33 ms·

Iraq introduces nightly internet curfew

155 points by Ahmed90 7y ago

soulofmischief 7y ago
This is the straw that would have me rioting in this streets.
- ummwhat 7y ago
  Ironically, it sounds like the internet was cut because of rioting in the streets.
  - m-p-3 7y ago
    Looks like a vicious circle
    - asdff 7y ago
      Nothing like stopping a fire with more gasoline
- rvoje 7y ago
  This shutdown seems to be the consequence of rioting.
  - mcv 7y ago
    If you don't want people to riot, free internet during rioting hours sounds like a very effective distraction.
- benbristow 7y ago
  After work too, perfect timing
redwood 7y ago
Imagine the fertility impacts if this were happening in a low birth rate developed country!
Juliate 7y ago
What's the impact in Iraq for businesses (big and small) relying on the Internet?
- Ahmed90 7y ago
  The impact is huge, I'm a software engineer in an app-based company the interaction dropped like 80% or something
- htfu 7y ago
  "It is believed that Iraq has introduced formal curfew times after push-back from industry, which has incurred costs spiralling into the hundreds of millions as a direct result of the internet disruptions, estimated using figures from the COST tool." This curfew is a scaling back of previous heavier restrictions.
emptyfile 7y ago
2019-10-09 https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/10/iraq-protests-latest-updates-191004085506824.html https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/10/iraq-protests-latest-... >At least 110 people have been killed and more than 6,000 wounded in Baghdad and in the south, since security forces started cracking down on demonstrators. And the whole world is "outraged" about HK. Here on this thread the other posters are making jokes. If they killed every single person in the country no one would give a shit. Same way no one gives a shit about Yemen.
- mikejb 7y ago
  > Same way no one gives a shit about Yemen. There is an undeniable discrepancy on how we receive and perceive information about individual subjects; Where our attention is directed, and from where it's deviated - what I'm surprised about is how this persists despite a medium like the Internet.
  - chvid 7y ago
    It persists because massive resources are spent on manipulating the public’s attention. Regardless of the medium.
  - pjc50 7y ago
    It persists because of the Internet, and the tendency of humans to cluster at the popular spots. News gets increasingly centralised. There is now almost a single "us", with a single focus of news cycle attention at any one time. Oh, and the propaganda industry.
- squarefoot 7y ago
  "If they killed every single person in the country no one would give a shit. Same way no one gives a shit about Yemen." Of course the world wouldn't give a shit: they're poor, badly clothed, darker skinned and (oh the horror!) even muslim, and when they finally all die their territory and oil will be up for grabs by the west. (undisclaimer: that wasn't a joke)
  - 7y ago
Y_Y 7y ago
Obviously this is wrong and tyrannical etc. I can't help wondering though if this may have unexpected benefits for e.g.: sleep quality, civility in online discussions, exercise. It's hardly intended that way, but could end up being a net benefit for the well-being of citizens, particularly if it were implemented in a highly-developed country like the US.
- Tenoke 7y ago
  Given that the curfew seems to be directly related to the large-scale protests where thousands are getting wounded and some killed, I wouldn't count on them having e.g. better sleep than before the curfew.
- mFixman 7y ago
  I think this is the most HN comment ever read. And no, having an Internet curfew for preventing bloody protests won't improve the well-being of citizens.
  - owl57 7y ago
    Depends on whether it's successful in preventing bloody protests. Almost everything is better than war.
    - ChristianBundy 7y ago
      The best way to prevent protests is to stop doing things that your constituents want to protest.
      - owl57 7y ago
        When we are talking about "best way" to do something, we probably imply a (rational or not quite) agent making decisions, not the government as a whole. A monarch is without a doubt such an agent. Does abdication[1] count as stopping doing things? [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdication_of_Nicholas_II https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdication_of_Nicholas_II
_rrnv 7y ago
Do they follow with a regular curfew as well? The martial law introduced in Poland from December 13, 1981 to July 22, 1983 resulted in an unmatched birth rate increase. The 82-84 generation was big, with all the future consequences even after the fall of communism in 1989: overpopulation in schools, difficult job market, but many friends on the playgrounds. The generation of 88 and later didn't have these issues. But had others ;) Thanks to Poland's quick economic development and rise in life quality & capacity, the 82-84 generation didn't create another baby boom, as their births were spread out over a 10 year period. Some had children at 25, some at 35. This, coupled with the 90-94 generation not willing to have kids early, of course led to an overall drop in fertility, which the current government is trying to fix by throwing money at it. The situation didn't get worse, but fertility didn't get much better either. Most don't want to have 3 or more kids these days. And that's what we need if we want to make more kids than the economic immigrants and the third world countries, so we can keep our retirement and workforce afloat. Or we put it on the shoulders of these immigrants. But then in a few decades the current western culture will be replaced with a new one. I'm not saying it's good or bad. But it's healthy to understand the possible futures. I know which one I like more, and hopefully will work towards it. Boy did I go off-topic...
deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
thewholeview 7y ago
I'm glad to see this article rising on HN amidst the entire narrative on HK that's sprouting around the internet these days. It has finally allowing time for our minds to take a break and rationalize and see how much the propaganda has been swaying us all. As a Chinese, I've personally been following Chinese forums and continue to see individuals that rationalize the behavior of the West and to try to put down flames that's only in the name of nationalistic pride, albeit few still. But it's an important theme, only if both side can put behind their bias can there be a better and more peaceful ending in the China-US conflict to bring benefit to us all. There are many intelligent and rational Americans, it's a sad story for Iraq and we wish them best, but at least the news is helpful in helping us collectively realize what the media has been doing to our brains.

