SOPA's Architect Is Finally Starting to Back Down.

[FarLeftFist]

Less than 24-hours after promising not to yield, the republican Texas congressman and author of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) Lamar Smith is yielding on the bill's controversial language that would allow the government to censor the Internet -- for now. "After consultation with industry groups across the country, I feel we should remove Domain Name System blocking from the Stop Online Piracy Act so that the [Judiciary] Committee can further examine the issues surrounding this provision," Smith said in a Friday afternoon press release. "We will continue to look for ways to ensure that foreign websites cannot sell and distribute illegal content to U.S. consumers."

-snip-

This is weird because pretty much every Internet expert in the country has unabashedly condemned SOPA's domain-blocking measures and, well, the entire bill. But it is certainly a little victory for the tens if not hundreds of thousands of freedom advocates who've been protesting the bill for months. If anything, it's a major, frankly embarrassing loss for Smith. Now, he not only looks like a hypocrite, he also looks like a waffler.

Link: http://news.yahoo.com/sopas-architect-finally-starting-back-down-225722143.html

[Warpy]

1. If it passed, Tor usage would quadruple overnight.

There's no way they could block domains if you're being routed through an IP number in Holland or Korea.

The Google ads look weird, though.

[limpyhobbler]

2. removing SOPA's DNS provision is only a cosmestic change.

Last edited Sat Jan 14, 2012, 01:54 PM - Edit history (1)

They still have plenty other options to block access that are more fundamental than DNS. They can block content at the service host (usually webhost), at the host's ISP via a layer-3 block like a firewall or null route. It's good that they remove the DNS provision but ultimately it counts for nothing if these other provisions are still enacted.

[FarCenter]

3. It would be bad if this "compromise" enables the bill's passage

Kill the whole thing.

[lpbk2713]

4. Something I just noticed recently ...

Even CraigsList is concerned about SOPA. They have put a warning and a link to C/L users on their site.