Nation-Wide Internet Censorship Proposed For Australia 424
sparky1240 writes "While Americans are currently fighting the net-neutrality wars, spare a thought for the poor Australians — The Australian government wants to implement a nation-wide 'filtering' scheme to keep everyone safe from the nasties on the internet, with no way of opting out: 'Under the government's $125.8 million Plan for Cyber-Safety, users can switch between two blacklists which block content inappropriate for children, and a separate list which blocks illegal material. ... According to preliminary trials, the best Internet content filters would incorrectly block about 10,000 Web pages from one million."
Always remember: (Score:5, Funny)
This bill was brought to you by your local censors.
10,0000? (Score:5, Funny)
Is this some new scheme to confuse use by putting commas in the wrong place?
Waste of money (Score:2, Funny)
I think it would be better to spend 125 million instead on teaching parents how to domesticate/train their children properly.
Not saying they should all train their kids to be exactly the same , but if you look at the training programs for dogs, even if you're training a dog to do different things, the concepts and methods are pretty much the same, even if the desired results and objectives might be different.
And too many parents are clueless on the basic concepts.
Maybe they should force parents to pass a basic parenting test before they are allowed to have children. If they have children without a license then they get fined.
Re:WTF?! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:10,0000? (Score:2, Funny)
No, this is a clever test.
It is aimed at a certain type of slashdot readers:
the readers in the following groups:
- Americans. Or at least: they who are used to using a "." as a seperator. I.e.: "1/2=0.5"
Beware: there are those who would write the above as "1/2=0,5"!
- Non Americans, of the 'not enough geek' type.
They wouldn't fall for the '0,5' thing, but would balk at a sentence 'about 10,0000 in one million'.
Beware: those in the stock market (non US) would say that 10,0000 in one million is not very precise: better is of course 10,00000 in one million. I mean: 10,0000 is really between 9,9999 and 10,0001 which is not really precise.
- Those who think that the world is NOT directed by mathematics. Indeed, these people would disbelieve a number of 10,0000 in one million (but would believe something like 12,9078).
All-in-all, as I read my own thoughts: it cannot be but a lure to try to trap those slashdotreaders who are in the stock-exchange outside of the USA, and who ARE of the opinion that all riscs in the stock exchange can be put in a mathematical formulae.
This off course in the best slashdot tradition: ... ...
1. Identify a specific group of slashdot readers
2.
3.
4. Profit!
(They just haven't yet come to steps 2 and 3)
What could possibly go wrong? (Score:5, Funny)
"We have buttiduously canvbutted the industry, [today.com] buttessed what is available and buttembled the finest selection of PFI contractors for this buttignment. The filters will buttociatively clbuttify all communications and filter then, I can butture you, rebuttemble them with surpbutting exacbreastude in any quanbreasty. Consbreastuents can be rebuttured that a mulbreastude of industry compebreastors will butture quality and keep our clbuttrooms safe. EDS Capita Goatse will not embarbutt us."
The plans have attracted wide criticism. "It will only give supersbreastious rebutturance to medireview thinkers. Automated systems won't solve human problems like loveual harbuttment. Mbuttacring the written word into a Picbutto painting is not the anbreastank missile of Internet safety."
Unions also butterted that such close buttessment of staff in the workplace would hamper efficiency and could verge on workplace harbuttment. "Watermeloning cranberries."
The government was unfazed. "Butterting free speech is one thing, but a triparbreaste committee considers that that does not justify mere pbuttive breastillation at the expense of others."
The first filtering offices will be set up in Arsenal, Penistone and Scunthorpe.
Phew (Score:3, Funny)
Thank God I live in good old England where this surely won't happen.
Time to move to china I think........ (Score:2, Funny)
Re:WTF?! (Score:5, Funny)
Hmmm, I can't get to that link. It just says "Blocked by EFA".
Re:10,0000? (Score:3, Funny)
It's just Shatner's version of one million dollars.
Two lists (Score:4, Funny)
Re:WTF?! (Score:3, Funny)
Money. The American way is to donate appropriate amounts of cash to the campaign funds of the particular people you are trying to sway.
Re:Follow orders: bend over & spread 'em (Score:5, Funny)
"Whole communities might find themselves wrongfully off-limits, as happened a few years ago, when the alt.binaries.pictures.astronomy usenet group was blacklisted by a large US ISP. The ISP did not block all alt.binaries.pictures groups, but chose to lump the astrophotography group in with the porn groups. That's what misinterpretation of phrases such as "heavenly body", "images from last night", "multiple exposure", "open truss", "polar mount", "white dwarf", "full moon" and the like can cause."
I don't want to know
Re:Always remember: (Score:2, Funny)
> Your local government knows best.
Or the State Govt.
Or the Federal Govt.
Who said we had too much government? :-)
Probably someone who's about to be disconnected, or placed on a blacklist.
Re:Follow orders: bend over & spread 'em (Score:5, Funny)
Well, I for one am intrigued by these topics and wish to learn more.
Re:Always remember: (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Follow orders: bend over & spread 'em (Score:4, Funny)
In a society that values freedom of speech, any page blocked is done so wrongfully.
Except goatse and 2 chicks. Those are the two good uses of censorship.
Re:Follow orders: bend over & spread 'em (Score:1, Funny)
You forgot tubgirl. I must know how you did so.