I don't know from where the expression "fighting fire with fire" came from, it probably applies to war or something, but in such a case the fire is only a side-effect of the enemy dropping freaking bombs on you. And any firefighter will tell you that fire is fought with water and fighting it with fire is just plain dumb.
The road to hell is paved with good intentions, btw. I'm sure that some of the pro-SOPA companies have legitimate reasons for wanting extra protections. Dangerous counterfeits, like drugs, is one legitimate reason. And because they are businesses, they don't give a shit about human rights like free speech. But what company does care enough to put the interests of their shareholders on a second place? Nobody. Any solution that doesn't give power to the small players / individuals is NOT a solution, only a short-term victory that only fixes a symptom and that will end badly.
The author here forgets something - money from lobbying is only good for one thing - buying votes. This works out great, because the masses of people are usually ignorant and don't know shit about the details of such legislation. The only thing they'll hear is how SOPA saves their jobs. They'll also receive a pen, a teeshirt, a free drink and the vote is guaranteed.
Which is why the ultimate weapon against SOPA is raising awareness to the point of getting individuals to do something about it.
>I don't know from where the expression "fighting fire with fire" came from, it probably applies to war or something, but in such a case the fire is only a side-effect of the enemy dropping freaking bombs on you. And any firefighter will tell you that fire is fought with water and fighting it with fire is just plain dumb.
If I recall correctly (and wikipedia seems to back me up), it comes from creating firebreaks (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firebreak ) via controlled burns.
I don't know from where the expression "fighting fire with fire" came from, it probably applies to war or something, but in such a case the fire is only a side-effect of the enemy dropping freaking bombs on you. And any firefighter will tell you that fire is fought with water and fighting it with fire is just plain dumb.
The road to hell is paved with good intentions, btw. I'm sure that some of the pro-SOPA companies have legitimate reasons for wanting extra protections. Dangerous counterfeits, like drugs, is one legitimate reason. And because they are businesses, they don't give a shit about human rights like free speech. But what company does care enough to put the interests of their shareholders on a second place? Nobody. Any solution that doesn't give power to the small players / individuals is NOT a solution, only a short-term victory that only fixes a symptom and that will end badly.
The author here forgets something - money from lobbying is only good for one thing - buying votes. This works out great, because the masses of people are usually ignorant and don't know shit about the details of such legislation. The only thing they'll hear is how SOPA saves their jobs. They'll also receive a pen, a teeshirt, a free drink and the vote is guaranteed.
Which is why the ultimate weapon against SOPA is raising awareness to the point of getting individuals to do something about it.