"Save the Internet"

This, for me, is well worth supporting:

What I like is that it enables you, as well as sending a concocted message, to leave a (polite and reasoned) message with a leading senator on his facebook page - something I have done.

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Today could be the day we save the free Internet.

The US Congress was poised to pass a law allowing officials to censor access to any website around the world. But after we delivered our 1.25 million strong petition to the White House, it came out against the bill and with public pressure at a boiling point even some bill backers are switching sides. Now, the Wikipedia - led blackout protest has rocketed the public campaign to the top of the news.

We are turning the tide. But the dark forces of censorship are trying to revive the bill right now. Let’s bury it for good today. Click to sign this emergency petition to save the Internet now and if you've signed already, to email, call, Facebook, and tweet Congressional and corporate targets. Then send this to everyone:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_internet_action_center_b/?vl

The bill would make the US one of the worst Internet censors in the world -- joining the ranks of countries like China and Iran. The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) would allow the US government to block any of us from accessing sites like YouTube, Google, or Facebook.

We got the White House to switch sides and now our global campaign and the growing public pressure is forcing Congress to abandon the bill. Last weekend, Senator Cardin, who cosponsored the legislation, announced he will vote against it! Then six prominent Republicans penned a letter requesting that the bill be shelved. Now the lower house vote is reportedly on ice.

Just days ago we were told it was impossible to stop the corporate censorship cabal, but now this is at a tipping point and amazingly we could win! Let’s stop US censorship today. Sign this emergency petition to save the internet now and forward it to everyone:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_internet_action_center_b/?vl

This US legislation could infringe on all of our freedoms. But if we win, we will show that when people unite with one voice from all over the world we can stop the abuse of power anywhere. We have brought this bill back from the brink. Now, if we amplify our voices today, we can put an end to the most powerful Internet censorship threat that the world has ever seen.

With hope,

Dalia, Ian, Alice, Ricken, Diego, David, and the Avaaz Team

Sources:

White House statement:
https://secure.avaaz.org/whitehouse_internet_statement

Wikipedia joins web blackout in SOPA protest (BBC):
http://www.avaaz.org/bbc_sopa_wikipedia

American Censorship's fact sheet on SOPA:
http://americancensorship.org/infographic.html

Everything you need to know about Congress's online piracy bills in one post (Washington Post):
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/everything-you-need-to-know-about-congresss-online-piracy-bills-in-one-post/2011/12/16/gIQAz4ggyO_blog.html

SOPA and PIPA sponsors caving in to opposition (Talking Points Memo):
http://idealab.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/01/sopa-and-pipa-sponsors-caving-into-opposition.php

White House will not support SOPA, PIPA (Huffington Post):
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/14/white-house-sopa-pipa_n_1206347.html

Controversial online piracy bill ‘shelved’ until consensus is found (The Hill):
http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/204167-sopa-shelved-until-consensus-is-found

Support Avaaz

At a time when democracy in this country is grinding along at a frustrating pace with no political party apparently in touch with the view of the people, I am gradually being won over to the ideas of Avaaz.

Though a little sceptical, I do think they are a movement for present times.

Please give serious consideration to this worldwide organisation.

They are currently conducting a poll about where to go in the future.

You may wish to participate.

One warning however.

Do not get sucked in to contributing their minimum stated contribution of £3 per week (which is far too much). This is outgageous and their information shows that this produces support from only about 10,000 people. What about the other ten million they say support them?

Better  to contribute a fraction of a pound say £ 0.5 per week - they only collect the money monthly anyway.

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    Democracy is on the march across the world, and our community is at the heart of the struggle, but to win we're going to need to choose our course wisely. Click below to take the annual Avaaz all-member poll, and let's decide together where to focus our energies in 2012.

The poll takes a few minutes to complete, but the more of us take it, the wiser our course will be:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/january_poll_2012/?vl

And if you don't have time to take the poll right now, we can all see the results as they come in here:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/january_poll_2012_people_power/?bv11891

Last year we ran hundreds of campaigns and played a key role in dozens of victories, including:

• Putting a wrench in Media-Mogul Rupert Murdoch's march to world domination
• Breaking the Syria media blackout and supporting courageous democracy movements across the Middle East
• Taking on Italy's Silvio Berlusconi at every turn until his corrupt regime fell
• Blocking the Gay Death Penalty Bill in Uganda
• Stopping a mega highway that sliced right through indigenous protected lands in Bolivia
• Building a massive anti corruption movement in India that has repeatedly forced the government to back down
• Building a global movement for Palestinian independence
• Saving the Kyoto Protocol and UN climate process from polluting powers determined to wreck it
..and much, much more.

