Sundevildaddy

WASHINGTON — Yielding to strong opposition from the high tech community, Senate and House leaders said Friday they will put off further action on legislation to combat online piracy.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he was postponing a test vote set for Tuesday “in light of recent events.” Those events included a petition drive by Google that attracted more than 7 million participants and a one-day blackout by the online encyclopedia Wikipedia.

House Judiciary Committee chairman Lamar Smith, R-Texas, quickly followed suit, saying consideration of a similar House bill would be postponed “until there is wider agreement on a solution.”

The Senate’s Protect Intellectual Property Act and the House’s Stop Online Piracy Act have strong support from the entertainment industry and other businesses that lose billions of dollars annually to intellectual property theft and online sales of counterfeit products. But they also have strong opposition from Internet-related companies that argue the bill would lead to over-regulation and censorship of the Internet.

Reid has also seen at least a half-dozen senators who sponsored the bill announce they now oppose it.

Reid said counterfeiting and piracy cost the American economy billions of dollars every year and “there is no reason that the legitimate issues raised by many about this bill cannot be resolved.” He said he was optimistic about reaching a compromise in the coming weeks.

The main Senate sponsor, Judiciary Committee chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said he respected Reid’s decision to postpone the vote but lamented the Senate’s unwillingness to debate the bill.

“The day will come when the senators who forced this move will look back and realize they made a knee-jerk reaction to a monumental problem,” he said. Criminals in China, Russia and other countries “who do nothing but peddle in counterfeit products and stolen American content are smugly watching how the United States Senate decided” it was not worth debating the bill.

The two bills would allow the Justice Department, and copyright holders, to seek court orders against foreign websites accused of copyright infringement. They would bar online advertising networks and payment facilitators such as credit card companies from doing business with an alleged violator. They also would forbid search engines from linking to such sites.

The Tuesday vote was on whether to move the legislation to the Senate floor for debate. With the recent desertions and a statement Thursday by Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell that it is too early to consider the bill, it appeared supporters lacked the 60 votes needed to advance the measure.

McConnell on Friday applauded Reid’s decision, saying it would “prevent a counterproductive rush toward flawed legislation.”

In the House, Smith said he had “heard from the critics” and resolved that it was “clear that we need to revisit the approach on how best to address the problem of foreign thieves that steal and sell American inventions and products.” Smith had planned on holding further committee votes on his bill next month.

The bill’s opponents were relieved it was put on hold.

Markham Erickson, executive director of NetCoalition, commended Congress for “recognizing the serious collateral damage this bill could inflict on the Internet.”

The group represents Internet and technology companies including Google, Yahoo! and Amazon.com. Erickson said they would work with Congress “to address the problem of piracy without compromising innovation and free expression.”

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., who has joined Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., in proposing an alternative anti-piracy bill, credited opponents with forcing lawmakers “to back away from an effort to ram through controversial legislation.”

But the CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America, former Connecticut Democratic Sen. Chris Dodd, warned that, “as a consequence of failing to act, there will continue to be a safe haven for foreign thieves.” The MPAA, which represents such companies as Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., is a leading advocate for the anti-piracy legislation.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.

Help put an end to the Freedom of the Internet and Censorship of the Web that SOPA and PIPA will bring about!
Sundevildaddy.com, for Wednesday 18 Jan 2012 will go, and remain, BLACKED OUT in protest of SOPA and PIPA.

When I feel Congress, and our Representatives here in the States have gotten the message, or, at worst, show how little they actually do listen to their citizens and constituents, I will turn the lights back on. Until then, please visit AmericanCensorship.org and make your voice heard!

~Sun

What: Just sitting here, enjoying an insanely large cup of coffee.. again

♪ : Worthless (Dead and Breathing) by One Less Reason, on Everydaylife, and, Silhouettes by Smile Empty Soul on the self named album, on Pandora Radio

Along with running my business, which, as typical of this time of year, is slow, I took up a position at a local company as Superintendent.
There are a myriad of bonuses to this position. Pay’s relatively well, treats employees well, allows me the flexibility to not only handle my business (though the wife is taking up more and more of this), handle matters at home (including spending some much needed Father/Daughter time), but also the ability to adjust and flex to the needs of Clients (theirs and mine). I would venture to guess that I would prefer to work here than, say, the State (which is hard to image, to say the least.)

