WRUP: Contact your [redacted] and tell them you oppose [redacted]
by Fox Van Allen 
Jan 20th 2012 at 5:00PM
Ladies and gentlemen, WoW Insider is not where I typically get political, but there's something that needs to be said. And if I'm going to say it anywhere, it's going to be on the rudderless ship of filler we've all come to know and love as WRUP.
As you may know, this past week, half the internet wound up blacking itself out in protest of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA), two anti-piracy bills that could have wide-reaching consequences in terms of what those of us who make a living as internet creatives do. The congressmen who support the bill barely know what the internet is and sound like sputtering children when they try to explain why SOPA and PIPA are good bills. They're not.
SOPA is dead for now, but its House sponsor promises to bring it back in February. PIPA, SOPA's sister bill in the U.S. Senate, is undergoing retooling after a massive nationwide protest Wednesday. We did good, but we haven't won. And because the bad guys have unlimited money and stand to make more of it by passing SOPA/PIPA, we may never win for good. They'll keep trying. We have to keep fighting.
Why should you care? There's this thing out there called fair use that lets us at WoW Insider use certain copyrighted material to bring joy to your life. Fair use is what lets us talk about and show you images from World of Warcraft without having to beg Blizzard's permission. Fair use is what lets me bring video clips like that of Duane above into your life. SOPA and PIPA would literally kill WRUP. SOPA would kill Duane.
OK, I've said my piece. I'll get down from the soap box and hand you back your WRUP. Watch that video of Duane over and over again until the bad taste of politics is out of your mouth. Today's bonus question is a fairly innocuous, SOPA-free one: How far have you progressed in the new Dragon Soul raid? Are you running hard modes? Working on 10-mans? Or just running the Raid Finder? The world needs to know.
Allison Robert (@AllisonRobert) The Crawling Claw will be mine. Unless it won't be. My money's on the latter.
Anne Stickney (@Shadesogrey) I will be working on configuring this new system I've got and making it play nice with all my old programs. ... this is a lot more annoying than you'd think, but Windows 7 seems to be nice enough so far. In between that, I have family coming into town and raiding to do on Sunday -- theoretically, we should have our second heroic-25 boss down by then, if all goes well! We're obviously 8/8 normal 25, 1/8 heroic 25 and we usually run the Raid Finder as a guild, so we've got more opportunities for upgrades and set bonuses. Rolling against 24 guildies is a lot better than rolling against 24 strangers, generally speaking.
Chase Christian (@madsushi) My guild is pushing for more hard mode kills this weekend, before the inevitable nerfs to Dragon Soul. Our entire raiding roster is finally healthy and so we're trying to capitalize on that opportunity. We knocked out heroic Yor'sahj and Ultraxion last week, so we're now 3/8 heroic 10-man. Our goal is to knock out Zon'ozz and Hagara during this raid lockout.
Chase Hasbrouck (@alarondruid) Now off of leave and back to work, boo. Will start slowing dipping my toe back into regular raiding (as opposed to the Raid Finder) this week and may also check out Rift's free trial weekend.
Dan Desmond (@Antigen_) Perhaps giving SOTSII another shot, but mostly I plan on sitting AFK in the Imperial Fleet in SWTOR wondering, "What do I do now that I'm 50?!"
Daniel Whitcomb (@DanielWhitcomb) I am nearing the end of my SWTOR Trooper's class storyline, so I will probably do that and then focus on a new alt, probably my Sith Sniper or Jedi Guardian. I have very little interest in the SWTOR endgame beyond maybe doing some instances with friends if they need me. Other than that, I'll be running some alts through the Raid Finder.
Fox Van Allen (@foxvanallen) (gplus.to/foxvanallen) I'll probably hang out with Tyler. And we'll probably wind up [redacted]. That's sorta like a game, right? Oh, and I'm in love with the Raid Finder because it means I don't have to live my life around a regular raiding schedule. I'm 8/8 there, I don't run 10-mans, and if I die without seeing another hard-mode fight, I'll die happy.
Joe Perez (@lodurzj) More SWTOR, some time in LoL if I get a chance and more reading / writing. I'll also probably run the Raid Finder on my hunter and my shaman for good measure.
Bonus: Working on hard modes as of now. Holiday season took a swing at our attendance so actually starting them full tilt this week.
Josh Myers (@Elamqt) I actually have the Raid Finder finished on my warrior and shaman already, so I might have time to play some TOR this weekend. I'm legitimately surprised by this. As for Dragon Soul, we're doing 10-man heroics. Morchok died tonight after our first Madness kill last week (months behind, but considering we're still a nine-man guild doing 10-man raids, we're hoping to catch up to the pack as soon as we fill).
Kelly Aarons (@Cadistra) I'm not sure what I'll be playing ... hopefully some XBLA games. I'm watching in delight/horror as the city of Vancouver implodes upon itself with all the snow it's getting. It's like watching a five-car pile-up of clown cars. Maybe I'll bundle up and get some gaming or art done.