With the world undergoing profound change, and our community twice the size it was last January, imagine what this year's list could look like. The challenges may be coming thick and fast, but when we stick together, we can transform them into opportunities to build the world we all dream of. Here's to building dreams in 2012.

With hope,

Ricken, Alice, Benjamin, Diego, Emma, and the whole Avaaz team



Avaaz.org is a 10-million-person global campaign network that works to ensure that the views and values of the world's people shape global decision-making. ("Avaaz" means "voice" or "song" in many languages.) Avaaz members live in every nation of the world; our team is spread across 13 countries on 4 continents and operates in 14 languages. Learn about some of Avaaz's biggest campaigns here, or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.



To contact Avaaz,  write to us at www.avaaz.org/en/contact

What Cameron is not revealing

This is the latest from Avaaz, an organisation that in my view is well worth supporting.

Here it reveals the concerns of eminent MPs from both sides of The House.

Margaret Hodge is very critical.

It seems that the Tax office doesn't have the resources to deal with big businesses who employ top lawyers to extract every concession possible.

What appears to be happening is that the tax office do a deal in order to get some money immediately  rather than fight lengthy court battles.

Let's hope this action puts pressure on Cameron to do something.

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Our tax chief had secret lunches with Vodafone and Goldman Sachs and then handed them billions in tax breaks – while keeping Parliament in the dark!

MPs are outraged, claiming we are owed over 25 billion pounds in back taxes from these and similar dodgy deals. But the tax agency has blocked an inquiry into the scandal and refuses to release any documents to shed light on why these tax breaks were ordered in the first place.

By acting together now we can ensure full transparency on the Goldman Sachs and Vodafone deals, and get them to pay the tax they owe. Let’s turn up the heat -- sign the tax justice petition to David Cameron -- we’ll deliver it with a splash next week:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/goldman_sachs_pay_your_tax/?vl

The cosy relationship between the public tax authority and major private companies is shocking: the tax agency boss had more than a hundred lunches with big business tax lawyers and advisers, leading to the companies being let off millions in taxes. The agency tried to obstruct a recent Parliamentary inquiry using flimsy confidentiality arguments, and threatened the whistleblower who helped expose the scandal.

The coalition is weak and on the defensive over the economy and several Conservative and Lib Dem MPs are fuming over these tax revelations. But the government has yet to demand full payment. Only public pressure can change Cameron's position and ensure that big businesses pay what they owe rather than manoeuvre and lobby to minimise their tax bills.

We should be able to trust our public tax body to be free of corporate capture and able to recover taxes owed without fear or favour. Join the call for tax justice -- click below to sign the petition:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/goldman_sachs_pay_your_tax/?vl

From Occupy to the G20, citizens across the world are coming together to push back corporate interests, fight against dodgy deals corrupting our governments and bring back transparency -- and the pressure is working. Let's come together now and win tax justice for us all.

With hope,

Alex, Antonia, Emma, RIcken, Mary, Rewan, Diego and the entire Avaaz team

More information:

MPs attack HMRC’s ‘cosy’ deals with big business (BBC)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16253205

MPs say taxman "too cosy" with companies (Reuters)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/12/20/uk-britain-taxes-idUKTRE7BJ03S20111220

The end of all take and no give (New Statesman)
http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/the-staggers/2011/12/tax-returns-public-firms

HMRC hid 'sweetheart' tax deals for big business, MPs say (The Guardian)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2011/dec/20/inland-revenue-sweetheart-tax-deals

Taxman targets small firms after sweetheart deals with big business (Daily Mail)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2081461/HMRC-plans-checks-3-000-fines-missing-paperwork.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Goldman Sachs’s Tax Rate Drops to 1% (Bloomberg)
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a6bQVsZS2_18