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New Australian PM wants to push forward with Internet filtering -- instantly loses the geek vote
Just weeks ago, Australia received its very first female Prime Minister. It was a surprising bit of news, and it came just after word had broken out that the "toxic" issue of government-run Internet-censorship was set to be shelved. Unfortunately, Julia Gillard is not the shiny new PM that everyone had hoped she would be. She wants to push forward with the much-hated Internet filter, and doesn't see what all the fuss is about.
Gillard's stance on the issue is pretty simple: Since Aussies can't legally go and see child porn in a movie theater, or catch it on cable, or buy it at the news stands, then they obviously shouldn't be allowed to look for it online, either. The problem with that point of view, aside from it being unabashedly naive, is that it's ignoring the fact that a blacklist simply won't work for the purpose of deterring predators. That's omitting the countless other arguments against such a filter, which is an idea so beyond rational that it's simply indefensible.
This filter is of course completely separate from the proposed legislation for a data retention directive, which would have Australian ISPs logging all traffic data for up to 10 years if hard-liners get their way. If the two plans ever come to fruition, Australia would be more like Iran, China and North Korea than any other modern society as far as the Internet is concerned.
While there's no shortage of people ready and willing to fight any legislation that provides mandatory Internet-filtering for all Australians, the fact remains that those in power are the same people who concocted the whole idea in the first place. Gillard tries to draw a distinction between what is -- and what isn't -- a "legitimate use of the Internet." Once a government starts believing it can decide something as basic as that, the slippery slope begins to take shape, cliches be damned.
The Sydney Morning Herald via Tech Eye. (Image: Australia.to)
Comments
17
Subscribe to commentsMeJul 8th 2010 4:46PM
I still think it's a good idea
3tearJul 8th 2010 7:23PM
How come?
DazzaJul 8th 2010 6:56PM
The novelty of "the first woman prime minister" will soon wear off with her obvious lack of intelligence and common sense. She appears to be no more than a puppet with strings pulled by those that want Australia to be a dictatorship type country.
The internet sensorship and control are the 2 most prominant issues for many as they are not simply about stopping freedom on the internet but the beginnings of freedom in general in Australia.
Big brother is watching you! Their idea is very dangerous and will obviously lead to further restrictions of basic rights such as freedom of speech, freedom of expression, right of privacy, right of religious beliefs, right of free thinking.
The filter has very little to do with Child pornography as proven by the list that was leaked, and more to do with the control of freedom and information to Australians.
Android underlingJul 8th 2010 11:03PM
sounds like Obama
DazzaJul 9th 2010 6:27AM
Unfortunately true, The first black man, the first woman, has more to do with personal marks in history, than making a mark for the society you are meant to represent.
Going down in history as the first person to commit mass genocide goes done more than the first person to do good for the common fellow!
Unfortunately the whole politics in Australia has turned to being the first in wrong areas.We've lost our direction and in so have lost our true sole of what once was the Australian pride.
Australia was once classed as the lucky country, and now classed as a joke, and put in the same class as CHINA, and Korea.
Restictions to basic rights does not equate to a freedom.
Hiding behind "Child pornography" or "Terrorism" is nothing more than a political agenda to stop all rights.
No longer poud!
Crome TysnomiGnu32Jul 8th 2010 7:51PM
Problem is, I've not seen a single ounce of action against this. I've not seen a single Aussie who seems to be bothered about what their government is up to. This one's just going to roll on by and happen because, quite frankly, nobody down there cares. It's awful.
mcruzierJul 8th 2010 11:32PM
Liberal +1 vote
DazzaJul 9th 2010 6:50AM
The reasons many Australians don't respond, is the limited information publicly made aware. I've never seen a major news story on the filters or the logging system. The whole thing is played down, and with the crappy political properganda to make the current the rule. But god bless any of us, that might have a brain.
The news "From the current government" states it a fight against "Child Pornography" yet less than a third of the sites leaked had anything to do with pornography of any sort. Unless you don't like Queensland dentists etc.
To bypass MOST filtering is limited effort by those that seek, and in the end it achieves NOTHING from the government but disgust from its "knowing" electorate.
