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Grand Ayatollah Says High Speed Internet Is "Against Moral Standards"
An anonymous reader writes A Grand Ayatollah in Iran has determined that access to high-speed and 3G Internet is "against Sharia" and "against moral standards." However, Iran's President, Hassan Rouhani, plans to renew licenses and expand the country’s 3G cellular phone network. A radical MP associated with the conservative Resistance Front, warned: “If the minister continues to go ahead with increasing bandwidth and Internet speed, then we will push for his impeachment and removal from the cabinet.” “We will vigorously prevent all attempts by the [communication] minister to expand 3G technology, and if our warnings are not heeded, then the necessary course of action will be taken,” he added.
...then there's got to be something to it.
You already know they don't like this because it takes away their control over a population.
Of course they count it against their religion of control and abuse.
Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
The key bit FTA is here:
“All third generation [3G] and high-speed internet services, prior to realization of the required conditions for the National Information Network [Iran’s government-controlled and censored Internet which is under development], is against Sharia [and] against moral and human standards.”
In short the position is that if you have freedom you will abuse it. That's overall pretty similar to the thinking of al Qaida and ISIS. Strike up the banjos and play "Dueling Theocracy!" Oops, sorry, no music allowed. Or kite flying.
much of left-wing thought is a kind of playing with fire by people who don't even know that fire is hot - George Orwell
Imagine if 3G (and "4G") was found to somehow be illegal in the US - I think there'd be a revolt. A good enough chunk of the nation expects to get FB updates and cat vids on demand anywhere they go. Maybe Iran is the same? It seems backwards, but I think this is the kind of thing that gets the average person to actually care about something. No cat vids = Arab spring in Iran? Maybe?
Young and old we all hate fast internet connections the way seals hate fish.
This program was made possible by a grant from the Ultra-Humanite, and viewers like you.
First... moral standards are "his" moral standards.
Second, internet in general connects his people to the world... exposing them to other view points that might distort their indoctrination to his world view.
So what he is saying is "the people of my country might not believe in my values if exposed to alternative view points."
Which is rational. They probably won't. His world view is pretty weak on logic, argument, or supporting evidence. Its just do what I say or the sharp knives come out.
I've decided to stop wasting my time responding to AC trolls/sockpuppets... so if you want a response from me... login.
I accidentally RTFA'd and realised the fatwa is actually against high-speed internet that isn't government controlled and censored:
All third generation [3G] and high-speed internet services, prior to realization of the required conditions for the National Information Network [Iran’s government-controlled and censored Internet which is under development], is against Sharia [and] against moral and human standards.
Thus I conclude that internet porn is just fine, so long as it's consumed slowly, scanline by scanline. He clearly wants you to enjoy the anticipation.
Why would anyone engrave "Elbereth"?
Where in the Koran does it mention bandwidth? or the speed in which information is made available, since it has nothing to do with what information is available, just the connection speed?
64kb/s ought to be enough for anybody.
"The worst tyrannies were the ones where a governance required its own logic on every embedded node." - Vernor Vinge
Quick!, Get the Australian Government on the phone, slow national broadband is their policy! :)
Mr Malcolm Turnbull, We have a sale for your broadband plan.. Iran is interested in your vision!!
-- If at first you don't succeed, lie!
So Comcast is just trying to protect our moral integrity?
Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
They aren't the only country wanting to remain in the 8th century, their are still supposedly modern countries that ban teaching or evolution and insist on teaching their kids at school creationism.
It is interesting that one of the basis of most religions is the freedom to choose. Most religions allow people to choose to do good or choose not to. Why does the Muslim religion seem to want to control everything? Conversion by force, death sentence for converting to another religion, hiding women's bodies so not to tempt men and now censorship. What would a religion have to force it's followers to conform? What proves a person's faith is the ability to resist temptation. Look at the trials of Job. If the people need to be "protected" from temptation then their faith is weak.
It's like they WANT to remain in the 8th Century. Why is it exactly that we're afraid of them?
Because while they're eager to keep an 8th century moral code (and dress code for women), they seem decidedly more modern in their choice of military forces and interest (but not yet attainment of) nuclear weapons.
Because, you know, when you're the Grand Ayatollah, some "Bikinis" are OK but definitely not others.
"95% of all Slashdot
Many ultra-orthodox rabbis who demand their followers not use uncensored smartphones or uncensored internet access. In 2012, a big anti-Internet rally for ultra-orthodox Jews was held in New York. "The siren song of the Internet entices us! It brings out the worst of us!" The event was streamed live and is summarized on YouTube.
There are ultra-orthodox ISPs with filtering. The filtering is very stringent, based on a rabbi-approved whitelist. "That's all you get, and nothing else."
There are kosher cell phones. "Kosher Phone has no camera, no Bluetooth capabilities, no memory card slot and cannot be connected to a computer."
That's in the US. In Israel, kosher cell phones are so locked down that only approved numbers can be called. Even rape crisis centers are blocked.
I'm becoming increasingly suspicious that the Grand Ayatollah runs my ISP...
~theCzar
Whenever someone says "4G" half the time all I hear is "orgy". Is it just me or are other people having this same problem? This all started with the T-Mobile 4G chick and proceeded downhill from there.
Had to pause and rewind the commercials... all I kept hearing was "my touch orgy" .. when I knew consciously she must be saying "my touch 4G" ... I'm clearly going to hell.. and clearly high speed cellular networks are sinful.