As for Dragon Soul, I haven't done ... well, anything. I don't raid.
Lisa Poisso (@LisaPoisso) I'll be out of town this weekend, so all I'm playing is Words With Friends. Word.
Mathew McCurley (@gomatgo) For the past two weeks, I've been on a magical, bureaucratic adventure that will most likely take up more of my time than I care for it to. However, it's a great story and will be worth it in the end. As for games, WoW, SW:TOR, and some LoL sprinkled in as well. I've taken a break from raiding in WoW to focus on job stuff, figuring out how to move to California or something, and just start the year off right.
Michael Gray (@writegray) This weekend will involve some cramming of many activities into a little time. I've been playing a lot of @Lumosity lately. It's a cognitive training system, and I'm addicted. Aside from that, some Raid Finder.
Bonus: I almost exclusively Raid Finder now. The ability to play when I happen to have time is just so convenient and powerful I find myself able to do more than I have in years.
Olivia Grace (@oliviadgrace) Not a huge amount, I'm down in London Friday night watching cirque du soleil (excited!), then off to Oxford on Saturday to visit some old uni hang-outs. I might make the raid on Sunday. After a long Christmas break we're learning when to push the button. The answer is usually "not then".
Tyler Caraway (@murmursofadruid) Well, my weekend now is going to consist of jealous envy of Olivia and her circus viewing, but otherwise I'll probably be in SWTOR for a time, clearing up some heroic Dragon Soul in WoW, probably toss in a few LoL games as well. Maybe spend some time with Fox, but, you know, he's a meanie-head, so I might not. Could go either way. Cambridge apparently has a chocolate thing going on -- shame I can't indulge. Might still go to see what it's all about, though.
The weekend is the perfect time to kick back, relax and enjoy some game time. Are you an achievement junkie? Can't get enough raiding? Rolling a new alt? Considering taking the leap into roleplaying? Whatever your favorite way to play World of Warcraft, let us know in the comments what you're playing this weekend!
Filed under: WoW Insider Business
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Michael Jan 20th 2012 5:21PM
What irritates me most about these god-awful bills, and Leahy's insistance that he will keep attempting to get it passed is that:
The American Public has spoken. And rather resoundingly, I would say. There's been a loud and clear message that "We do not want this. We do not like this. We do not need this." And what is the response of some of our representatives? To essentially tell us that we should sit down and be quiet, because the RIAA and MPAA are more important, and are more deserving of representation.
What I would ask of everyone at this point, is to CONTINUE e-mailing, and calling, and visiting representatives, especially those like Leahy that are ignoring the public, and ask them why they don't care about what we're saying. And then ask them why we should keep them in office if they're not going to represent us.
Sure, the internet stepped up huge...but there are still some on Capitol Hill that just don't want to listen. That pisses me off to no end.
Noyou Jan 20th 2012 5:58PM
Amen to that. And a visit to your local alderman wouldn't be bad either. It is asinine to think of the amount of money that gets wasted on [redacted] like this. Civil servants need to be a little more civil and a lot more serving. Stay thirsty my friends!
paul.morales91 Jan 20th 2012 5:59PM
Whats even more frustrating is that half the people in congress (pretty much every congressman/woman above the age of 60) barely know how the internet works and only know the basics of operating a computer. The don't know why their supporting this bill, only that the lobbyists are telling them too.
Whats more, the internet is currently free speech in its purest form. It annoys communist countries like China to no end because it's something they can't sensor and can't regulate, no matter how hard they try. If SOPA and PIPA pass, every single government, not just the U.S, will have free reign over what goes on the internet and what gets shut down. I hate to be all anti-establishment, but this just shows that our "representatives" in Washington, (with some exceptions) have no foresight and no concept of the consequences of their actions.
Noah Jan 20th 2012 6:36PM
I heard of this idea a few days ago. It's called Black March, which was created to protest SOPA and PIPA this year. Since March is the last month of the first quarter in profit margins, if you commit to Black March, you restrict yourself from purchasing media of any kind. To quote the poster...
"With the continuing campaigns for Internet-censoring litigation such as SOPA and PIPA, and the closure of sites such as Megaupload under allegations of 'piracy' and 'conspiracy' the time has come to take a stand against music, film and media companies' lobbyists.
The only way is to hit them where it truly hurts.
Their profit margins.
March 2012 is the end of the 1st quarter in economic reports worldwide.
Do not buy a single record. Do not download a single song, legally or illegally. Do not to to see a single film in cinemas, or download a copy. Do not buy a DVD in the stores. Do not buy a videogame. Do not buy a single book or magazine.
Wait the 4 weeks to buy them in April: see the film later, etc. Holding out for just 4 weeks, maximum, will leave a gaping hole in media and entertainment companies' profits for the 1st quarter, an economic hit which will in turn be observed by governments worldwide as stocks and shares will blip from a large loss of incomes.