JackJul 8th 2010 8:49PM
She is Australia's first female priminister and men didn't even get a chance to vote on that. (Not trying to be sexist here)
So if we don't even get to vote on who's in power, how do we get to vote against the filter and the URL logging?
AndyJul 9th 2010 12:12AM
Actually, there's been enough public concern that it's been delayed until at least next year. This just in:
http://www.theage.com.au/technology/technology-news/conroy-backs-down-on-net-filters-20100709-10381.html
enerGIJul 9th 2010 4:35AM
These clowns running Australia have put it on hold during a election campaign, but watch out if they win, they will backflip and say they have a mandate to enforce filtering. Its like they are converting us to communisim. They want total control over what we do and see.
ppsJul 9th 2010 6:20AM
woho! It seems that we have another country with an incompetent, bilderberg club appointed president around uh!?
It's time for the Ned Kelly splinter cell to fight back!
I really hope the Australian hacking scene gives them the ride of their life with that.
...altough the only real solution to that is using a PPS (puppet president supressor) like the http://www.barrett.net/firearms/model82a1
enerGIJul 9th 2010 6:54AM
Gillard is the same as the ex PM that she knifed in the back. All spin and no substance. Its a smoke and mirror act where the puppet masters have changed the puppet. Its really bad. Bring on the election i say.
InsomnihackJul 10th 2010 4:16AM
What's it like being not right in the head?
President assassination jokes must score you a lot of chicks.
InsomnihackJul 10th 2010 4:29AM
There's so much misinformation floating around about this it's not funny. It's widely rumoured within the Labor party (of which several of my friends are active members) that Gillard secretly does NOT actually support the filter. However she's in a difficult position having just overthrown the previous prime minister and his disastrous policies that she is in moderate "smooth everything out mode" at the moment. She's taken a moderate to right wing approach on the new mining tax on immigration and now on the filter.
Gillard is an atheist, which means she's not delusional and not influenced by the Australian Christian Lobby who is the main proponent of the filter.
Unfortunately Gillard was also voted in as prime minister by factional right members of the Labor party who also support Sentator Conroy's internet filter. There was no way she could come to power and simply abolish the filter completely. Instead it's been "shelved" for at least 12 months while they take a closer look at RC guidelines. This also gives her time to become better educated about the facts (which she's illustrated she is good at doing with other policies she has negotiated) and hopefully back away from the filter altogether.
People are quick to hammer Labor and think a Liberal vote will be better, but our Liberal party wants to reverse our $45 billion national broadband network which has already connected people across the country and will deliver 100mbps to every home. They have announced no plans whatsoever for anything to take it's place, they simply want to scrap it. They are luddites of the highest order.
In addition to that the Liberal party has a hard right conservative catholic leader who has already publicly supported the filter as well. He takes advise directly from the church and the Australian Christian lobby and is conservative as they get. Do you really think he won't implement his own nasty "protect the children" filter?
I hate the filter and am part of several activist groups to try and get it abolished. At the same time it's important to remember that while you may not like out new PM and how she came to power, she is a hell of a lot better than the "climate change denying right mad monk" alternative.
TezzJul 12th 2010 12:05AM
your post screams Labor propaganda. let us not forget the years that Howard was in power, Stability and Economic growth. What happened before Howard? oh that's right, Labor caused mass deficit.
It's 2010, Labor is in power and oh look, we are in deficit, but you say: "labor stopped us from experiencing the economic problems, other countries were hit hard with", how did they do that? they used the large amounts of surplus that the liberals had left them with, coupled with the fact that China began buying up lots of our exports for cheap. That is how we stayed afloat while others sank.
I won't vote labor, ill vote liberal, because they handled the country better for 12 years than what labor handled it for 3 and because the leader of the party still has to bow to his party's stance. The party leader is just a puppet, who can be voted out through in house policies.
Don't vote for the leader you think is awesome, vote for the party, because the party controls the leader. Your vote doesn't go to the leader anyway, it goes to the party, we are not America.
InsomnihackJul 12th 2010 12:09AM
As a tech enthusiast (which you no doubt are if you're reading DS) then I'm amazed you could vote for a party that wants to reverse something as awesome as the NBN.
Labor's filter sucks but at least they don't want to take us back to the technological dark ages and leave us behind the rest of world with an antiquated copper network.