There is a bit of a battle brewing on the internet. And there will be a black-out of some services (and ‘Censored’ messages).

One side says: The USA has drafted legislation (SOPA and PIPA) that would censor creativity. It will damage the free and open internet. The legislation goes further than necessary.

The other side claims that the legislation is not aimed at stifling creativity; rather, it is being put in place to stop the theft of intellectual property (movies, music, etc.). The legislation will put the onus on the providers and not on the individual, and this is why the providers are upset.

I have a feeling that the truth lies somewhere in the middle, as it usually does in disputes.

There is definitely a problem with theft of creative material (e.g.: downloading movies and music for free has become an excepted practice), but we should be careful of censorship of any kind.

I’m curious to see how this plays out…