bellfry:

carathebug:

WHOOOOO HOOOOOOO

As Americans, we find ourselves, on Independence Day, in the awkward position of thanking Europe for our freedoms.

Seriously, thank you, everyone in Europe, for stopping ACTA. You’ve shown what truly engaged people and responsive leaders can do.

carathebug:

WHOOOOO HOOOOOOO

occupyallstreets:

The Pirate Bay to defy international crackdown on filesharing websites

The Pirate Bay is planning to defy an international crackdown on filesharing websites after the high court in London signalled that the site should be blocked in the UK.

The filesharing giant said it will bypass attempts to shut it down with a more covert system for illicitly downloading films and music.

The act of defiance comes as the net begins to tighten on some of the web’s biggest filesharing sites, following the closure of Kim Dotcom’s Megaupload by US authorities last month.

The high court is expected to tell UK internet service providers, such as BT and BSkyB, to block access to The Pirate Bay for UK users. The court ruled on Monday that the site breaches copyright laws on a large scale.

But The Pirate Bay has said it will sidestep the crackdown by “our common enemies” with a new downloading system to be unveiled next week.

The Pirate Bay made this statement on its official Facebook page:

“As we’ve said before, the 29th of february is the last day we offer torrents in it’s current form. Then it will be all magnets, which works pretty much the same. Before you go “oh ma goood why why why?!!!11”, please understand that it’s a necessary move in the saga known as The Pirate Bay. Not having torrents will be a bit cheaper for us but it will also make it harder for our common enemies to stop us (which they can’t. but everything that makes it harder for them brings more lolz to our lips).

So please get used to magnets, cause they are here to stay. 
Oh, one more thing: FUCK acta!”

The Pirate Bay first moved towards magnet links in November 2009, but this is the first time the site has pledged to abandon torrent files entirely

Read More

neetainari:

There’s a protest that could do with attendees!

yesyoucanslyther-in:

suomu:

yaoitalia:

impulssi:

RAKKAAT SUOMALAISET SEURAJAAT ALLEKIRJOITTAKAA TÄMÄ JA LEVITTÄKÄÄ SANAA.

SENSUURIA VASTAAN, AVOIMEN INTERNETIN PUOLESTA

ALLEKIRJOITUKSIA ON NYT JO 981 MUTTA LISÄÄ TARVITAAN

ALLEKIRJOTTAKAA

ALLEKIRJOTTAKAA

ALLEKIRJOTTAKAA

^ ALLEKIRJOITTAKAA

ALLEKIRJOITTAKAA !!!!!!!!!

lordmeowrail:

( I’d like to ask that anyone who reads this to PLEASE reblog this so there isn’t a widespread panic and violent protests. Tumblr needs to stop posting partial information. It is counterproductive and we need to know the truth so we don’t give up and think the fight is over. )

There wasn’t a vote. It was a signing and the voting isn’t going to happen for a while.

“The committee will most likely hold its vote on the ratification of the treaty in April or May, with a full parliament vote expected in June.” - Source

“The countries signed the treaty, which aims to harmonise copyright enforcement across much of the world, in Tokyo on Thursday. However, the signatures of the EU member states and the EU itself will count for nothing unless the European Parliament gives its approval to ACTA in June, and digital activists have urged citizens to lobby their MEPs against voting yes.”

“”The signature ceremony in Tokyo was just another step in the procedure that allows ACTA to now be taken to the European Parliament for a free, open and vigorous debate that we fully support,” he said.” - Source

The European Parliament will be debating ACTA and activists are urging people to contact their MEPs putting forward arguments opposing ACTA. The European Parliament and each of the member states must approve ACTA before it goes into effect in the EU

Source: The Inquirer (http://s.tt/15p5o)

The European Parliament will be debating ACTA and activists are urging people to contact their MEPs putting forward arguments opposing ACTA. The European Parliament and each of the member states must approve ACTA before it goes into effect in the EU

Source: The Inquirer (http://s.tt/15p5o)

“The European Parliament will be debating ACTA and activists are urging people to contact their MEPs putting forward arguments opposing ACTA. The European Parliament and each of the member states must approve ACTA before it goes into effect in the EU.” - Source

“But the political atmosphere in the EU remains very much in flux. The key to the future is that, unlike the US, the EU has admitted that ACTA is a binding international agreement and therefore requires parliamentary approval. But Parliamentary approval in the EU is in doubt.” - Source

Please read this. It has a list of countries that have signed, the countries that have not, and links and information on what you  can do to help out:

http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-01/26/eu-signs-up-to-acta

Once again, please reblog this wherever you can so the word gets around.

kelly-butter-tarts:

3liza:

ACTA passed one of the several voting gates it needs to get through before becoming law.

It was ratified in Poland last night.  This was the scene at Polish parliament afterwards, as (presumably) a bloc of anti-ACTA politicians expressed their displeasure and, perhaps without knowing it, foretell of the Anonymous repercussions to this bill.

