Reese015

Your freedom to post on whatever forum you like is being threatened

The internet is changing. The world's biggest internet providers are creating a system in which they can decide which sites you have access to, and which you don't.

This means: those who have the cash will have popular websites. And sites that start off small, like eBay or Wikipedia did, will not be able to get anywhere. This is massive discrimination and censorship.

We are just a small group of students, but with your help, we can stop this.
How? By making people aware of it.

elisheva

Although this is borderline spam, I'm leaving it up in case people want to discuss the general topic of Internet freedom, which is actually pretty interesting. If you're interested in this person's website, feel free to PM them for the link.

quaist

@ Reese: While I think freedom of speech is very important, I don't think censorship's that bad in every case. For example, I don't people should have unlimited access to video material like Saddam Hussein's hanging. Maybe that's important for them, but I don't like to see very young kids watching such stuff, and I don't think it's in any form good for them. Also, I agree with the government, when they decide to ban f.e. neo nazi sites. I mention that, because the page (I think it was that one) you posted refers to a case where Prime Minister Blair wants to make rascist remarks illegal.

As long as censorhip heads to "illegal" stuff like this, I have no problem with it.
Of course, there are very much small (but helpful) pages out there, and I don't see why they should get shut down.

chicah

quaist: Just because there is a nazi page out there, doesn't mean you have to go into it. And if you don't, you can't really complain.
Internet is about the only place you can still find things from different sides, it's the only place you can truly hear the PEOPLE's voice. And that's whats so great about it. While the american gov don't let journalists publish their pictures of iraqi kids torn in two from an american bomb because 1) it'll give people an even worse impression of the iraq war and 2) people won't watch it because it's too offending, such pictures can be found all over the internet.
People who are trying to tell and show the truth are silenced in this way. It is censorship, and if you go against it, you can go to jail. Is that right? Is it right that the British Terrorism Act states that anyone who says anything that's positive towards Hamas can be arrested? This world is starting to remind me more and more of "V for Vendetta", and it's extremely scary.

quaist

Well, but this is a conflict with laws that exist much longer than the internet does. To come back to your example: Nazi pages. Where I live (Austria), drawing a Swastika or wearing it (even if it's crossed out!) is forbidden. So German pages with fascist material get banned, as well.

Of course, banning crossed out Swastikas is very ridiculous, but that's another topic. What I want to point out is, that I don't think that the internet ever was a medium with no laws.

Most adults can deal with such material, they don't get affected by it. But I don't think that everyone should have access to fascistic, discimating .. material.

You're suggesting that the situation with freedom of speech has gotten worse, but I'm afraid it's the opposite. Since the internet has got that popular, everybody has numerous sources to get informations, pics and videos about pretty much everything. In former times, people couldn't even imagine that.

We're on a level, where there are much more available informations out there than ever before.

chicah

Internet isn't really a part of the society in a big scale like f. ex. tv channels. or don't get me wrong, internet clearly can be - but at the same time, everyone knows you can basically find everything at the internet, even things that aren't allowed.
If f. ex. the president goes out and says that this and this is wrong, people will think it's wrong even if it's on the internet. So in a way, it's not really freedom of speech.

quaist

Yes, I do think that, too.

But I don't think there'll ever be complete freedom of speech, you know.