In light of today’s blackouts, I hit up all of the state’s representatives and senators in Washington to get their take on the Stop Online Piracy Act and its twin, the Protect IP Act. 
Meanwhile, around the country cosponsors are announcing they can no longer support the legislation. But three of New Mexico’s delegation have their names signed to the bills. Read on to find out who and why.
Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D): He’s signed on as a cosponsor of PIPA. Spokesperson Jude McCartin says that Bingaman is concerned about how intellectual property theft affects New Mexicans. In our state, she says, there’s a thriving TV and movie industry. “If ‘Breaking Bad’ is illegally downloaded from a website, that affects everyone who works on that show in New Mexico.” The cost of intellectual property infringement is $50 billion each year, “which translates to hundreds of thousands of jobs in the U.S.,” McCartin says. 
Sen. Jeff Bingaman
There’s an existing law, she says, that allows the courts to shut down and Internet site for illegal activity, such as child pornography. But U.S. laws don’t have international reach. PIPA requires Google and other search engines to stop linking to illegal sites, she says.
Calling it “censorship of the Internet,” she notes, is shorthand and creates misunderstanding. But the bill is not without its issues, she acknowledges, and Bingaman is working to make improvements on it before it exits the Senate.
Sen. Tom Udall (D): He’s also a cosponsor of the act. His office has received a number of calls and emails regarding PIPA. “A free and open Internet must also be protected, and some of the concerns with this bill are legitimate,” he says. A balance must be struck between protecting American jobs and businesses from online piracy, he adds, and allowing innovation on the web to go unhindered. Udall is working to make sure the bill is amended, according to spokesperson Dan Watson.
Sen. Tom Udall
Rep. Steve Pearce (R): Southern New Mexico’s congressman opposes the measures. “I do not believe that the proponents of SOPA and PIPA have effectively demonstrated the need for this legislation,” he says. “The administration should focus on cracking down on countries that steal our intellectual property before we pass new laws.” Pearce also supports the blackouts, and says he stands by a person’s right to speak out in disagreement with the government. The bills could tie the hands of “small-market innovators who are the real engine of our economy, especially on the web,” he adds.
Rep. Steve Pearce
Rep. Martin Heinrich (D): Albuquerque’s congressional representative does not support the measures. Spokesperson Whitney Potter says “he believes this legislation could have unintended consequences that would increase cybersecurity risk and inhibit American innovation.” 
Rep. Martin Heinrich
Rep. Ben Luján (D): The congressman for Santa Fe and northern New Mexico is a cosponsor of SOPA. His office has gotten a lot of calls and emails about the measure. He’s talked about it during community outreach meetings. People have visited his office to chat about it. And folks have even stopped him in the grocery store. “I am taking a close look at their concerns and will take another hard look at the legislation and its impact.” 
Rep. Ben Luján
The logic given here is that if you stop someone from illegally downloading a TV program, they'll go out and buy it, or subscribe to HBO or other premium channel. That argument just doesn't make sense. A very small percentage of downloaders would actually go out and buy if they couldn't get it for free, but most will move on and go back to playing video games. So the actual cost to the industry is far less than the estimates the TV and music industry claim. This doesn't excuse piracy, but it puts the damages in perspective.
Yes, measures need to be taken to stop piracy; but we need to recognize this won't increase music or TV revenues by much. The measures taken need to be proportionate to the harm done by the illegal action, and the current laws are sufficient to control this activity. We don't deal with it by allowing the wholesale blocking of foreign sites; that kind of censorship is a slippery slope leading to government control of the information US citizens can access. It is exactly the type of method used in communist China, Iran, and other oppressive regimes to control information flowing to the people of those countries. This cannot be allowed to happen in the USA; and it saddens me that these representatives think such a measure would be OK.
Hard to believe. I guess neither one of them got campaign donations from the Hollywood mafia.
