Page 1428…
Happy Monday!
I was asked if I was going to participate in the INTERNET BLACKOUT in opposition to SOPA (the internet pirate act that would threaten free speech).
While I AM against this…as it means that even if one of you used, say, Snow White as a gravitar in my comments…Disney and the government could SHUT DOWN MY ENTIRE SITE… I try not to bring politics into this little area of the internet called Dreamland.
Still. If enough of you feel strongly enough…I will forgo the revenue I would make from the day and refrain from updating on Wednesday.
Please, let me know your thoughts.
Scott
Yes, Scott. I think you should. I will.
I agree with JEDraft. I’ve moved my hosting service away from godaddy (SOPA supporter). Everyone who can do something, and feels strongly about the issue, should do so.
Please. Congress has too many more important matters to worry about than this stupid bill. I’m more worried about the UN measure that would make it illegal to say anything that could be taken as biased against any race, gender, or religion. Freedom of Speech will go out the window.
I will endorse any move made against SOPA.
Scott, I think you should do what you think is right and not what is easy…
There are not enough people doing this in these times.
I think you should! I’d be completely supportive if you did. I’m planning on participating as well.
Do it.
In other news: I can imagine Merlin throwing down a switch in a lightning storm, while cackling madly….
While I can understand anyone not taking action himself, I will support whatever action is done by contentdeliverers.
As a German (he’s pro-SOPA) said: “IF we don’t move, the songs from that artist may be played for free, and he will not get a single Eurocent for it”. Well, he already made millions with that song, so I’d say, the public has paid more than enough for this song.
Also: Where do you end this line? Should we still pay the descendants of Beethoven and Mozart? I’d say, if you want SOPA, then absolutely YES! (It is ridiculous, but where do you draw the line? The old line was fine for everyone, now suddenly it is not anymore? So raise the limit? And in 20 years we raise it again. And again. And again.)
I say feel free to participate in the blackout. As much as I enjoy reading the updates, SOPA is not okay. If you can do something, no matter how small, to work towards stopping it, you should. I personally intend to attempt to go without the internet on that day anyway (as I imagine a number of people will), so it’s not like there’d be anywhere near as many readers anyway.
I don’t understand what this day will offer other than an inconvenience for the Internet users?
The people who vote aren’t going to care. The bill isn’t going to care. The common man won’t be affected. The news will be the same regardless of the participants.
I was all for it until I read that the onus of finding the offending content is on the site owner. I think that’s a bit much. Website owners are busy enough without having to google all questionable content on the off chance that it may be copyright. If it allowed copyright holders to search the net either by themselves, through an agency or with some software, and website owners had one week to remove it before they get blocked, I’d be all for that.
Ruby, SOPA will pretty much ruin the Internet by shutting down tons of sites. If people willingly shut down their sites on the same day in protests, it’ll prove how “inconvenient,” as you put it, the SOPA’s actions will be. It’s their way of saying, “See?! Bad idea.” A trial run, so to speak, of what the SOPA wants so they realize the hugeness of their mistake.
I say do it. Maybe replace your index page with a simple one that explains why the site is shut down for the day, and that it’ll be back tomorrow so you don’t get panicked e-mails.
All it takes is one troll and a ton of sites would be shut down without warning and without a chance to defend themselves…
In the US courts, it’s innocent until proven guilty, right? So why would they think “guilty until proven innocent” is the right way to “govern” the Internet?
Watch. Most of the comments on this page will be about SOPA and they’ll ignore today’s update. :/
1. Because they can.
2. Because the Net is a major PITA if you want to turn a free country into a police state.
I strongly doubt it’s gonna work, Scott. But if you feel you must, go ahead.
Oh, and please reset my userpic. I’ve changed it at Gravatar, but it somehow remains the same here. No idea who can own the picture’s copyright in the U. S. these days, so it might be safer to dispose of it.