Now, with all of the above bonuses, it does come at a price. Stress is at a premium, though, I feel, this is not the intention, I take any and all work with utmost seriousness, diving head first into the empty pool. I have to be willing to forgo personal liberties, and teach my daughters a “Do as I say, Not as I do”. And I do work rather odd hours, at times.
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Foregoing the common fare of What and ♪ , I wish to pay my respects to a Gentleman of Eloquence and Intemperance, Bawdiness and Urbane. Christopher Hitchens, Non-believing English half Christian/half Jew (respectfully), is someone hated… and loved. Friendly and Feared. And now, deceased. Succumbing to pneumonia, a complication of his esophageal cancer, described by Mr. Hitchens as an “imagery of struggle,” one which he “loved”. “I sometimes wish I were suffering in a good cause, or risking my life for the good of others, instead of just being a gravely endangered patient.”

I could not begin to write the words of wisdom, nor words of opinion, which would define Mr. Hitchens, yet, there are so many which I agree (and disagree) with, that I feel I must make some statement in tribute to Christopher’s passing.

As described by the Editor for Vanity Fair, Graydon Carter: “There will never be another like Christopher. A man of ferocious intellect, who was as vibrant on the page as he was at the bar.” And continuing with, “Those who read him felt they knew him, and those who knew him were profoundly fortunate souls.”

To give prime example of Christopher’s views on life, drinking, concern for life itself, and the “come what may” attitude he carried:

“I was met by immaculate specimens of young American womanhood, holding silver trays and flashing perfect dentition,” he wrote. “What would I like? I thought a gin and tonic would meet the case. ‘Sir, that would be inappropriate.’ In what respect? ‘At this altitude gin would be very much more toxic than at ground level.’ In that case, I said, make it a double.”

Well said, Mr. Hitchens, well said.

Critical and unrepentant of his views and criticism, He was a most engaged, prolific and public intellectual who wrote numerous books, was a frequent television commentator and a contributor to Vanity Fair, Slate and other publications. He is most well known for his Authorship of the manifesto for atheists, “God in Not Great,”.

Gaining respect (and hatred) of popular Religious figures for his critical views of Religion and God in general, Mr. Hitchens passing will come with sorrow by some, and a welcomed relief by others.

I’m sure Prince Charles will breathe a sigh of relief, considering the scathing opinion Christopher wrote of the Prince’s speech criticizing Galileo for the scientist’s focus on “the material aspect of reality.”, in 2010:
“We have known for a long time that Prince Charles’ empty sails are so rigged as to be swelled by any passing waft or breeze of crankiness and cant,”, he continued, “He fell for the fake anthropologist Laurens van der Post. He was bowled over by the charms of homeopathic medicine. He has been believably reported as saying that plants do better if you talk to them in a soothing and encouraging way. But this latest departure promotes him from an advocate of harmless nonsense to positively sinister nonsense.”

I can definitely say, that, as a “Left-Right-of-Center”-alist (yes, an Independa-Publi-Crat.. I vote by my Heart), some of Mr. Hitchens views were hot to the touch, while others wrapped my personal views in a warmth, and welcomed wrap.

Rest in Peace Christopher. You will definitely be missed. I hope that, whatever you felt was after this life, is what you discover. Wind at your back, steady and true, calm seas to your bow, and a sunset to your Senior side.

*tips glass*

~Sun

What:  Forgetting the stresses… at least for a moment

♪ : Mystery – Wayne Baker Brooks // Mystery on Pandora Radio

I’m having to take an unwanted break from the Alpha-Blog I was invited to by my good friend Mirari over at MirCat.  Current circumstances have me rather distracted, and, to say the least, focused on priorities.. and trying to figure out what’s next.

I did need to take a moment, though.  You can only do so much each day, and you can only allow yourself to fret so much without going insane, at best.  Heart attack at worst.

To forget my worries, I decided to reflect on the Poems of Andrea Gibson.  She has a way of words that helps you realize there’s more to the World than your problems.  There’s sunshine to wrap you in.  There’s negatives that far outshine anything you can experience.  There’s a perspective on things most of us either care not to think about, or refuse to acknowledge.

Before you check her out, know this.  She speaks from the Soul.  She strikes you at the Soul.  She hides nothing, says everything, while saying little.  Tread lightly, while stomping her site.  You’re definitely in for a treat.

I will post a few here, though, there are more on her site.  If ever you have the chance to experience her in person, jump at it.

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