I would like to clear one thing up, if I may. I'll try to be brief.
My name is Amy Rohde, and I wrote a book, The Katrina Diary. It's gotten some good feedback, and I am extremely proud of the fact that it has inspired other people to get involved in disaster relief efforts in their own areas.
As someone who has been affected by piracy, SOPA and PIPA have really made me think over the last several weeks.
On one hand, I'm not a gazillionaire. The royalty checks help out with groceries every month. They also make me feel that the months of work and thousands of tears I put into this are worth something tangible to people.
On the other hand, I can't help but feel that a free, fair, creative internet is worth far more to me than any royalty check. The internet is a crazy, amazing, wonderful place, and I feel that hoarding content or shutting down places that share is completely contrary to everything I believe in.
Maybe the intent behind SOPA and PIPA is honorable. When taken as a law that's intended to keep people from profiting from the work of others, I can see how it would be a good thing. However, enforcing them will bring down sites that have so much value. To protect a few, we'll be hurting many. Should an author get paid for copies of her book? Sure. Should we shut down the proxy servers that enabled the Arab Spring to make sure that author eats steak instead of hamburger? Hell no.
I know I'm the smallest of fish in this. I'm not a publishing powerhouse or a motion picture mogul. I don't play to sold out arenas on concert tours. However, this still affects me, and I refuse to feel that my voice is irrelevant on this matter.
I've weighed both sides of the argument, and figuring out where I stand was easy. I support the internet as it is, I support creativity and I support free speech. I do not support SOPA or PIPA. Go nuts with it, kids. Really.
Here's a link so that you can download by book for free: http://www.mediafire.com/?fz1ipd1szo21tm6 If you like it, you are welcome to share it. I'm the copyright holder, and I say you can.
If the book was of value to you, you're welcome to donate. My grocery budget thanks you.
