re: sopa/pipa

Unlike most people, I had been aware of SOPA and PIPA before today.
Like most people, I am against these acts as I believe they will ruin the foundations and principles of the internet.
Even though I do believe in the cause, I can’t help but find myself annoyed at the blackout of some of my favourite websites (looking at you, boing boing and wikipedia).

As someone who does not reside in the USA, I can’t influence the machinations of their politics (although neither can those who do live there *hyuck hyuck easy plutocracy stab hyuck*) and it seems unfair to those who do use the likes of wikipedia, as they seem to have gone for a blanket blackout and just close down their english language site rather than doing a blackout on American IP addresses. 
Not only is it unfair to blackout the rest of the world, to keep just America in the dark would be an act that would resonate more with the people in that country. Then they would bring up the question “Why am I, supposedly living in The Land Of The Free, being blocked from these websites that everyone else can get access to?”.

The rest of the world has been punished enough with censorship and draconian copyright laws that have been forced upon them by the American government pressuring our governments to accept bills written by American media lobbyists.
It’s a shame the websites involved had to go to these lengths, but it’s also a shame that they have forgotten the realm that they dwell in, a global one that should not be US centric.