Some things you should know:

• Online petitions are meaningless.  While they are well-intentioned and organized, the signing of a digital petition takes about twenty seconds, and does not require that you leave your beanbag chair in the coal cellar.  Politicians know this, and pay just as much attention to online petitions as is warranted by a “political action” that is literally less strenuous than leaving a YouTube comment.
• Nothing except direct action is going to do a goddamn thing.  This means getting out in the street, it means DDoSing, it means vicious and widespread boycotts, site blackouts, and other strongarm tactics that actually impact the flow of money from corporations to lobbyists to politicians.  How do you, as a tiny flailing consumer, do this?  You can’t, really.  You can join up with groups that are intent on doing actions that actually mean something, adding your voice to a chorus of hundreds or thousands, instead of screaming alone.  You can contact celebrities, the spokespeople of our time, as ask them to leverage their followers on the issue.  You can write to Tumblr and ask for more blackouts.  None of these things will be very effective, so don’t be too disappointed when they don’t work, but they sure as fuck are more effective than online petitions, and the intense response to SOPA by corporations and consumers was responsible for getting it “tabled” (not dead, but dreaming lies).
• ACTA was already signed by Obama in September of 2011.  He had been praising the bill for over a year prior, and signed it without reservation.  Most of us didn’t hear about it, and he likely used the 9/11 coverage to make sure of that.
  
  
• Eventually, one of these bills will pass, and the pro-corporate laws will go into effect.  Expect it.  Be prepared.  Learn to circumvent this garbage and you’ll have a leg up when the feds shut down the internet as we know it.
  
  
• The best thing you can do now is install Tor and learn how to use it.  Tor is free software and an open network that helps you defend against a form of network surveillance that threatens personal freedom and privacy, confidential business activities and relationships, and state security known as traffic analysis.  In order to circumvent the coming corporate takeover of the web, we’re going to have to go underground, creating a sub-internet of encrypted nodes known as a “darknet”.  It’s probably going to be like the internet was in the beginning, with most people only seeing what AOL wanted them to see, and only a small group of super-nerds existing outside of that bubble in the “real” internet.  It’ll take another twenty years for them to catch up to us again.
  
  
• Welcome to the grim cyberpunk future.

Signal boost. I need to figure out Tor.

anoncentral:

Consider this your call to action.

I know that we all love this site as an expression of our individuality, but the fact of the matter is, we are under attack. And what we do is distracting us from that fact.

The American government now has all the records from Megaupload’s servers. Do you know what that means for you? That means that if you have ever used Megaupload, the government has your fucking number. And they will come for you.

You doubt what I’m saying? The government has been after Jamie Rasset, a single mother, now for years for $1.9 MILLION for downloading 24 songs from Kazaa. She’s been appealing, and they’re still coming after her.

$1.9 MILLION. FOR 24 LOUSY SONGS. And they will not let off.

Now look at your music folder. How many songs do you have? How many movies, how many books? It’s going to cost you $150,000 for EVERY SINGLE PIECE OF COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. How much are you going to be out?

And you can’t escape it. Even if you claim bankruptcy, you can’t escape it. They’ll toss you in jail because you can’t pay.

So no matter what you do, you. Are. FUCKED.

And this is your call to arms. This is when you stand up. I don’t care if you’re a kawaii blog, a grunge blog, a nerd blog, a pony blog. It doesn’t matter what you post. Because I am calling on you to get this word out. Think it doesn’t affect you? Just wanna bury your head in the sand? Fine. Guess what? The government doesn’t care how much you ignore it.

In fact, they’re counting on it. Because if you ignore it, it makes it so much easier for them to come after you.

You cannot hide from the government, because they will hunt you down like a rabid animal. And in ignoring this, you are CONDONING THEIR ACTIONS.

Imagine this, for a moment. You go to a website, enjoy their content. You link it to your blog. But the site you linked has copyrighted material. I hope you’re ready to land in jail. Because it’s already happened. Richard O’Dwyer, A UK RESIDENT, is in the process of being extradited to the US for doing just that: LINKING TO COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL.

Look at all those gifs you have, all the ones you’ve posted. Starting to realize how this is going to affect you? Everything you have on your computer that’s copyrighted, everything you’ve ever posted that’s now on the tumblr servers, if those are seized, becomes evidence. Anything you ever linked to on Facebook, evidence, because it’s there permanently. Even deleting it does no good, because it’s still there on the server.

If you’re still not convinced this is going to affect you, goddess, I envy your ignorance. Because the fact of the matter is, they will come after you for this, eventually. It may not be today, it may not be tomorrow, but it will happen.

You need to make your voice heard.

If you are a musician, use your voice and your music to speak up.

Artists, paint the world with the word of this injustice.

Bloggers, writers, anyone with any access to social media, SHOUT IT FROM THE ROOFTOPS.

WE CANNOT ALLOW THIS INJUSTICE TO STAND. WE CANNOT GO SILENTLY. I AM CALLING ON ALL OF YOU NOW TO MAKE YOUR VOICES HEARD BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!

I AM CALLING ON ALL OF YOU TO TAKE 5 MINUTES OUT OF YOUR DAY AND SPEAK YOUR MIND. LET IT ALL OUT. SAY WHAT YOU REALLY THINK! If we’re all fucked, and this is coming down on our heads, THEN GET THE WORD OUT NOW!

