control the past control the future." George Orwell

This isn't really a threat to the freedom of the most tech savy internet user,but for the older people.