Heh, I got there, looked my password up in Gmail and was all ready to sign the petition and then... turns out I signed it a while ago and forgot. I love it when I act consistently without realizing it.
I also love seeing this on HN--improving awareness of this issue is of utmost importance.
It's not dead yet: While introduced last month, Wednesday was just the first hearing regarding HR3261. The House Judiciary Committee will reconvene on it in a few weeks. (http://staff.tumblr.com/post/12930076128/a-historic-thing) It's more widely known thanks to yesterday's mass movement, but the bill is still far from what anyone could call "dead."
Have we all not yet come to the conclusion that the white house petition board is a rarely-checked suggestion box with the minute chance an intern might post a formulaic and meaningless response?
It has more value than that. It gives visibility to important issues, and to the fact that they're being ignored. And that results in news stories that increase that visibility even more. I plan to continue signing these petitions.
Yes. That's what happened with the patent petition: a meaningless response. But then someone created another petition to re-consider the patent petition. Even if we have to go in circles at some point it has to stop. Media will blog about it:
Uh, why are we petitioning the White House? Do we hope that Obama will veto it when the bought-and-paid-for congress rubber-stamps it? Oh, just answered my own question.
PS The link doesn't work. It seems whitehouse.gov is under construction. <shakes head>
I didn't get much respond even though the patent issue seems as important as SOPA. Wallawe said that this petition system is better than sending hundreds of letters to congressmen:
Being in Europe (the UK), I am all for SOPA. If it goes through, the EU will get all antsy and we'll end up with our own Internet without the controlling interests of the US.
37 comments
[ 4.7 ms ] story [ 80.4 ms ] threadWorking link (for me at least).
Page under heavy load?
Who'd have thought we don't like this bill going through? Now, listen to the people, government.
I also love seeing this on HN--improving awareness of this issue is of utmost importance.
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20111104_3070.php
and using petitions as toilet paper will not be enough.
"Petition us! ((Unless it fits our PR agenda,) We'll be sure to ignore it.)"
PS The link doesn't work. It seems whitehouse.gov is under construction. <shakes head>
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3206604
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3198244
I didn't get much respond even though the patent issue seems as important as SOPA. Wallawe said that this petition system is better than sending hundreds of letters to congressmen:
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3244559
It's win-win for the EU member states.