WE CANNOT BE DIVIDED BY OUR DIFFERENCES ANY LONGER.

WE CANNOT ALLOW THEM TO SILENCE US.

WE CANNOT AND WILL NOT ALLOW THIS TO STAND. BECAUSE WE ARE THE VOICE OF THE WORLD!

That’s right, you. The person reading this right now. Think of it. Millions of voices from around the world, all speaking out, singing the same song in perfect harmony, saying WE WILL NOT BE SILENT IN THE FACE OF THIS OPPRESSION.

Because they want your information. They want you to be complacent, a happy little sheep in their giant corral. Because the more sedate you are, the easier it is to slowly steal your rights until you’re nothing but a mindless automaton, another cog in the machine.

And do you really want that? Do you want the reality of Huxley and Orwell to come to light, Big Brother watching our every move, monitoring our spending and our viewing habits, coming down like the Sword of Damocles hanging over your head, barely there, only a hair holding it up from swinging down and taking you?

Or do you want to be the ones to wield the power? Do you want to be the ones saying “NO. WE BROUGHT YOU HERE, WE CAN OUST YOU!”

If there is one thing I’ve learned over the past year, it is that the people have power. Look at Egypt, at Libya. The people took back the power, and it changed things. They stood up to their government and affected change, because they stood up as a UNITED FRONT!

And that, my dear Tumblrers, is what I ask of you. Reblog this if you can’t think of the words to say. Say it with music that you love, with your own message attached. Make a gif if it’s your form of expression.

BUT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DON’T JUST SIT THERE AND DO NOTHING. It doesn’t matter how old you are, or where you live. It doesn’t matter what race, what religion, what gender you are, or your orientation. It doesn’t matter if your blog only covers certain subjects.

Because soon, the way things are going, this will all be gone if we don’t fight.

The internet, as we know it, will no longer exist.

There will be no more free media. No more access to the television shows you love so much. No more free access to music. No more free articles on the latest fashions, or the latest trends. No, this will all be gone, replaced by whatever the government sees fit.

So please, PLEASE, if you love the internet, if you love your fandom, your fashion, your gifs, your music, your movies, your facebook, your twitter, your blog, your anything that you get from the net, MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD.

I’ll close this essay with a poem that truly does fit, for all of you that don’t believe this will affect you. I’m changing it a bit to better fit the subject matter of this essay/rant/plea:

First they came for the downloaders,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a downloader.

Then they came for the youtubers,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a youtuber.

Then they came for the bloggers,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a blogger.

and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a social networker.

Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.

Thank you for your time. Goodnight, my fellow tumblrers. I hope to continue seeing you for a long time to come…If not, it was an honor blogging with you all. And ask yourself this: If they come for you, how will you feel knowing you could have helped to prevent this if you’d just spoken up in the first place?

specialshera:

ademska:

“As we noted in our post about people just discovering ACTA this week, some had put together an odd White House petition, asking the White House to “end ACTA.” The oddity was over the fact that the President just signed ACTA a few months ago. What struck us as a more interesting question was the serious constitutional questions of whether or not Obama is even allowed to sign ACTA.

In case you haven’t been following this or don’t spend your life dealing in Constitutional minutiae, the debate is over the nature of the agreement. A treaty between the US and other nations requires Senate approval. However, there’s a “simpler” form of an international agreement, known as an “executive agreement,” which allows the President to sign the agreement without getting approval. In theory, this also limits the ability of the agreement to bind Congress. In practice… however, international agreements are international agreements. Some legal scholars have suggested that the only real difference between a treaty and an executive agreement is the fact that… the president calls any treaty an “executive agreement” if he’s unsure if the Senate would approve it. Another words, the difference is basically in how the President presents it.

That said, even if Obama has declared ACTA an executive agreement (while those in Europe insist that it’s a binding treaty), there is a very real Constitutional question here: can it actually be an executive agreement? The law is clear that the only things that can be covered by executive agreements are things that involve items that are solely under the President’s mandate. That is, you can’t sign an executive agreement that impacts the things Congress has control over. But here’s the thing: intellectual property, in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution, is an issue given to Congress, not the President. Thus, there’s a pretty strong argument that the president legally cannot sign any intellectual property agreements as an executive agreement and, instead, must submit them to the Senate.

It looks like folks have figured this out, and there’s now a new White House petition, demanding that ACTA be brought to the Senate before it can be ratified/signed by the US. This petition should be a lot more interesting than the other one if it gets enough signatures (so encourage people to sign, please!).”

(via techdirt.com)

Reblog this, because it’s MUCH more important and potentially effective than petitions asking President Obama to reverse his position.

Right now, Republicans are more anti-SOPA/PIPA (and by extension ACTA) than Democrats. If we question Obama’s authority to override Congress, they’re going to latch on and help us get this out of his hands, and at the very least they’ll bring it to public attention.

Believe it or not, Republicans are our biggest ally in the internet war right now, and this is the kind of politics fight they love most.

I’m really sorry for spamming you guys about this, but … yeaaah. :T