Alison Wheeler

The SOPA/PIPA Result

The people spoke on Wednesday and, it seems, they were heard by some of the Senators and members of Congress debating these proposals. And they didn't like what the people were telling them (and, no doubt, worried about whether they would be re-elected again) and so they have — for the moment at least — stopped further activity on these two bills.

But it isn't over. The powerful media forces will try to get new versions back to the House and Senate in the future. We must remain vigilant and prepared.

Once, the internet was the plaything of the USA Department of Defense. Then it moved into academe and commerce. Now, the internet is the tool of people all around the world; every minute of each day and from every country around the globe people use it to freely communicate with each other. To share news, photographs, information, their life.

The internet is no longer the private property of one country, or a single guiding mind. It was created by many many people and is for the benefit of all human kind.

And any time it may be threatened again it will be all human kind who will respond: "KEEP YOUR HANDS OF OUR INTERNET!"