Senate Votes To Empower Parents As Censors

unlametheweak recommends an Ars Technica report that the US Senate has unanimously passed a bill requiring the FCC to explore what "advanced blocking technologies" are available to parents to help filter out "indecent or objectionable programming." "...the law does focus on empowering parents to take control of new media technologies to deal with undesired content, rather than handing the job over to the government. It asks the FCC to focus the inquiry on blocking systems for a 'wide variety of distribution platforms,' including wireless and Internet, and an array of devices, including DVD players, set top boxes, and wireless applications."

Comments

Re:Positive Changes

[kyrio]

You toss the laundry in and it's good for about 30 min, you can do all the dishes in the meantime and then go back and change the laundry load, then you finish cleaning the house. You can either take the laundry out now and then fold it or put more in and then fold it. This was all done by one person, where is your partner while you did all this cleaning? Okay, made a few phone calls during the first load of laundry. What now? You just spent an hour cleaning up, where's the rest of the night spent? Do you see your children at all when you aren't feeding them or carting them between the TV and school?

Have you heard of crayons?

At 5 years old I'm pretty sure your child can start doing laundry and washing dishes, just like my girlfriend and I were doing at that age. I'm from a big city and she's from a small town. There's no excuse for being a bad parent.

Re:Positive Changes

[ArcherB]

No, you're asking me to help you pay for it. Nobody is stopping you from buying a TV that blocks programming, but I shouldn't have to help you pay for it. IMO a Rolls Royce would make my life better, but if I want one I'm going to have to pay for it myself, without forcing you to help me.

And where are you going to drive that Rolls? Unless you have a personal track in your back yard, you are probably going to be driving it on roads that I help provide, even if I don't own a car! It's how things work. Get used to it.

Wow, nice attitude. "If you don't want to give me free money to raise my kids, you can GTFO." Maybe it's a good thing you're having other people raise your kids.

How I raise my kids in none of your business. Isn't that your whole point? From TFA:

But the law does focus on empowering parents to take control of new media technologies to deal with undesired content, rather than handing the job over to the government.

Do you not think that's a good thing? This law allows parents to block questionable content. That means that more "questionable" content can be broadcast without parents being able to bitch about it. I've never bitched to any TV station about content, but I understand the concern that many parents have.

So rather than mandating censorship across the board, this takes the decision out of Washington and puts it in the hands of the people to decide what they want shown in their homes. It not only gives control to these families, but it also gives control to YOU as well. This frees up networks to show more, not less. It gives me the option of deciding when and if I want adult material in my home. I would love the option of having "adult" content broadcast for free, but as long as my child has access to it, me and many other parents will resist it. With more tools at my disposal, WE can all have MORE options with our remotes. If it were not for tools like this, we'd all be stuck watching "Leave it to Beaver" all day, because, like it or not, parents are on the side of the majority here.

You're the one who's life sucks bad enough that you want to take other people's money to help make it better. Maybe *you* should move?

I'm in the majority here (this passed UNANIMOUSLY). I don't have to move. My side won.

Also there was nothing in TFA concerning funding. If this is an option, I'd gladly pay for it myself.