I know I don't usually post stuff like this, but I've noticed that this isn't being talked about enough.
Like most, you've probably heard of the "TikTok ban" and dismissed it as less important than the Trump indictment.
But this is more than one man being accused of fixing one election.
This is the RESTRICT Act.
This is the Penalties section, a list of actions rendered illegal via this act.
Highlighted in red, you can read for yourself how damaging this could be.
"No person may [...] approve the doing of any act prohibited by, or the omission of any act required by any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued under, this Act."
"No person may engage in any transaction or take any other action with intent to evade the provisions of this Act, or any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued thereunder."
(emphasis added)
Under this bill, you cannot approve of any violation.
Under this bill, you cannot consider any violation, or look for legal loopholes.
Under this bill, you can be punished for intent.
Whether you really have it or not.
Please do whatever you can to help stop this bill.
Please.
(Image ID under the cut)
SEC. 11. Penalties.
(a) Unlawful acts.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for a person to violate, attempt to violate, conspire to violate, or cause a violation of any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued under this Act, including any of the unlawful acts described in paragraph (2).
(2) SPECIFIC UNLAWFUL ACTS.—The unlawful acts described in this paragraph are the following:
(A) No person may engage in any conduct prohibited by or contrary to, or refrain from engaging in any conduct required by any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued under this Act.
(B) No person may cause or aid, abet, counsel, command, induce, procure, permit, or approve the doing of any act prohibited by, or the omission of any act required by any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued under, this Act.
(C) No person may solicit or attempt a violation of any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or authorization or directive issued under this Act.
(D) No person may conspire or act in concert with 1 or more other person in any manner or for any purpose to bring about or to do any act that constitutes a violation of any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued under this Act.
(E) No person may, whether directly or indirectly through any other person, make any false or misleading representation, statement, or certification, or falsify or conceal any material fact, to the Department of Commerce or any official of any other executive department or agency—
(i) in the course of an investigation or other action subject to this Act, or any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued thereunder; or
(ii) in connection with the preparation, submission, issuance, use, or maintenance of any report filed or required to be filed pursuant to this Act, or any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued thereunder.
(F) No person may engage in any transaction or take any other action with intent to evade the provisions of this Act, or any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued thereunder.
(G) No person may fail or refuse to comply with any reporting or recordkeeping requirement of this Act, or any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization or directive issued thereunder.
(H) Except as specifically authorized in this subchapter, any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, or other authorization or directive issued thereunder or in writing by the Department of Commerce, no person may alter any order, direction, mitigation measure, or other authorization or directive issued under this Act or any related regulation.
About the Tik tok bill, I know it doesn't say directly, but will online businesses be punished for selling to foreign countries?
I don't entirely know myself and tbh I'm probably not the one to ask, but considering that this bill would likely also ban VPNs, it's definitely a possibility. This level of fabricated "we gotta protect our country!!!!!!!!!!11!" is revolting.
maybe it’s not the best idea to share this, but i don’t see anyone else doing it, and that makes me frustrated, so here we go.
Preparing for if the Restrict Act Passes
(and general tips on withdrawing your internet presence and usage)
• download important/sensitive data onto thumb drives.
• download videos that provide important resources on certain subjects (lists of information, recipes, guides. an example would be a video on tips for ethical consumption).
• burn cds of certain songs, audiobooks, and various audio media that could be at risk of being banned.
• print out online written media, such as books, pamphlets, articles, even fanfiction.
• stock up on memory cards, batteries, and tapes for digital cameras and camcorders (if you don’t have one but want one for cheap, check your local thrift!).
• look into changing payment methods, if possible — my work allows me to choose between remote deposit and check payments. i’ll be switching over to check payments soon. i will be using Apple Pay less.
• boot alexa out the door. google home, ring cameras, etc. i might even replace my phone-controlled lightbulbs, honestly.
• unplug all devices that can access the internet when they are not being used — gaming systems, desktops, tvs.
• online friends may need to part ways to a degree. no platform will be inaccessible through the permissions this bill allows.
• check out the local DSA chapter, community clubs, or unions. mutual aid will be vital. look for community within the immediate area.
• take advantage of all libraries have to offer, from printing services and books to computers and programs.
• delete old, unused accounts.
• re-evaluate all online current services, apps, subscriptions, and sites.
