starrylizard: Headshot of Ruby from Demons smiling (T - Rawr (Joe Flannigan))
starrylizard ([personal profile] starrylizard) wrote2010-02-13 04:11 pm
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Ugh

Sometimes I despair at our FREE country and certain people's crusades to take those freedoms away. There are some things that a few people want to regulate because they just seem genuinely scared of them. They obviously don't use them. Why are you trying to put up a firewall like China has for crying out loud. I can't believe your suggesting that Australia should follow China's example!

Google baulks at Conroy's call to censor YouTube

For that matter, even if you hit a big company like Youtube, there's plenty of other streaming video services to choose from. You gonna hit those too? *eyebrow* Ugh.
lark_ascends: Blue and purple dragonfly, green background (B&B - Not Amused by peaces_icons)

[personal profile] lark_ascends 2010-02-13 05:37 am (UTC)(link)
*blinks*

[identity profile] starrylizard.livejournal.com 2010-02-13 05:58 am (UTC)(link)
This Conroy dude is a dick!

[identity profile] in-the-bottle.livejournal.com 2010-02-13 05:38 am (UTC)(link)
Just... *headdesk*

[identity profile] starrylizard.livejournal.com 2010-02-13 05:59 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, like WTF? This Conroy dude is a dick! I never even heard of him before his whole censor the web crusade.

[identity profile] emeraldus.livejournal.com 2010-02-13 06:33 pm (UTC)(link)
I've been curious about this. How exactly is this block thing supposed to work? Does it just block search results concerning the restrictions or does it also block access to any sites using these topics/words in their keyword section?

[identity profile] starrylizard.livejournal.com 2010-02-13 10:23 pm (UTC)(link)
Um, this is the problem as Google has pointed out. The only way Google can do what Conrad is asking (and god do I hate that man) is to implement a system like what they have with China. They'd have to create a filter based on keywords and tags and I assume also based on people dobbing sites in somehow. Maybe they have something more high tech to pick up audio words, not sure. Not pretty anyway.

This is the same guy that has slipped in and got through a bill that black lists a bunch of websites that all Australian web providers will now be forced to block. The list was leaked and the sites aren't all things you'd assume would be blocked by Australian authorities. There was even a dental practice in there. WTF? And of course the question arises as to who gets to decide what else becomes "black-listed" etc.

[identity profile] charis-kalos.livejournal.com 2010-02-14 02:02 am (UTC)(link)
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy referred to Google's censorship on behalf of the Chinese and Thai governments in making his case for the company to impose censorship locally.

Cannot believe he thought this was a good argument!

Blocking on the basis of keywords is so heavy-handed. I've had friends unable to look at sites about breast-feeding, for instance, because their work systems have blocked searches for "breasts". That sort of thing is just stupid.