This action can give a statement of intent:
WE WILL NOT TOLERATE THE MEDIA INDUSTRIES' LOBBYING TO LEGISLATION WHICH WILL CENSOR THE INTERNET"
I find this to be an exceptional idea, and I urge that you all do the same and join me for the whole month of March. Let's stick it to those old farts at Congress and show those senile fools who REALLY runs this world!
Helston Jan 21st 2012 3:09AM
http://extra-credits.net/episodes/stand-together/
Aldarion Jan 21st 2012 9:47AM
Concerning Black March...
But... But... Mass Effect 3 comes out that month.
I will gladly participate, but... Not even the flames óf Hell could stop me from getting my hands on that.
Everything else would be fair game.
JUST NOT SHEPARD!
Ryusai Jan 20th 2012 5:25PM
one quick thing. the P in SOPA stands for piracy, not privacy. wouldn't want to mislead anyone now would we :)
SINisterWyvern Jan 20th 2012 5:26PM
My guild is finally making progress again on 10n: http://www.guildox.com/go/g.asp?n=Arisen&r=Doomhammer-US
After a month (well kind of, with holidays and missing people) of Blackhorn we got him the 2nd time this week (in a 2 shot) and took down Spine after a total of 12 attempts. Just on to madness now where we can get to the 3rd platform with ease but it all ends when the Elementium Bolt isn't slowed anymore.
Harvoc Jan 20th 2012 6:13PM
Hey me too! My guild is a small casual raiding guild on Fizzcrank and we just downed Spine of Deathwing on 10N after a couple weeks of wiping on him and attendance issues. We seem to have trouble with the last platform on Madness of Deathwing as well because we do everything up to that point perfectly but then we wipe with the Elementium Bolt. I'm set to raid in about 45 minutes so maybe we'll down Madness today!
Malnore Jan 20th 2012 6:38PM
Make sure you move away from the impact point and group up. Use a cooldown like pw:b, tranq, or divine hymn. Helps makes it easy.
Adam Holisky Jan 20th 2012 5:36PM
I'm changing my name to Duane. And getting that haircut.
fox.vanallen Jan 20th 2012 6:15PM
You'd already have that haircut if you read the magazines or paid attention to what the kids at school are wearing.
Nathanyel Jan 20th 2012 7:28PM
If you plan to _oppose_ SOPA, sharing this video isn't the right way *shakes head*
Fox Van Allen Jan 20th 2012 8:19PM
On the contrary. This video is shared under fair use, the very concept threatened most by SOPA/PIPA. The clip of Duane is a tiny percentage of the copyrighted work; and it does not harm the copyright owner's ability to exploit the work for profit. And, to some extent, the work is transformative in a way that could potentially be classified as parody.
Nathanyel Jan 21st 2012 3:16AM
That's not what I meant :P
Wrekh Jan 20th 2012 5:48PM
Progressing on 25 man HC, our team killed Morchok and Hagara on heroic and we currently closing in on kill on Bloob guy.
loli.gigis Jan 20th 2012 6:01PM
My guild is working on HM now that our hpally has finally gotten heroic healing down, we had a slow down from holidays and a few people's work schedule changed so we had to recruit new people.
I on the other hand am a sub (I don't like the idea of having a set raiding schedule, I would much rather raid when I want to) and I have finished Raid Finder to gear up for when I sub and have gone all the way up to Madness but haven't had the chance to finish it yet.
Shade Jan 20th 2012 6:07PM
My guild is 8/8 25N. We're going to hit heroics next week - anyone have advice on which ones to do first and any useful tricks that aren't immediately obvious. We've done a few attempts on H-Morchok for the past two weeks but our healers are having issues keeing people up in the window between stomp and the crystal exploding.
VioletArrows Jan 20th 2012 6:58PM
Interesting to see folks back into raiding and such. Skyrim worn out it's welcome already? :p
I got the Kingdoms of Amalur demo and love it. I have no idea how I didn't know about this game for so long. Also probably going to work on more of the games I've barely scratched during Steam's winter sale.
Revynn Jan 20th 2012 9:39PM
My guild is progressing HM's without me since I had to take about 3 weeks off of raiding right as DS launched for work and then went out of state for Christmas. By the time I got back I was way behind the gear curve and didn't know any of the fights. I'm OK with that though. I'm not all that interested in DS and I'm enjoying the chance to go to bed at a semi-reasonable hour. Disbanding at 1AM 3 nights a week and being at work by 6 was slowly killing me.
My kids birthday party is tomorrow (terrible two's!) so that will eat up a good chunk of my day. Once that's done I'm going to try to get my wife to play TOR with me and keep grinding old instances for Transmog gear, mounts and legendaries. Maybe level my Rogue. Or my Sith Inquisitor. Or my Paladin . . . Or my Imperial Agent.