• if the bill passes, all past internet activity may likely be accessible as well. just something to keep in mind regarding usage currently.
some of these things are likely overly alarmist, but a lot of them everyone should do regardless of if this bill passes. those of us with more radical beliefs will have to be cautionary no matter what. i’ve been wanting to put my internet presence and usage in check for a while now, and these are the steps i’ll likely be taking in the near future to protect my personal information and privacy. i don’t care if the chances of anything happening are slim, it’s better to be safe than sorry. not enough people are realizing this bill could block access to anything the us gov decides is a threat not only to national security, but also to Meta. this means discord, tumblr, twitch, reddit, anything.
for now, for my moots and followers— i will still be posting here and elsewhere until stated otherwise.
Hey everyone. The restrict shit is not as it seems. It's literally horrible, go read up on it. It is a violation of our rights, actually.
Anywho, this country is going to shit. Its literally on the brink of collapse, imo. We're going backwards, not forwards. This country is nothing. I wish I had not been born here. I have less rights than a fucking dog.
The apocalypse is coming, but it aint gonna be zombies. Its us. Our 'leaders' who are good for nothing shitbags. I hate our country. Its pathetic. We're going to die here.
So I don't know how people on this app feel about the shit-house that is TikTok but in the US right now the ban they're trying to implement on it is a complete red herring and it needs to be stopped.
They are quite literally trying to implement Patriot Act 2.0 with the RESTRICT Act and using TikTok and China to scare the American public into buying into it wholesale when this shit will change the face of the internet. Here are some excerpts from what the bill would cover on the Infrastructure side:
Text for S.686 - 118th Congress (2023-2024): RESTRICT Act
SEC. 5. Considerations.
(a) Priority information and communications technology areas.—In carrying out sections 3 and 4, the Secretary shall prioritize evaluation of—
(1) information and communications technology products or services used by a party to a covered transaction in a sector designated as critical infrastructure in Policy Directive 21 (February 12, 2013; relating to critical infrastructure security and resilience);
(2) software, hardware, or any other product or service integral to telecommunications products and services, including—
(A) wireless local area networks;
(B) mobile networks;
(C) satellite payloads;
(D) satellite operations and control;
(E) cable access points;
(F) wireline access points;
(G) core networking systems;
(H) long-, short-, and back-haul networks; or
(I) edge computer platforms;
(3) any software, hardware, or any other product or service integral to data hosting or computing service that uses, processes, or retains, or is expected to use, process, or retain, sensitive personal data with respect to greater than 1,000,000 persons in the United States at any point during the year period preceding the date on which the covered transaction is referred to the Secretary for review or the Secretary initiates review of the covered transaction, including—
(A) internet hosting services;
(B) cloud-based or distributed computing and data storage;
(C) machine learning, predictive analytics, and data science products and services, including those involving the provision of services to assist a party utilize, manage, or maintain open-source software;
(D) managed services; and
(E) content delivery services;
(4) internet- or network-enabled sensors, webcams, end-point surveillance or monitoring devices, modems and home networking devices if greater than 1,000,000 units have been sold to persons in the United States at any point during the year period preceding the date on which the covered transaction is referred to the Secretary for review or the Secretary initiates review of the covered transaction;
(5) unmanned vehicles, including drones and other aerials systems, autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicles, or any other product or service integral to the provision, maintenance, or management of such products or services;
(6) software designed or used primarily for connecting with and communicating via the internet that is in use by greater than 1,000,000 persons in the United States at any point during the year period preceding the date on which the covered transaction is referred to the Secretary for review or the Secretary initiates review of the covered transaction, including—
(A) desktop applications;
(B) mobile applications;
(C) gaming applications;
(D) payment applications; or
(E) web-based applications; or
(7) information and communications technology products and services integral to—
(A) artificial intelligence and machine learning;
(B) quantum key distribution;
(C) quantum communications;
(D) quantum computing;
(E) post-quantum cryptography;
(F) autonomous systems;
(G) advanced robotics;
(H) biotechnology;
(I) synthetic biology;
(J) computational biology; and
(K) e-commerce technology and services, including any electronic techniques for accomplishing business transactions, online retail, internet-enabled logistics, internet-enabled payment technology, and online marketplaces.