As a Dutch socialist we found out that action does work. As long as you can make your point and make sure you make the right demands. (fe: the occupy movement failed in this due to have no goal except to think about the current situation)
Here in Holland most people believe that SOPA is the opposite of what Liberalism (or true Socialism in that matter) should mean for the people. It will secure the death on every kind of free speech on the internet. Kind of the same as they did in Nazi Germany or the Stalinist USSR.
We have a saying in the Netherlands which says: ‘Beter goed gejat, dan slecht bedacht.’ Something like: ‘Better a good idea stolen then to come up with a bad own idea.’ And I think the American congress learned of that saying. 🙁
Although I dont want to miss an update I would say go for it!
Not only do I think you should do it. I all so think that every reader here should come to the site on that day and click through to an advertiser as a reward to you!
I suggest you do it.
Will this blackout be one in which you are not able to get on your web site or will it be one in which your website is till on the air just no update of the page?
As I do not live in the US, I unfortunately don’t have any influence on the success or failure to pass this law. But I wholeheartedly am against it, and hope that the overall opposition will succeed. It just seems to curb our freedom of thought in a medium that up until now has had very little or no censorship. I know this post of mine will not change anything on a global scale, but I’m also saying to go for it. As long as you read the facts carefully and create good arguments based on those facts for yourself this discussion is definitely worth joining.
Hey there JoatOrion. You’re right! our Congress has more important and urgent issues to focus on rather than something small like SOPA! Power to the people!
On an entire different note: I don’t really understand what is going on the third panel… can someone explain it to me?
I think it’s supposed to show that while Merlin can see Niviene, she is in fact in a different reality. Therefore, when you see the split-screen of underwater and open air, Merlin’s hand isn’t visible (since Niviene exists in a different realm).
That’s my take, at least.
i so called this 2 strips ago. 1st look and i knew. that our handsome young mage had to be merlin
I for one would happily donate directly to this site to help offset any lost revenue from a protest blackout.
I like how his one eyebrow goes up when he says “Fascinating”
Yes – do the blackout. It may not make any difference if you do – but it certainly won’t make a difference if you don’t. What’s that quote? Something about “…all that’s necessary for evil to triumph is for men (and women) of good will to do nothing.”
A lot of people are going to be surprised about SOPA, because the news media has been largely ignoring it or misreporting it – because they’re among those who think it would be to their benefit. Imagine getting arrested for whistling a copyrighted song without permission from the owner, or getting fined for quoting from a TV show you saw last night, while discussing it with friends. That’s roughly equivalent to what SOPA would do.
With regard to today’s strip, nice reference to someone else with pointed ears.
I say go for it Scott, but ultimately it’s up to you and should be your decision. In all seriousness though, to anyone saying ‘there are more important things for Congress to worry about’, you’re wrong. Anything, and I do mean anything, that effects free speech is as important as any other. The mentality that ‘we’ve got more important things to worry about’ is precisely why the U.S.A., UK and others are heading in such a dangerous direction. Show me the extent to which a person is willing to suffer before they retaliate, and I will show you the extent to which they will be abused by the powers that be. Rights only exist if you fight for them, as governmental power by it’s very nature expands constantly, ultimately at the cost of all personal liberty unless resisted.
The nature of the bill has NOTHING to do with genuine copyright protection and everything to do with unilateral control of the internet, using copyright as a specific avenue to facilitate the process.
A perfect example of the kind of thing it could be abused for is given by MegaUpload here:
http://www.megaupload.com/?c=pressrelease
Now, what’s interesting here is that the Copyright zealots attacked the site in spite of the fact that the artists themselves endorsed it, interesting don’t you think? People talk about hurting the artists but often it’s actually the publishers who are desperate to defend what they perceive as their ‘bottom line’, which again, is more about control then protecting the work for the artist. But that’s a relatively lightweight example, it’s the principle and nature of what it could be used for that’s truly disturbing.
But, that all being said, I will support your decision either way. ^_^
Oh, and speaking of Dreamland, I wonder what Merlin’s thinking! He’s pretty smart AND curious, so he’s probably figured out that the lake is a portal of sorts. Also, does this mean that, besides the Sword of Kings and the small medicine bag Orion gave to Alex, the lake also acts the same way? Hmm, so many questions going through my head now! Though I’m no romantic, I too am enjoying this part of the story. ^_^
I say go or it Scott. A person should be able to take action for what they believe in.
