Freedom both Digital and Literal Essay -- Censorship

With recent events such as the Megaupload shutdown and occupy protests around the globe, the internet and its current state has been receiving much attention. The internet has become an integral part of our lives, link people overseas, transmitting ideas, and propelling innovation. Because of this, governments and service providers should not regulate, restrict, or censor the internet. The Internet we know today serves as a medium for our entertainment, communication, and commercial needs. It is something many of us have come to take for granted. However, the original intended purpose of the first â€Å"internet† goes back to the days of the Cold War where the ever looming threat of a nuclear missile strike prompted the U.S., as well as many other countries, to build a robust, fault-tolerant, and distributed computer network. By 1970, ARPANET had been born, funded by the Department of Defense and linking research facilities from the east coast to the west. Not until the 1990’s was the internet commercialized, gaining widespread popularity and incorporated into many aspects of our lives. With 2.2 billion people connected today, problems must undoubtedly rise. However, how different groups attempt to handle these problems can be as different as day and night. There are several issues at stake here regarding regulation, including anti-piracy laws, net neutrality, and freedom of speech. The most recent of these issues concerns many pieces â€Å"anti-piracy† legislation that have appeared before Congress in the United States and before the European Union. In 2010, Congress attempted to quietly pass the Combatting Infringement and Counterfeits Act. Fortunately, news quickly spread and petitions were submitted to prevent its passing. Senator Wy... ... saw."ZDNet. ZDNet, 15 Nov 2011. Web. 13 Apr 2012. "Growing Chorus of Opposition to "Stop Online Piracy Act"."Center for Democracy & Technology. N.P., 09 Jan 2012. Web. 13 Apr 2012. PROTECT IP Act of 2011, S. 968, 112th Cong.  § 3(d)(2)(D); "Text of S. 968," Govtrack.us. May 26, 2011. Retrieved June 23, 2011. "Senator: Web Censorship Bill A ‘Bunker-Busting Cluster Bomb’." Wired. (2012): 1. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. Tassi, Paul. "You Will Never Kill Piracy, and Piracy Will Never Kill You." Forbes. Forbes, 03 FEB 2012. Web. 13 Apr 2012. "BitTorrent Piracy Doesn’t Affect US Box Office Returns, Study Finds." Torrentfreak. N.p., 10 Feb 2012. Web. 13 Apr 2012. Suderman, Peter. "Internet Cop." Reason. 01 Mar. 2011: 20. eLibrary. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. "Background." Global Internet Freedom Consortium. 04 June 2006. Web. 15 Apr. 2012. .