LinuxSA Mailing list archives

  From: Robert Wuttke <robert.wuttke@disc.com.au>
  To  : Mark Newton" <newton@atdot.dotat.org>, "Rick Marshall <newton@atdot.dotat.org>
  Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 09:01:01 +0930

Re: Opinions on New Internet Bill (While I am still allowed to

Just got one theory to make, the other reason Govt's use ratings for, seems
to be MONEY. Let's look at X rated videos (note the distinct theme of sex
and sexuality in the govt's major attacks). It's illegal to sell/hire out
them (unless your business is registered in the ACT, hey the pollies need
something to watch when in Canberra, what me a cynic?). With this kind of
law they can easily do something like this:

    Okay, you CAN sell X rated videos from the one location, but we will put
extra charges and regulations on you to make sure you "Don't sell to the
kiddies of Australia". So this totally ignores the fact that some kids learn
to duplicate one or the other parents signatures, have access to the credit
card (let's just rip it off from mum/dad) and can get hold of an order form
somehow. This kid now fills in the details and sends it away with some
address of a friend. Bingo an X rated movie arrives. Has the Govt stopped
anything, No!, but they have got the money from the taxes applied.

Yes this may be a jaded opinion, but it appears right, what they control
they cost!

Rob.
-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Newton <newton@atdot.dotat.org>
To: Rick Marshall <rjm@herzfeld.com.au>
Cc: linuxsa@linuxsa.org.au <linuxsa@linuxsa.org.au>
Date: Friday, 28 May 1999 6:41 AM
Subject: Re: Opinions on New Internet Bill (While I am still allowed to


>Rick Marshall wrote:
>
> > FWIW - its illegal to produce and publish certain offensive and
anti-social
> > material. Defining web sites as publishing and requiring ratings
(largely an
> > honesty system) for potentially offensive or anti-social material as is
the
> > case with magazines right now would have been much better and manageble.
> > Material from another country (or Canberra) is the problem of the
foreign
> > power. And - why haven't the state governments complained. Rating
material
> > is a Federal responsibility, controlling entry to Australia is a Federal
> > problem, deciding what is legal in each state is a state problem.
>
>I disagree - The only reason any Government has ever introduced content-
>specific ratings on published material is to ban it.  Ratings aren't
>used to warn consumers, they're used to sift and sort content into
>boxes so that later you can say that the contents of certain boxes are
>banned.
>
>Even if that's not the way it starts out, that's the way it ends.  Another
>thing Governments always do with rating systems is tighten them up for
>political reasons over time (witness what's happened to television and
>film/video over the last 12 months).
>
> >  Seems to me this legislation may be unconstitutional as the Federal
> > government may lack the constitional power to enforce or regulate it.
>
>Unlikely.  Drug regulation is just as unenforcible and unregulatable,
>but I don't see them declaring that invalid on constitutional grounds.
>
>I don't think we'll see any help from the High Court.
>
> > It's a bit like drugs - punishing the consumer (what this legislation
does)
> > will never control the source of supply. We shouldn't just lobby against
the
> > legislation because it does raise issues that are real concerns in the
> > community - we should actively promote attacking the source and show how
the
> > internet can be used in the fight against undesirables, communists,
> > non-caucasians, serbs, indonesians, ....
>
>See you on the steps of the State Library at 3:00 on Sunday, then.
>
>   - mark
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>I tried an internal modem,                    newton@atdot.dotat.org
>     but it hurt when I walked.                          Mark Newton
>----- Voice: +61-4-1620-2223 ------------- Fax: +61-8-82231777 -----
>
>--
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>

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