Re:US calls for measures against Internet porn

>         WASHINGTON DC (Reuter) - The US called Sunday for improved
>management of the Internet to prevent people seeing pornographic
>material on the world computer network.

Perhaps it is a result of many self-interested parties who have hyped the
Internet to the hilt, but it never ceases to amaze me how people think
that as soon as you connect a PC to the Internet, suddenly, all this information
and computer wizardry _leaps_ down the phone line and _jumps_ out of your
screen.

It can be clearly demonstrated (even to US politicians) that the Internet
is not a passive media - users must go out and find what they are looking
for (especially pornography). You cannot "stumble" upon pornography,
as you might by, say, channel surfing on cable.

You can't tell me that someone who fires up their Web browser and points it
to http://www.playboy.com, or clicks yes to a request that they acknowledge
that they are over 18/21/majority and agree to access adult material doesn't
know what they are getting themselves into...

Mark
___
Mark Neely - accessnt@ozemail.com.au
Lawyer, Professional Cynic
Author: Australian Beginner's Guide to the Internet
Work-in-Progress: Australian Business Guide to the Internet
WWW: http://www.ozemail.com.au/~accessnt

> You can't tell me that someone who fires up their Web browser and points it
> to http://www.playboy.com, or clicks yes to a request that they acknowledge
> that they are over 18/21/majority and agree to access adult material doesn't
> know what they are getting themselves into...

	Just to offer another story of the cluelessness of some
people: I've been receiving a number of complaints about one of my
users who has gotten into a flamewar on Usenet. They claim that
flaming is a violation of FCC regulations. (Maybe eventually it will
be.. sigh.)

-- 
sameer						Voice:   510-601-9777x3
Community ConneXion				FAX:     510-601-9734
The Internet Privacy Provider			Dialin:  510-658-6376
http://www.c2.org/ (or login as "guest")		sameer@c2.org

Excerpts from internet.cypherpunks: 2-Jan-96 Re: US calls for measures
a.. by sameer@c2.org 
>         Just to offer another story of the cluelessness of some
> people: I've been receiving a number of complaints about one of my
> users who has gotten into a flamewar on Usenet. They claim that
> flaming is a violation of FCC regulations. (Maybe eventually it will
> be.. sigh.)

This apparently is becoming a common tactic among would-be censors. One
example involving a web site and complainants from Carnegie Mellon
University and the University of Pittsburgh is at:
   
    http://joc.mit.edu/attack.html

And more on Compuserve... Excepts from today's Washington Post:

   BERLIN, Jan. 2 -- German authorities say the CompuServe on-line
   service decided on its own which sexually explicit Internet forums to
   ban its 4 million customers from viewing.
   
   In addition, prosecutors reiterated today that they never explicitly
   threatened CompuServe Inc. with criminal charges.
   
   The statements appear to conflict with CompuServe's explanation last
   Thursday of why it blocked access to 200 newsgroups. But a CompuServe
   spokeswoman repeated the company's initial explanation today, saying
   German authorities specified which newsgroups should be banned...
   
   Munich senior public prosecutor Manfred Wick said today that his
   office did not provide CompuServe any such list as part of its
   investigation of child pornography on the Internet. "We did not make
   any stipulations. It was the decision of CompuServe alone," he said.

-Declan