(b) Considerations relating to undue and unacceptable risks.—In determining whether a covered transaction poses an undue or unacceptable risk under section 3(a) or 4(a), the Secretary—
(1) shall, as the Secretary determines appropriate and in consultation with appropriate agency heads, consider, where available—
(A) any removal or exclusion order issued by the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of Defense, or the Director of National Intelligence pursuant to recommendations of the Federal Acquisition Security Council pursuant to section 1323 of title 41, United States Code;
(B) any order or license revocation issued by the Federal Communications Commission with respect to a transacting party, or any consent decree imposed by the Federal Trade Commission with respect to a transacting party;
(C) any relevant provision of the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation and the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and the respective supplements to those regulations;
(D) any actual or potential threats to the execution of a national critical function identified by the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency;
(E) the nature, degree, and likelihood of consequence to the public and private sectors of the United States that would occur if vulnerabilities of the information and communications technologies services supply chain were to be exploited; and
(F) any other source of information that the Secretary determines appropriate; and
(2) may consider, where available, any relevant threat assessment or report prepared by the Director of National Intelligence completed or conducted at the request of the Secretary.
Look at that, does that look like it just covers the one app? NO! This would cover EVERYTHING that so much as LOOKS at the internet from the point this bill goes live.
It gets worse though, you wanna see what the penalties are?
(b) Civil penalties.—The Secretary may impose the following civil penalties on a person for each violation by that person of this Act or any regulation, order, direction, mitigation measure, prohibition, or other authorization issued under this Act:
(1) A fine of not more than $250,000 or an amount that is twice the value of the transaction that is the basis of the violation with respect to which the penalty is imposed, whichever is greater.
(2) Revocation of any mitigation measure or authorization issued under this Act to the person.
(c) Criminal penalties.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—A person who willfully commits, willfully attempts to commit, or willfully conspires to commit, or aids or abets in the commission of an unlawful act described in subsection (a) shall, upon conviction, be fined not more than $1,000,000, or if a natural person, may be imprisoned for not more than 20 years, or both.
(2) CIVIL FORFEITURE.—
(A) FORFEITURE.—
(i) IN GENERAL.—Any property, real or personal, tangible or intangible, used or intended to be used, in any manner, to commit or facilitate a violation or attempted violation described in paragraph (1) shall be subject to forfeiture to the United States.
(ii) PROCEEDS.—Any property, real or personal, tangible or intangible, constituting or traceable to the gross proceeds taken, obtained, or retained, in connection with or as a result of a violation or attempted violation described in paragraph (1) shall be subject to forfeiture to the United States.
(B) PROCEDURE.—Seizures and forfeitures under this subsection shall be governed by the provisions of chapter 46 of title 18, United States Code, relating to civil forfeitures, except that such duties as are imposed on the Secretary of Treasury under the customs laws described in section 981(d) of title 18, United States Code, shall be performed by such officers, agents, and other persons as may be designated for that purpose by the Secretary of Homeland Security or the Attorney General.
(3) CRIMINAL FORFEITURE.—
(A) FORFEITURE.—Any person who is convicted under paragraph (1) shall, in addition to any other penalty, forfeit to the United States—
(i) any property, real or personal, tangible or intangible, used or intended to be used, in any manner, to commit or facilitate the violation or attempted violation of paragraph (1); and
(ii) any property, real or personal, tangible or intangible, constituting or traceable to the gross proceeds taken, obtained, or retained, in connection with or as a result of the violation.
(B) PROCEDURE.—The criminal forfeiture of property under this paragraph, including any seizure and disposition of the property, and any related judicial proceeding, shall be governed by the provisions of section 413 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 853), except subsections (a) and (d) of that section.
You read that right, you could be fined up to A MILLION FUCKING DOLLARS for knowingly violating the restrict act, so all those people telling you to "just use a VPN" to keep using TikTok? Guess what? That falls under the criminal guidelines of this bill and they're giving you some horrible fucking advice.
Also, VPN's as a whole, if this bill passes, will take a goddamn nose dive in this country because they are another thing that will be covered in this bill.
They chose the perfect name for it, RESTRICT, because that's what it's going to do to our freedoms in this so called "land of the free".
Please, if you are a United States citizen of voting age reach out to your legislature and tell them you do not want this to pass and you will vote against them in the next primary if it does. This is a make or break moment for you if you're younger. Do not allow your generation to suffer a second Patriot Act like those of us that unfortunately allowed for the first one to happen.
And if you support this, I can only assume you're delusional or a paid shill, either way I hope you rot in whatever hell you believe in.
