This is my open letter. I hope it reaches everyone that has any idea about SOPA/ProtectIP. It essentially means that I'm out of luck pursuing my passion. I am a software programmer. More specifically, a web programmer. I specialize in creating start-up companies, much like Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, Reddit, and the likes. If my content can be censored at will for reasons related to what my users submit, my projects will not go anywhere. I worked for a company known as TinyGrab. Now that the company is based in the US, the government can censor the website for a few users misusing the service. The service I'm using to post this can be censored because people share malicious content or pirated files. If this hit Canada, Justin Bieber would have been considered a felon. And to think that MY OWN governor is pushing for this. I will become out of a job. A job that I loved. I didn't create websites that had illegal or malicious intents. I created websites that helped spread ideas and enjoyment to a potentially infinite amount of people. My freedom of speech will be censored because of what other people do. Not everyone is like this. Piracy will never be stopped. You can apply the exact same model to illegal drugs. They haven't gone away and never will. It only makes it worse.

My name is Joel Larson, and I am a nobody with the desire to share my ideas freely.