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AlisonW

pr0n filters

2013-08-01 19:03:47 - by alisonw Tech Politics

I do wish politicians would stop trying to 'talk tech'. What I want from my electricity, gas, water, phone, and internet suppliers is to just give me those things as I request them; unadulterated.

No possible technical 'solution' can actually work. The VPN suppliers, for a start, will be rejoicing at their government-sponsored boost in income. And anyway, I do not have children so why would I ever want to restrict my own access*?

If I did have children then it would be up to me to decide whether I felt the need to impose restrictions on access, I wouldn't expect the government to demand the privilege of teaching them to talk, to ride a bicycle, or to wash their clothes, so why should I here? There is also the not inconsiderable matter of definition. Who is to decide what is 'unacceptable'? How, as a user of the internet, am I to know what else might have been filtered away from me without my knowledge? China, North Korea, and other countries have all prevented their citizens from full access to information of all kinds; how would I know whether my government is doing likewise? Answer, by not messing around with the supply of my services.

And anyway, I'm an adult. If I want to look at p0rn then I am free to do so - it is, after all, _legal_ in this country. If it is poor quality or not to my taste I can close the tab, if it is good I might bookmark it for later enjoyment. But that should always be my decision, not some junior censor in an bunker somewhere.

* For explicitness, I do not want ANY filtering on my connectivity whatsoever. Ever. Never.

(the above sent as a comment to my ISP's blog)