Monday, February 19th 2007
US Senate aims to ban Wikipedia from schools/libraries
Senator Ted Stevens is working to pass senate bill 49. Senate bill 49's goal is to reduce the seduction and rape of children over the internet. It does this by making access to interactive websites illegal on a school/library network (or at least the ones that get federal internet subsidies). The theory behind this is that interactive sites can be used to seduce children into meeting sex offenders over the internet. Unfortunately, useful sites like Amazon, Wikipedia, and TechPowerUp are considered "interactive", meaning that they would be banned if this bill was passed.
Source:
The Inquirer
45 Comments on US Senate aims to ban Wikipedia from schools/libraries
At what point does adult responsibility become a factor in protecting and guiding children down the right path?
Seduction and rape... man kids are asking for it these days. Then parents go and sue the sites when THEY were the ones who didn't monitor their children and allowed them to surf so freely?
This reminds me of parents suing the food industry. Take responsibility for your neglect :shadedshu
Edit: It's also amazing how teachers give us so many opportunities to use the computers and do as we please with bypassing. When you run a class of 30+ students with 30+ computers with internet access, give them an assignment, and sit on your ass expecting it to be done, how could you expect students to stay focused without your supervision?
much like you wouldn't blindly believe everything you read in some cheesy supermarket tabloid, DON'T blindly believe everything you read on theINQ.
but if this does have some element of truth in it, then its gotta be one of the freakin' stupidest decisions EVER made by US lawmakers....
And their problem is that they dont THINK. They always come up with the stupidest way to combat a problem. So I say - why the fuck are they in charge? Uh.. Dr. Bush, same question.
This is stupid also because:
- How are kids going to get.. raped? by using the internet? Wait, what?
- If u dont want kids to be raped just dont let them meet with the people who they have talked to.
- If u dont want kids to talk to strangers over the net, tell them not to.
They might aswell not let them learn how to read because if they know how to read it may put them in some kind of danger at some point in their lives. They have no idea how to protect something.. maybe filling it with fear will work like it does with the US populas.
I think that would work well? Even better if it happens while on a dump truck with tubes coming out from it.
:laugh:
Well I wouldn't expect anything better... these are the types of people who think that video game violence is the sole cause of high school shootings, you know. Honestly, if they ban Wikipedia, I'll just use a proxy. If they ban the proxy (my school already has... you can't even google for the word "proxy")... I'll just bring my own laptop and use it.
the only good senator is a car-less senator
for those of us who have seen triple xXx
"Senator Hotchkiss! Yes! Somebody just stole my Car!!!"
*Corvette plunges into a ravine*
I certainly hope someone creates a website that teaches every young student in america to learn how to circumvent this system.
And Zek, loved the analogy :laugh:
and myinternet is used by the Catholic Education Office, so HEEEAPS of schools would use it
bad luck tk
Now its only our school administrator that controls blocked sites :p
unfortunately, at my school, even bringing a laptop won't work. all site blocking is essentially done by the district, which is a shame. essentially, the district has a huge-arse t3 pipe coming in, and its split between 5 or so schools thru fiber, and then branches off thru ethernet to individual terminals. BUT... since all the net comes in thru district, they have complete control over everything that comes in and out. which is a shame.... even if i log on with my laptop to the unencrypted wifi, i can't get to blocked items. bah!
im guessing the router/switch has to be set up for my computer to be allowed to communicate on the network.