He’s channeling Mr. Spock. 🙂
I believe I read an article last night that said the SOPA bill got shelved indefinetely.
i agree with others – don’t update on wednesday if you think that’s the right thing to do…at the end of the day, this is most important. and i add to that, you’ve already done a good thing, by exposing this issue that i had not heard about previously – i am not going to see that the organization i work for changes our hosting service from GoDaddy this week! yasher koach – well done!
While I’m opposed to SOPA, I don’t see this proposed blackout as anything useful. It’s like people protesting high gas prices by saying they won’t buy gas on a certain day, and that will send a signal to the gas companies. Yes, it will send a signal people are idiots. The gas companies know you’ll buy gas the day before or after the protest, and they’ll lose nothing. It would be more effective if people parked their cars that day and walked, biked, or took mass transit. But of course, that would involve work on the part of the people protesting, and that’s not as much fun as grand gestures that mean nothing… It would have a much Much MUCH greater impact if everyone spent the 18th e-mailing their legislators over and over to stop SOPA, or diverted ad revenue that day to the organizations fighting its passage.
Doesn’t matter, for the time being. SOPA got shelved.
http://www.maximumpc.com/article/news/sopa_bill_gets_shelved_due_lack_consensus
I’m watching, and you are correct. Fascinating.
I don’t think it will have any effect on anything if you don’t update, but do what you feel is right and you’ll still have the same number of readers on Thursday.
In the meantime, please explain panel 3 and why it’s fascinating 🙂
I’m with you on this one. If there was some sort of time allowed for people to remove the content, and if the site owner was not 100% responsible for locating said content, then I wouldn’t have a problem with SOPA. As it is, trolls could hop onto a site, post copyrighted material (or links to a site that pirates copyrighted material), and the rest of the world gets to suffer (especially the little site owner who doesn’t have the staffing to monitor every post by every person).
I say be a part of the blackout if you feel strongly enough about it. If you don’t, then don’t. We’ll support you one way or another.
It’s not that we’ve ignored today’s update. It’s that Scott asked a question, and people are answering it.
As for the update, well…I agree with Merlin. *shrugs* I don’t really have anything else to say just yet.
Oooo…now that’s an idea!
I wouldn’t say the lake acts the same way. The Sword of Kings and the bag actually travel between the worlds. The lake is a viewing portal only.
I’d say do it. I’m not at all comfortable with the SOPA, and while I don’t know what this would do specifically to stop that, if it can really send a message of our disagreement with the bill it’s fine by me.
That aside, I’m enjoying this storyline, and I love the design of Niviene. But I will happily wait a little longer for Wednesday’s update in the name of free speech!
Yep. Whether you did anything, or Gravatar finally noticed the change, now it’s a picture of myself taken by myself, 100% copyright free.
Go.Right.Ahead!
As someone who DJ’s on the internet through the social service called Second Life (which is where my gravitar comes from) I am watching this bill with bated breath. It will mean the death of many social venues inside of Second Life, as we do not pay royalties to artists for playing their works for the small (less than 50 people) crowds who gather to dance, chat and listen to the tunes. I consider it a huge privilege to extend to the listeners not only music that I enjoy, but to also be able to find and play music of their request. SOPA will kill one of the best things about Second Life because it will open up every DJ to attack for playing the music we all enjoy.
Scott, I will stand by your decision either way. The internet is OURS and we have the RIGHT to use it as we see fit. Our legislators have forgotten the document our nation (the united States of America – and I left the “u” small on purpose) was founded upon, The Declaration of Independence. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” We, in America and in many of the countries around the world, have TRADED, most often without our knowledge, our RIGHTS for PRIVILEGES and BENEFITS that can be removed from us at will. I say NO MORE!
