CALLING ALL AUSSIES

Sorry to shout but I need your attention

I just read this on Ars Technica Ars Technica

To summarise:

"Australians may not be able to opt out of the government's Internet
filtering initative like they were originally led to believe...
Australia moved forward with its plans despite a widespread public
outcry and began testing the system in Tasmania in February of this
year. At the time, the Australian Communications and Media Authority
(ACMA) said that the filter would be enabled by default and that
consumers would have to request unfiltered connectivity if they
wished to opt-out of the program. Well, it turns out now that those
promises were only partially true. Internode network engineer Mark
Newton told Computerworld that users are able to opt out of
the "additional material" blacklist - which targets content
inappropriate for children - but not the main blacklist that filters
what the Australian government determines is illegal content. "This
is the way the testing was formulated, the way the upcoming live
trails will run, and the way the policy is framed; to believe
otherwise is to believe that a government department would go to the
lengths of declaring that some kind of Internet content is illegal,
then allow an opt-out", Newton said. "Illegal is illegal and if there
is infrastructure in place to block it, then it will be required to
be blocked - end of story." A spokesperson for the Australian
Communications Minister seemed to confirm this revation by saying
that the filters would be required for all Australian citizens." So
apart from the speed hit the internet would take, filters could mean
that content deemed illegal would be banned. This includes: " No
depiction of violence, sexual violence, sexualised violence or
coercion is allowed in the category. It does not allow sexually
assaultive language. Nor does it allow consensual depictions which
purposefully demean anyone involved in that activity for the
enjotment of viewers. Fetishes such as body piercing, application of
substances such as candle wax,"golden showers", bondage, spanking or
fisting are not permitted."

Would Blogger or my own personal site CollarNcuffs.com then become a banned site, for instance, as it has
photos of the above activities? the answer is YES

Electronic Frontiers have set up a site about this
http://nocleanfeed.com/index.html
which explains actions you can
take. Have a look...I urge you all to NOT stick your head in the sand

heres the link again
http://nocleanfeed.com/index.html

Aussie's please cross post this where ever you can, this effects more than
our 'porn' This plan will waste tens of millions of taxpayer dollars
and slow down Internet access.

Despite being almost universally condemned by the public, ISPs, State
Governments, Media and censorship experts, Communications Minister
Stephen Conroy is determined to force this filter into your home.
Don't let him!

Take action now, every little bit helps
heres what you can do
http://nocleanfeed.com/takeaction.html




source information for original 'summary' taken from various areas on the internet
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081016-net-filters-required-for-all-australians-no-opt-out.html
http://news.theage.com.au/technology/australias-plans-to-filter-internet-under-fire-20080102-1jwl.html
http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;1399635276;fp;16;fpid;0
http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;420013177
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081016-net-filters-required-for-all-australians-no-opt-out.html
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070814-australia-to-spend-189-million-on-anti-porn-initiative.html
http://www.minister.dbcde.gov.au/media/media_releases/2008/060
http://blog.nocleanfeed.com/
http://www.somebodythinkofthechildren.com/
http://www.nocleanfeed.com/
http://libertus.net/
http://defendingscoundrels.com/
http://broadbannedrevolution.blogspot.com/
http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/HOMEPAGE/PC=HOME
http://www.dbcde.gov.au/