FOSTA / SESTA (new law) impact?
 

I'm wondering if anyone has digested articles from credible sources, regarding the likely impact to internet freedoms?

Notably, many internet sites have preemptively shut themselves down. I have also, anecdotally, heard that Google Drive(s) are being deactivated--making the content permanently unavailable to the owner, and that internet chat platforms like Skype will be censoring content. Are these things true? Is this exaggeration? Are other, worse things expected?

Here's the Wikipedia article and the Google News search results:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_E...dvocacy_Groups
https://www.google.com/search?q=fost...w=1126&bih=578

The law was opposed in the Senate only by Ron Wyden and Rand Paul (a progressive Democrat and a 'constitutional conservative' Republican). Notable groups that opposed the bill: U.S. Department of Justice, Electronic Frontier Foundation, the ACLU, and Wikimedia Foundation. Reasons stated for opposition: it is unconstitutional, it would make it harder to prosecute the criminals it's designed to target, it would remove protections for the people it's designed to protect, that the primary function is simply to censor the internet, and that it places a prohibitive burden on internet providers and website operators.

I'm interested in hearing opinions in support of, opposed to, and the Centrist position, i.e. "this isn't a big deal"

The law address a fine line that is easily overlooked. It basically wants the ISP to enforce laws. Completely different from law enforcement enforcing laws. ISPs need only cooperate with law enforcement. But it crosses a fine line when the ISP is expected to enforce laws. And that enforcement is not subject to judicial hearings.


ISPs have their own regulations. Then you choose which one is ethically acceptable to you. But demanding that ISPs become law enforcement, judge, and jury crosses a fine line.