I am of the same opinion, and I can provide evidence. ...Fast forward to 2013. The Internet is operating at Gb/s speeds in the civilized countries and at Mb/s everywhere else. Most of the content in porn, spam, fake illegal downloads, various scams and viruses.
So where is the "evidence" you claim to have? Your "evidence" seems to have originated from your gut. There is a lot less porn on the internet than you think
The Imams decided Gutenberg's printing press was off limits, because (you have to know how the press worked...stamping, essentially) printing the prophet's words on one would be equivalent of punching him in the face.
And ever since, Muslims have been spiraling downward into a pit of ignorance and fanaticism. There was a time when they were the flower of human civilization. That time has passed. Ours will, too, if we continue to allow superstitious morons to dictate our social and educational policiies.
I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
Which is part of what drives the radicalism of the Islamic clerics. They have a perverse incentive for keeping things as fundamentalist as possible. They look to what happened to the clergy in Europe, who in roughly a 100 year span went from being basically on top of the social hierarchy to near the bottom, and are scared it might happen to them. In their eyes the situation in Europe was brought around both by the clergy actively supporting reform, but perhaps even more importantly the clergy not fighting back against reform hard enough(read cutting the heads off of reformers). In a society where your social status not only dictates the amount of property you have, but also your access to women, it's not surprising that the Islamic clergy are scared shitless of modernization and are doing everything in their power to stop it.
Monstar L
Comment removed based on user account deletion
You don't need religion for that kind of insanity. Do some reading about the dechristianisation of France during the French Revolution. I'll wait.
Nasty, isn't it? Given the evidence, it's difficult to believe that ideological atheism won't lead to irrationality and bloodshed just as quickly and easily as any religion.
Required reading for internet skeptics
You might know random other scientific facts, but that does not make one scientifically literate.
Note: I am a man of science and easily accept the validity of the theory of evolution.
They aren't random facts. Please actually read the linked article -- it's clear you aren't doing so, and it makes you look very bad and frankly undermines your points about science.
The article specifies that comprehension of the theory of evolution is uncorrelated to "belief" in the theory of evolution. In other words, just because somebody believes evolution, does not mean they understand what it is they believe in; just because they disbelieve evolution, does not mean they do not understand what it is they disbelieve. Scientific literacy can reasonably be defined as understanding of the principles of science, regardless of whether you accept its conclusions. Even if it seems ridiculous to you and me not to accept its conclusions.
Remember, there are people in the world who literally believe in the talking snake, even though every adult knows that snakes cannot talk.
(point is well taken at using a single, recently-produced study without independent corroboration to support a point, though).
The internet facilitates reason, criticism, satire, and alternate points of view. And yeah porn, fun, shopping and irreverence. All things which an authoritarian theocracy has reason to fear.
it's difficult to believe that ideological atheism won't lead to irrationality and bloodshed
Actually, it is very difficult to believe atheism would lead to anything, positive or negative. Atheism is the absence of belief, so it can not, on its own, become ideological or extremist. You have to have something in addition. Extremism has to come from the belief in something. Stalin, for example, was not a murderous bastard because of a non-belief, he was a murderous bastard for his belief in Communism, and extremist belief in a political ideology will look similar to strong religious extremism.
Extremism requires the belief in some absolute truth, so in that way, Christianity, Islam and Communism all qualify. Atheism, being the lack of belief, does not. I could imagine someone collecting coins could develop some sort of extremist behavior related to the concept of "collecting coins", for example hating everybody who "mistreated" coins. Someone who doesn't collect stamps could not develop some sort of extremist notion related to the fact that he is not collecting stamps.
Its not that religion is evil, or that it does not have significant purpose. Its just that people use it as a means to carry out their own agenda hiding behind the myths and teachings that were misunderstood or misinterpreted. Religion is just a way to get people to follow you and to make you fear going against them because its going against a God. Iran is just another Country bent on keeping the information of the real world away from its people. Only instead of a dictator you have a religious figure who tries to control people through religion. Don't think for a second the Muslims are any more peaceful then the Christians, or Jews or any other religion. Wars throughout history have had significant meaning over differing religions. Unfortunately, religion has backfired on keeping peace in the world. It has only worsen and created conflicts and in many cases has shed more blood then it has saved. It was never meant to happen that way, but it has.
How does it fail to address your point?
I'm an atheist. I also don't believe in unicorns.
I don't campaign against unicorns. I don't really care if YOU believe in unicorns.
Yes, I think you're wasting a whole lot of time, money, and energy believing in something there is no evidence for.
If you start trying to convince me to believe in unicorns, I will debate it with you.
If you start trying to force me to live as though unicorns were real, I will fight you.
If you start chopping off the heads of people who don't believe in unicorns, I think you must be stopped. Not because of your beliefs. Because of your actions.
There are Republicans under you bed when you sleep at night.
To meddle in something that is none of your business merely tends to give credibility to whatever you disagreed with in the first place.
“Never argue with an idiot. They will only bring you down to their level and beat you with experience.” - George Carlin.
“Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference.” - Mark Twain.
So if Iran or wherever wants to pass stupid edicts, just let it go ahead.
Have some respect for Iranians to recognize a horse's ass for what it is.
If a stupid government passes a sufficient number of dumb edicts that they eventually make themselves irrelevant.
Or maybe we should interfere and start another war which would surely help support a dumb regime (on both sides).
So.... you support starting with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, right?