Discussing
Christian wisdom and navigating SOPA/PIPA's muddy waters

Ben,

Thanks for this.

I think another aspect Christians ought to consider is the framing of the ethical debate about freedom and justice. It's essentially a liberal/individualistic one, which Christians may want to reject on principle.

Instead, we may ask what the good is, what the creational norms are, and how justice is done with respect to those norms and that good.

We might still come down on various sides of SOPA/PIPA, but we will do better if, in doing so, we ask what property and freedom are for and to what ends business functions.

js

We desire justice, and this bill seems to promote justice by punishing those who would steal.

Maybe semantics, but not everything covered by SOPA/PIPA is stealing. Copyright infringement should not be confused with stealing. Doesn't mean it's OK to do, but it is different.

For example, someone posted Matt Chandler's recent sermon "God is for God" on YouTube. This was a sermon from Elevation Church's "Code Orange" event. Elevation had (at least one) of the videos taken down due to copyright infringement. Was the person who posted this Gospel message stealing Elevation's work? Or did they infringe upon Elevation Church's copyright? There is a big difference in the answer IMO, at least in this particular case.

Fair point! With that sentence I was definitely just laying a general groundwork. There are definitely different levels of conversation on the issue... some people know it at a "summarized" version where the bill "seems to" say this and opponents "seem to" say that. Others know the issue well and can have a much more involved discussion. I think my strongest desire is for Christians, like Solomon, to pursue truth first, and THEN consider the ethical implications. Too often we take shortcuts by arguing for "justice" or "free speech" or other things without fully knowing which ethical dilemma an individual situation actually presents.

I have serious concerns about the motivations and ramifications of these pieces of legislation. It seems more political than justice oriented. I'm all for paying an artist for their work but I don't see where this legislation has the ability to return royalties to the artists of specific stolen goods. I think it is more likely that it will be used as a political tool to shut down sites for other purposes and access private data that should not be accessible without a warrant. 

Real pirates already use hacker tunnels to mask their IP addresses and work through rotating server proxies so blocking specific IP addresses is going to lure teenagers who want free music into areas of the internet laced with Porn ads. NOT A GOOD IDEA PEOPLE!

The solution is more access to services like iTunes where buying music and media is easier than downloading it illegally. If the big music companies took a smaller cut they would sell more copies legally.

JMHO

Justice and freedom are fundamental for sure. SOPA/PIPA was an easy one because it really wasn't just. I think another interesting topic for a post would be other instances in which someone violated freedom by purporting to eliminate some justice that we all agree needs fixed. But this legislation was completely one-sided. Worst of all, the internet is what it is in great part because it's always been so open and free. Those big media companies are clinging to obsolete business models anyway. Good thoughts here.