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'Dangers of the Internet' Resolution Passed By Senate
destinyland writes "Apparently June is national 'Internet is Dangerous' month. The U.S. Senate unanimously passed a resolution urging Americans to 'learn more about the dangers of the Internet.' And what counts as a danger? Disabling censorware, or making friends online if you ever plan to meet them in real life. Its extreme negativity is disappointing. But remember — it passed unanimously. From the tech blorge article: 'It's not just a resolution. A few corporations are actually trying to cash in on this misguided disinformation campaign, including BSafe Online, a Tennessee company which markets a PC filtering software. (I wonder if it's one of the ones that can be disabled by 31% of America's teenagers...) Their CEO has an encouraging message for parents about safety on the internet. "This is a battle they must fight everyday with their children in order to keep pornographers, sexual predators and cyber-bullies at bay." And keeping those pornographers and sexual predators away will cost you a mere $70 a year...'"
That there are people and companies out there taking advantage of things like this, or that there are people that are ignorant enough to actually fall for it.
Living With a Nerd
"And keeping those pornographers and sexual predators away will cost you a mere $70 a year...'
Well you don't think they would care about and/or protect our children for free right? I mean it may be think about the children...but the end of that quote is...only when cash is involved.
The worst danger of all: reading opinions that offend you.
I'd be willing to pay that.. if it actually worked.
The only way to "protect" our kids is to educate them on the real dangers. Waiting until they are 18 so they can be allowed to access the web as they want to is a mistake. Filtering of the internet, other than porn sites, at school is also a mistake. Let them surf away, but put consequences in place when they mess up.
Some 80 year old congress critter, who's never used a computer for more than surfing porn and ordering interns, doesn't know what the dangers out there are. My daughter probably knows more about where not to go than they ever will.
But nanny-states are the wave of the future I guess.
Had any of them voted against this resolution, it would have immediately been held up as proof that they loved pedophiles and hated America - and a substantial portion of the electorate would have bought it hook, line, and sinker (just like this resolution). C'mon, you think I'm trolling, but you know I'm right.
It's a truly sad state of affairs when the U.S. is so transparently motivated and coerced by fear.
____
~ |rip/\/\aster /\/\onkey
Yes, the Internet is full of things that can be dangerous. Fortunately, all that's needed to save you is applying a little critical thinking.
Curiously enough, that's also the cure for cutting through most of the BS that Congress tries to pass off every day. Two for the price of one!
I'm sorry to point out the obvious, but slashdot is very skilled in technology and the implications compared to the wider populace. The government deals with all peoples of all capabilities. Some are young, some unable and some just uninformed. But they still need some help sometimes.
There are people who need protection, occasionally from themselves. They deserve every opportunity to be informed. Those who need protection:
* Don't read blogs
* Don't shred their bank statements
* Don't read lifehacker, digg, reddit, slashdot
* Don't read mainstream press or Wired
* May believe they are protected by "Guardian Angels", karma, astral-projections and generally need help with everything
* Native communities who don't have a mainstream existence.
* The list goes on.
But the internet can be a place for bad people to take advantage of others. Why pretend people should not be informed that it can be perverted that way??
[% slash_sig_val.text %]
The internet is dangerous? Oh, for Zog's sake. Yeah, and cars are dangerous too if you allow unqualified people to drive them with several litres of beer in their systems. Is the next step in this crazy world to announce a "Cars Are Dangerous" month? I can really see Ford and GM going for that one.... More proof, if needed, that those who legislate often have no idea about the subjects they are talking about. And if it's something new, that counts double. But of course, what we don't understand we fear, and what we fear we try to destroy, or ridicule, or ignore in the hope it'll just go away.
.... 0x00FEEDFACEC0FFEE
How about we counter with a positive campaign highlighting everything good about the net.
In no particular order
1) Information at the tip of your fingers. From rare medical problems to gossip about soap stars it's all at your fingertips
2) Positive for the economy.
3) Broadens your horizons
4) Meet and connect with people you'd never otherwise be able to
5) Develop your writing and arguing skills
6) Find people with common intests
7) Scientific collaboration and data transfer on a scale never before possible
8) Avoid queues by taking advantage of electronic payment
The net is great. If idiots want to scare monger, sane people should counter.
These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
and if this is what they're doing in Washington while Iraq burns it's time for the revolution.
I'd say a dangerous web is vital to those of us who learnt things the hard way. I am not uber-1337, but I learnt from experience that that downloading cracks leads you to pages with naked chicks on them and then 2 weeks later your computer slows down. I learnt to google (actually it was megaspider back then) for stuff as a means to find reliable information rather than blindly believe things people say online. To some extent, giving a kid an unrestricted broadband connection and letting him learn from his/her mistakes is the best way to make a good netizen. However, this ought to be accompanied by some tools & words of wisdom for younger kids like "Use wikipedia to verify stuff", "It's easy for you to lie on the internet" etc...
