The Real Problem with SOPA

So Congress has the SOPA bill before it. There is a huge online protest to stop it, which is being very effective.

But next week? Next month?

The SOPA and PIPA bills are just the latest in a fairly long line of bills that are designed to control the internet and will not be the last. Already there is talk about the next bill and how it will be worded better.

The real problem is not the particular bills. It is that our elected politicians even feel a need for any bill at all.

If I remember my Democracy 101, the politicians represent The People. And I sure don't hear The People clamoring for more internet regulation.

So what is really up? We have old congressmen that do not have a clue about the internet. Some lobbyist comes to them with money and supposed expertise. The congressmen don't understand the hidden (or not so hidden) agenda of the lobbyists to preserve outdated business models. And they sure don't understand the internet at all.

The only real hope to come from today's internet protest is that the pile of phone calls from constituents will give the congressmen such a bad taste in their mouth that in the future they will shy away from any bill with the word 'internet' in it.

And the world will then be a better place.

TF

P.S. A recent article here has the opinion that the latest session of congress has been the least productive in history. Meaning they passed the fewest laws. Since when is passing more laws better? How about we measure congressional success by how many laws they repeal.