Scott, it is my hope that you will let my post stand, and that it might reach many others. I am part of a very quiet, lawful, peaceful and powerful movement. Please go here to learn more about the Republic: http://www.republicfortheunitedstates.org and join us. The time has passed for us to stand by while the whole of us are enslaved in a cage we cannot see but will be unable to free ourselves from…
I thank you from the bottom of my heart for the pleasure of reading, and looking at, your amazing story every day as it unfolds, Scott. The talents of yourself and your support crew in the artistry you bring us five days a week leaves me breathless at times. My very own page you sent me is proudly displayed on the wall of my office and I consider it one of the few physical treasures I own… The first panel in which we fully see Felicity, my favorite character in your story.
Be safe, be strong and know that ALL of us support you 100%, Scott!
Unless your knowledge of history and politics are a little faulty you would know that the UN is little more than a vestigial puppet for the US to force it’s will on it’s delegate nations. While congress has more pressing matters than a bill that frankly none of the representatives understands, this bill and others like it (PIPA, NDAA, EEA) do little more than shred the Bill of Rights and the last remaining freedoms fought for and won almost 250 years ago.
The point is to get people who aren’t already aware of it to start being aware of it, and to drum up massive public opposition to a bill that would – quite literally – kill the Internet for the US. The risk of SOPA is that any website that allows user-generated content to exist will be liable for any copyright infringements made by its users, instead of just leaving the users liable (which is how it works now). The easiest way to make sure your site isn’t at risk of that? Prevent user-generated content from appearing on your site. So what if your site is completely based on content generated by users? So long, YouTube! Adios, facebook! Keep it real, Reddit, Digg, Fark, Slashdot…
The more people that are aware of what Congress is trying to do, the louder and angrier the mob will be. The louder and angrier the mob, the more likely Congress will listen.
Thank you all!
This is all very good insight. And I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your input and support.
If the news that SOPA has been shelved is TRUE…I want to PERSONALLY take responsibility that the treat of losing the Dreamland Chronicles for one day made Congress stand up and take notice!
🙂
Seriously, though. I welcome all of your thoughts on this. And I’ll keep an eye out for new developments over the next 48 hours.
Lookie but no touchie. Niviene is an example of the first inter-dimensional TV show.
Congratulations on single -handedly doing away with SOPA! I just knew that our faith in you was warranted. 🙂
I don’t see any point in taking TDC down now.
SOPA is about restricting more freedom on the internet, that’s all. Don’t be fooled by the piracy argument. PATRIOT Act or SOPA, same slippery slope.
I support whatever decision you make, though I also wonder how effective this kind of protest will be in changing anything. The people who made the decision probably won’t care. Not sure if they’d even notice the protest. But then again, maybe you’re right that SOPA has been shelved due to the threat of losing Dreamland Chronicles for a day, haha XD So might as well try I guess~
As for this page: Merlin’s raised eye brow smirk + “fascinating” looks/sounds ominous. He looks like one of those mad scientists who will now do whatever it takes to figure out the mysteries of the pool and mermaid, and end up making some pretty bad decisions. I can see it now… the lady of the lake did not lure him in. He ends up being the one who won’t let Niviene go until he has learned everything there is to learn about Dreamland and mermaids, and then he suggests to Arthur about bringing people to Dreamland, pretending that it’s to help Arthur’s people, but it’s really just so he can visit and study Dreamland himself….. Sorry to any scientist out there that I offend ^^; I’m a scientist myself, if that makes it any better ^^;;
Yeah, I figured it was Merlin. 😀
You need to do what you think is right, Scott. I will say that SOPA seems to be a pretty drastic bill. Retribution for Copyright infringement should be limited to the person actually commiting the crime, and not the website who might be the unknowing vehicle of such an act.
I don’t normally voice my political opinions, but if House reps and Congressmen really were representatives of those who voted them into office, SOPA would have been shot down LONG before it ever became an issue.
As the vast majority above has said Scott, we are anti-SOPA. I wont be online Wednesday to see a comic even IF you posted one.