Maybe I am just wrong about this issue, but I think I was helped in becoming a good netizen by my personal sense of morality and my parents inability to understand what a computer was for and their consequent rejection of the pipes.
Cheers!
Atheist: Buddhist in a Prius
Where I came from waiting for the parents to get involved got the victim in suspension then got him beat up again the day he got out.
Where I came from waiting for the adults to get involved got someones face smashed into a locker. It's not cheap to replace teeth sometimes.
That was only in middle school.
After a while you start to realize that you get the same punishment for fighting back that you got for being a punching bag.
Then again this was a predominantly white middle class suburban area. Parents don't give a fuck till there little angel is in trouble, then they get involved just long enough to scream how their angel wouldn't do a thing.
You mad
The internet is a dangerous place. But most people I've met don't realize that the internet is adult space and children shouldn't be allowed to play there without adult supervision and involvement. I've talked to so many parents who want to do something about it but don't understand it.
We raised a teenage daughter through the uncensored, budding internet. My wife and I were on her like hawks. Same rules apply to the internet as other facets of life like don't talk to strangers, don't tell people where you live, don't play in the same places as criminals, etc. I tell all those parents that their children have no privacy as long as you are responsible for their actions and you don't have to understand all that they are doing, but you can get involved and watch them. Imagine that! Supervising your kids and getting involved. I know it's a revolutionary concept but some parents do it.
The biggest problem is education. This is a common theme with new technology or other new social issues. I, for one, would like spend some time conducting free education seminars at places like the public library to take some of the mystery out of the internet and computers in general for people. Congress is comprised of people who don't know anything about the computers, computer security or the internet and they are pandering to voters who are largely comprised of the same thinking people.
The way to beat this downward spiral is education and enlightenment. We, as the more knowledgeable members of the internet community, need to do everything we can to help communicate, educate and reach out. This is a call to arms!
So as long as we aren't stepping up to the plate or doing enough about the situation, we will continue to be frustrated by these issues.
The process of enlightenment is painful. Don't expect it to come easily. It's going to take hard work and diligence.
Fresh horses and more whiskey for my men.
If you coddle children too much, then they won't grow up at all. I don't want to live in a society where 'run to authority' is the solution to any form of mildly antisocial behaviour any more than I want to live in one where vigilante action is the response to any criminal act.
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
Remember when gopher was the sh&t -- when Joe Public didn't know dick about teh interwebs? Remember confusing a family member when you mentioned that you emailed so-and-so? You see, the net's like a drunken whore -- you take her out of her intended environment (i.e., researchy places) and let her loose, and she just ends up doing everyone and everything. It's about time we took her back. We didn't have any stinkin' censorship problems back in '87, now did we? We need to send a message to all those techno-weenies out there -- "If you can't look after it properly, we're takin' it back, got it?"
Why does the mere mention of the internet as a "dangerous place" stir up so much angst from the slashdot crowd? News flash! From having their computer hijacked for a bot-net, their credit card info stolen, or their child lured into a real life meeting with a sexual predator, the internet IS a dangerous place. When entering (or connecting to) it, people should be cautious, aware, and on their guard.
So what, you're faulting parents for even making the attempt to keep their children safe while surfing the net? Does parental vigilance somehow threaten you?
My oldest is currently headed into 2nd grade this fall. He already uses the computer a great deal for homework, and it is sometimes (oftentimes) challenging to safeguard him on the internet from things that are simply inappropriate for a 7 YEAR OLD. Personally I welcome any help I can get in this battle. We keep our computer in the living room so we can keep an eye on what he is looking at. Can we 100% monitor what he is looking at? No, we have other children who sometimes fall or require attention or simply need a diaper change. Sometimes the phone rings and you have to pick it up. Things happen to distract you. Would I consider BSafe as a solo solution for guarding him? Absolutely not. But it may play a part in our overall solution.
I guess what I fail to understand is why slashdotters are so reactionary to such stories. I would think as advocates of "freedom" everyone here would be all for services such as BSafe, because the choices here are to either protect your child to a reasonable level, or to simply pull the plug and declare that my children cannot use the internet because the risks are to prevalent.
Personally I would prefer to allow my children as much freedom as possible, and services that help me protect my children, while not perfect, certainly help me to do that.
Old white men accurately represents the vast majority of Senate. Only on slashdot could I find someone sufficiently anally retentive to take offense at this generalization. Go back to your politically-correct nest, you damn troll.
I never spellcheck and I freely admit it. Save your karma for more worthwhile "lol erorrs" replies