

Secret forum reveals Oz firewall backroom dealing - yanw
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/05/10/australia_firewall_forum/

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barrkel
If 10K urls is considered the creaking limit of the system's design, it can
hardly be much different than Cleanfeed, the system in place here in the UK,
most noticeably involved in the Wikipedia Virgin Killer kerfuffle a while
back.

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InclinedPlane
I find it more than a little disturbing that an entire nation can look on as
their government plans to implement censorship on a massive scale with
apparently little public outcry.

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jstevens85
The fact that Conroy has been trying to implement an Internet filter since
November 2007 without success, and has now been forced to delay any
legislation until after the next election, demonstrates that there certainly
isn't a lack of "public outcry". During the same period, Obama has received
the Democratic nomination, won the presidential campaign, and drafted,
introduced and passed a substantial and controversial healthcare bill.
Considering that Conroy hasn't even managed to introduce any legislation at
all into Parliament (and this article states that draft legislation has yet to
be assembled) suggests that the government doesn't believe that the public
would be receptive to such a policy.

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pmccool
True. There's been quite an outcry, it seems to me. What's more, should this
legislation ever get passed, it will surely be challenged in court. It's
entirely possible such a challenge would succeed.

So, dodgy legislation under threat from irate voters and an independent
judiciary. Nothing too concerning there.

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TeHCrAzY
I can only speak for myself, but it seems common place within my "non-
technical" sphere of friends and family to have the vague idea that a) the
filter is a merely politicians beating their chests and b) it wont really go
anywhere substantial.

~~~
andyjdavis
Whilst it wont really go anywhere substantial I still find it alarming that it
can even be seriously talked about. I find it alarming that experts in the
area are ignored. I find it alarming that fear and ignorance are being used to
stir people up.

Whenever I hear politicians talk about protecting the county/children/us from
foreigners/drugs/paedophiles/criminals/whatever it always reminds me of this
quote from Hermann Goering (a senior nazi)

"it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a
democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist
dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the
bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are
being attacked, and denounce the peacemakers for lack of patriotism and
exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country."

I worry that all it would take is one or two Internet related incidents, a
murdered child, something like that, and that would create enough fear for
people to go along with this.