Let alone I say “GO FOR IT!” I’d also recommend taking the site DOWN. ***People who don’t read your commentary notices may not understand why you’re not updating and just assume you missed an update!*** Leave up a simple one or two line statement in place of your whole site stating WHY it’s down. State that this is what will happen (rather literally) if the bill passes. There are, sadly, a lot of blase people on the internet that just assume “whatever will happen will happen”. If there’s a good shock to them, they might DO something (and not just an angry blog post :p ). So GO FOR IT! Politics aside, this actually threatens both your site and MANY others!
The issue is that your government ( USA) is attempting to force a fear-based agenda on it’s people. Because of Right-wing Neo-Con control issues, Homeland Security Act is being invoked so that, Like Egypt, China and North Korea, the internet in the US can be and will be shut down arbitrarily by your government. This is a gross violation of Free Speech and turns the US into a fascist nation and a dictatorship run by Homeland Security.
Refuse to participate and run the risk of eventually never being able to exercise your rights again. It’s that simple.
According to a newspaper report just out on this side of the pond (UK), Obama is against the bill & is unlikely to get to legislation http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/jan/16/sopa-shelved-obama-piracy-legislation so hopefully all good!
So, you’re fighting for the right to download copyright material for free, on the grounds that material which is now public domain will become copyright if copyright laws become enforced.
The argument is that since the owners of the copyright material are already wealthy, we ought to make their material public domain NOW, rather than waiting for their copyright to expire. Have I got that right?
Many artists have little to no need for copyright. Scott, for example, is in no danger of having his work stolen. Any act of theft would merely occur to Scott as promotion.
For other artists, piracy really does threaten their income. Should we say that only struggling artists get copyright protection, while wealthy artists do not? Where do we draw the line?
Another aspect of all art forms is the risk vs. reward. If most artists failed but a select few became millionaires, that would encourage thousands of artists to pursue their art. If successful artists instead made billions of dollars, it would encourage more artists still. More artists means more art, which in turn means more content WORTH pirating is born. Therefore, by downloading, you really are doing damage to the industry in a similar way to a their would do.
It doesn’t seem that big a deal since it doesn’t seem to hurt any one, but imagine if that’s how all of life worked:
-Provided that you don’t talk during a movie, and there are spare seats, you ought to be able to enter the theatre for free. Take that one step further, a movie should only sell one ticket per movie just to open the theatre. Everyone else should get in for free until all remaining seats are filled.
-Provided that you can pay for your physical weight and decline all in flight meals, you ought to be able to fly anywhere in the world at the same price as your luggage.
-Provided the club hasn’t hit capacity, you ought to be able to get in without a cover charge, so long as you can see one other person who has.
I could go on: theme parks, public transport, show rides, performances and many other things would fall apart if we only had to pay for what we cost the company.
Seems SOPA is dead, but PIPA still isn’t… either way, I think you should do what you feel is right, Scott. I’m against the proposed legislation, but I wouldn’t dream of asking you to cut your revenue and take down your site for an awareness campaign unless I was fully intent on making an equivalent donation myself. I don’t have a website I can shut down, but I certainly didn’t take time off work without pay to go protest or anything of the sort, or even inquired about fundraisers. So… yeah, I feel I have zero right to ask that you shut down.
As for the update, I’m obviously ruined: it feels wrong that Merlin is not wearing a scarf. But I love the ‘fascinating’ reaction. He seems really endearing, kind and smart. Looking forward to seeing more of him. 🙂
I don’t mind missing a day. I say join the Internet Blackout.
I think you should go on strike Wednesday. You shouldn’t be punished for what your readers use for user names or other things like that.
I like Merlin. lol Cute
Scott – Follow your conscience, and all will work out.
For me, participation in the “internet blackout day” is nothing but negative. Since I don’t personally have any websites of my own, I would be one of those that is “merely inconvenienced.”
Having said that, SOPA is such a bad idea that I think it’s good to inconvenience many in order to raise awareness and drum up further opposition. If you can do so in good conscience, I would highly recommend participation. (I’ll deal with the personal inconvenience, and do so cheerfully.)
