The Blog Blackout
This press release has gone out on Scoop:
NZ Political Bloggers To Blackout Websites 23 Feb. In S92a Protest
“On Monday morning bloggers from across the political spectrum will be taking their blogs down in a “blog out” to protest the coming into force on the 28th of S92A of the Copyright Act.
Scores and scores of bloggers will be taking part, including Public Address, Scoop, Kiwiblog, The Standard, No Right Turn, Frog Blog, Whale Oil, Not PC, No Minister, Just Left, The Hand Mirror, Roar Prawn, Policy Net, Kiwi Politico etc etc. Supporters of almost every political party are taking part – National, Labour, Greens, ACT, Alliance, and Libertarianz, as well as non political blogs like the popular Television blog Throng, and the Scoop news site and NZ’s leading technology news community Geekzone.
To say we represent a diverse range of views is putting it mildly. Normally we disagree on everything. Even e=mc^2 can be regarded as a highly debatable proposition on our blogs.
So for us to all unite together, from across the political spectrum, to condemn S92A of the Copyright Act should send a signal as to how bad the law is. A law which can see people lose their Internet access on the basis of unproven allegations should have no place in the New Zealand statute books.
We don’t care who voted for the law in the first place. We just want it stopped. We call on either Parliament to repeal that section or for the Government to delay it from coming into force on 28 February.
The normal content on our blogs will be made inaccessible on Monday morning, and our blogs will refer people to the online petition organized by the Creative Freedom Foundation. “
ENDS
Details on how to blackout your website are here. We’ll have some further info on how to make the rest of your site inaccessible, if you wish to, over the weekend.
If your blog will be joining the blackout on Monday, go to this page and register.
February 20th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
For goodness sake… when will people learn?
This only makes everyone involved look even sillier than they already are.
Go read my blog on how these silly blackout moves are backfiring and then come up with a better plan!
All you’re doing is showing the mainstream that the vast majority of people don’t give a stuff.
Let me say again — the *only* ones who will force the government’s hand are the ISPs — and where are they in all this?
Just whining — not doing a damned thing.
WISE-UP PEOPLE!
you’re banging your head against a wall and the politicians are saying “gosh, I thought this would be a problem but 148 names on a petition, 120 duct-taped protesters and a list of email addresses is nothing to worry about.
Now they’ll say “so a dozen blogs decided to shut down. No loss — there are still over a million Kiwi Net users who’ve done and said nothing to indicate that they disapprove of this law. Now what’s for dinner?”
[DPF: Bruce you could not be more wrong. Since the online protests started there have been articles almost every day in the media and on both TV stations last night. Labour have joined United Future and ACT in now opposing a law they supported. And I think the Govt is now very very keen to get some sort of compromise to take the heat out of this issue. Also RIANZ today came out and indicated they are backing down on some of their demands. So I call that hugely sucessful]
February 20th, 2009 at 4:50 pm
Well we’ll just have to wait and see — but I believe that Labour’s opposition is simply because they *are* the opposition.
This government seems to remain intransigent in respect to Sect 92A.
As for the articles in the mainstream media — they have hardly stirred up a massive amount of public support for the march, the petition or the blackout have they?
The reality is that most people don’t give a damn and the government knows it.
60% approval means what it says and a bunch of geeks in duct-tape aren’t really a threat to the Nats right now.
They still seem intent on allowing 92A to come into effect and watch to “see how it goes”
What irks me most is that the ISPs are bitching and moaning about being forced to play judge and jury while being stuck between a rock and a hard-place but they expect everyone else to take action. They’re unwilling to change the government’s mind in a matter of hours.
Why is that?
Do they think there’s not enough support within the ranks of their own industry?
Do they fear that if they did block key sites, a few would pull out and try to steal customers by advertising that they’re not part of the protest?
February 20th, 2009 at 5:52 pm
FFS. When will Simpson realise he’s a 90′s has-been with nothing left to claim but that he did (and failed at) last century’s ideas and now he has a come-and-hear-me-be-a-grumpy-old-man blog which he drags, lifeless, from place to place claiming longevity as a mark of achievement. Gone from an Auckland tech and dot-com high flyer he’s now a provincial beneficiary who is still in denial that he’s a complete failure at life. Good on ya DPF for telling him he’s no longer, let us be kind, match fit.
[DPF: And that is 20 demerits for the personal attack.]
February 20th, 2009 at 6:16 pm
Is Phool joining in ? He could black out his site for a year and no one would notice
February 20th, 2009 at 7:15 pm
Go read my blog on how these silly blackout moves are backfiring and then come up with a better plan!
(Yawn) Yet another instalment in the tedious shift towards becoming a terminal provincial crank.
The “silly” blackout protests are having a bloody sight more effect than any elderly model
aircraft fetishist could imagine.
And ‘geeks’ in the pejorative sense is a bit rich coming from that particular quarter.
February 20th, 2009 at 7:55 pm
Oh Petal, if you can provide any evidence that I’ve ever spent a day on the benefit I’ll give you a thousand bucks.
I see you’re one of the “if you can’t argue the message, denigrate the messenger” types.
Fair enough — it takes all kinds… but please don’t just make up “facts” to suit your argument — it says more about you than about the person you seek to criticise.
You’ll never let facts get in the way of a good argument I guess.
February 20th, 2009 at 8:03 pm
oh me oh my what
am i going to do with
out blogs for a bit?
February 20th, 2009 at 10:17 pm
Are you from Hamilton Haiku?
February 20th, 2009 at 10:20 pm
DPF, YOUR SITE IS SHOWING THE OLD GARBLED ENCODING THAT IT DID SEVERAL TIMES LAST YEAR!
February 20th, 2009 at 11:15 pm
waikato’s shining
jewel perched ‘twixt city of sails
and the gleaming hills
February 20th, 2009 at 11:20 pm
I’ll take that as a YES
Thought so.
February 20th, 2009 at 11:24 pm
warm hamilton winds
a comforting tempest, a
real waikato draft
February 21st, 2009 at 12:06 am
at least the rain stopped
February 21st, 2009 at 4:51 am
Whilst Gardening blogs are few in New Zealand some do have a say in the international arena. Images are an important part of our horticultural industry.All protests are welcome and to say nothing strengthens the hand of the proponents. We will be blacking out Monday http://historiciris.blogspot.com/
February 21st, 2009 at 7:58 am
Have you read this story in the NZ Herald?
It seems we’re all too late because (thanks to the incredible journalism in the MSM), they’ve discovered that the Copyright Amendment Act comes into force *TODAY*.
Sigh!
And we’re relying on the MSM to push the case against this bill?
February 21st, 2009 at 9:29 am
Now if someone found a way to black out all the Govt. sites including IRD then maybe the protest would be heard.
Until Govt. is hurt they won’t do a thing and right now all you Nat. lovers are just beginning to learn that cause they claim to be right of left that only means that they are just not quite so vitriolic (in most cases although Crusher Collins seems to have met her match. So much for underbrained macho women.) as the last lot that infested the Round House.
One day soon you will wake up early in the morning and realize that we need a new way of politics. Individual and personal responsibility. A proper written constitution that the political scum cannot tamper with at will.
Until then keep up the good fight.
February 21st, 2009 at 9:41 am
CC from NZCPD .
Re: Three Strikes and Your Terminated
So let’s hope the first offenders caught under this ridiculous law are Govt departments and/or ministries. It will be interesting when the Govt breaks this law but doesn’t get disconnected.
Also, just how are ISPs meant to police this. Do they have the resources to monitor everything that everyone is doing 24/7? Tui billboard anyone?
Finally, there is always recourse to the courts – I can see a few class actions coming out of this.