Scott, I got my copy of Volume 5. Thanks for the drawing of Nicodemus. My mom ordered it for me and said she asked that you surprise me. It was certainly a pleasant surprise
I’m staying out of the SOPA issue. I have my views, but I’m keeping them to myself.
Ah, so THAT’s what he meant by ‘fascinating’. Thanks, that’s precisely what I was trying to get at. 🙂
Off the current political topic, I just watched a new episode of Phineas and Ferb called “The Quest for Ferbcalibur” which was a well done echo of the Arthurian epic in much the same way this comic is right now.
“I am the Lady of the Puddle!”
“…don’t you mean Lady of the Lake?”
“No. She’s my mother.”
So glad you got it!
Thank you for reading. And thanks to your mom for being so cool!
🙂
Re: Today’s Update:
Oooh. Handsome Merlin is handsome. ^.^
Re: Boycott:
You do what you are convicted is right, Scott.
As far as SOPA and the bills like it go, I would advise you to participate, but it boils down to what you feel is right.
I for 1 will keep coming back to read this comic even if we do miss 1 day. I will gladly take 1 day over the entire site being shut down if the crap act passes. Ultimately it is up too you of course but I will not be offended if on Wednesday I click my bookmark and find the page is not updated with a SOPA message.
Oh, I hope she doesn’t lock Merlin in a box or something!
I for one will come back the next time you update and click on links twice if it makes you feel better about supporting the protest on Wednesday. : ) I think it is a good thing for you to do, but I don’t want it to hurt your revenue that supports your family as much as possible.
We have to stay vigilant or our freedoms and liberties will be siphoned away further than they have been. Even of they shelve SOPA – *call and then send a respectful, but firm letter of protest* to your reprentatives and senators anyway. “Shelving” means they can pull it out again because you know that no idea is so bad it can’t be regurgitated again when they think no one is paying attention. Getting hundreds of thousands of original letters dumped in their laps can mean bigger loss of support for it, especially in election years.
If you are not a citizen of the US, but you want to protest this or any other US legislation that you find appalling, and wish to protest – feel free to contact the US embassy in your country and lodge complaints.
That’s the only way any government becomes aware that they aren’t fooling anyone!
Sorry, but your analogies, much like those of the *IAA groups, fall apart once you separate ‘loss of income’ from ‘loss of potential income’. Not every download is a lost sale. In fact, current estimates from realistic researchers indicate that less than 1% of downloads are ‘lost sales’.
If someone stuck a webcam in the back of a theater, and streamed it online, would nobody go to that theater anymore? And since they are being deprived of a small fraction of income (if those watching the webcam couldn’t view the movie that way, would they go out to that theater?), should they just close it down entirely?
Try again.
Respond to MY argument, not the arguments laid down by those who have came before me. The analogies stand.
1% is a huge preportion! For argument sake, let’s call it 0.1%. For every million downloads, that’s one thousand lost in sales. $20 per sale, $20,000 lost. The same would hold for the movies. If movies didn’t require you to buy a ticket, there would still be some who’d buy tickets just because they like to collect tickets, but there would be a great deal more who would watch it for free. Yes, most of them wouldn’t have paid anyway. Yes, by closing the theatre to those who don’t have tickets, only 1% of them would buy a ticket, but that’s a 1% worth of money that the theatre wouldn’t otherwise have.
Theatres refuse entry to those who don’t have tickets, not because they can’t afford to, they don’t have the room, the security risks or the cleaning bill, but because free entry degrades the value of the ticket.
The same principal applies to any form of art. Copyright gives the creator of the artwork authority over who gets to view the art and who doesn’t. Yes, some art forms pay best in public domain using advertising revenue, but for those that don’t, they rely on sales. Making the same art readily available online, sales drop. Even if only by a small amount, it’s still enough to make actioning against piracy worth while.
ikr?
Some times politics force themselves on you. rather than no update I recommend a statement in place of the comic it’s self. Not updating is something you’ve done in the past due to workload/illness/what ever.