155 points by Ahmed90 7y ago

soulofmischief 7y ago

This is the straw that would have me rioting in this streets.

ummwhat 7y ago
Ironically, it sounds like the internet was cut because of rioting in the streets.
- m-p-3 7y ago
  Looks like a vicious circle
  - asdff 7y ago
    Nothing like stopping a fire with more gasoline
rvoje 7y ago
This shutdown seems to be the consequence of rioting.
- mcv 7y ago
  If you don't want people to riot, free internet during rioting hours sounds like a very effective distraction.
benbristow 7y ago
After work too, perfect timing

redwood 7y ago

Imagine the fertility impacts if this were happening in a low birth rate developed country!

Juliate 7y ago

What's the impact in Iraq for businesses (big and small) relying on the Internet?

Ahmed90 7y ago
The impact is huge, I'm a software engineer in an app-based company the interaction dropped like 80% or something
htfu 7y ago
"It is believed that Iraq has introduced formal curfew times after push-back from industry, which has incurred costs spiralling into the hundreds of millions as a direct result of the internet disruptions, estimated using figures from the COST tool." This curfew is a scaling back of previous heavier restrictions.

emptyfile 7y ago

2019-10-09 https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/10/iraq-protests-latest-updates-191004085506824.html https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/10/iraq-protests-latest-... >At least 110 people have been killed and more than 6,000 wounded in Baghdad and in the south, since security forces started cracking down on demonstrators. And the whole world is "outraged" about HK. Here on this thread the other posters are making jokes. If they killed every single person in the country no one would give a shit. Same way no one gives a shit about Yemen.

mikejb 7y ago
> Same way no one gives a shit about Yemen. There is an undeniable discrepancy on how we receive and perceive information about individual subjects; Where our attention is directed, and from where it's deviated - what I'm surprised about is how this persists despite a medium like the Internet.
- chvid 7y ago
  It persists because massive resources are spent on manipulating the public’s attention. Regardless of the medium.
- pjc50 7y ago
  It persists because of the Internet, and the tendency of humans to cluster at the popular spots. News gets increasingly centralised. There is now almost a single "us", with a single focus of news cycle attention at any one time. Oh, and the propaganda industry.
squarefoot 7y ago
"If they killed every single person in the country no one would give a shit. Same way no one gives a shit about Yemen." Of course the world wouldn't give a shit: they're poor, badly clothed, darker skinned and (oh the horror!) even muslim, and when they finally all die their territory and oil will be up for grabs by the west. (undisclaimer: that wasn't a joke)
- 7y ago

Y_Y 7y ago

Obviously this is wrong and tyrannical etc. I can't help wondering though if this may have unexpected benefits for e.g.: sleep quality, civility in online discussions, exercise. It's hardly intended that way, but could end up being a net benefit for the well-being of citizens, particularly if it were implemented in a highly-developed country like the US.

Tenoke 7y ago
Given that the curfew seems to be directly related to the large-scale protests where thousands are getting wounded and some killed, I wouldn't count on them having e.g. better sleep than before the curfew.
mFixman 7y ago
I think this is the most HN comment ever read. And no, having an Internet curfew for preventing bloody protests won't improve the well-being of citizens.
- owl57 7y ago
  Depends on whether it's successful in preventing bloody protests. Almost everything is better than war.
  - ChristianBundy 7y ago
    The best way to prevent protests is to stop doing things that your constituents want to protest.
    - owl57 7y ago
      When we are talking about "best way" to do something, we probably imply a (rational or not quite) agent making decisions, not the government as a whole. A monarch is without a doubt such an agent. Does abdication[1] count as stopping doing things? [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdication_of_Nicholas_II https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdication_of_Nicholas_II

_rrnv 7y ago

Do they follow with a regular curfew as well? The martial law introduced in Poland from December 13, 1981 to July 22, 1983 resulted in an unmatched birth rate increase. The 82-84 generation was big, with all the future consequences even after the fall of communism in 1989: overpopulation in schools, difficult job market, but many friends on the playgrounds. The generation of 88 and later didn't have these issues. But had others ;) Thanks to Poland's quick economic development and rise in life quality & capacity, the 82-84 generation didn't create another baby boom, as their births were spread out over a 10 year period. Some had children at 25, some at 35. This, coupled with the 90-94 generation not willing to have kids early, of course led to an overall drop in fertility, which the current government is trying to fix by throwing money at it. The situation didn't get worse, but fertility didn't get much better either. Most don't want to have 3 or more kids these days. And that's what we need if we want to make more kids than the economic immigrants and the third world countries, so we can keep our retirement and workforce afloat. Or we put it on the shoulders of these immigrants. But then in a few decades the current western culture will be replaced with a new one. I'm not saying it's good or bad. But it's healthy to understand the possible futures. I know which one I like more, and hopefully will work towards it. Boy did I go off-topic...

deleted 7y ago

[deleted]

deleted 7y ago

[deleted]

thewholeview 7y ago

I'm glad to see this article rising on HN amidst the entire narrative on HK that's sprouting around the internet these days. It has finally allowing time for our minds to take a break and rationalize and see how much the propaganda has been swaying us all. As a Chinese, I've personally been following Chinese forums and continue to see individuals that rationalize the behavior of the West and to try to put down flames that's only in the name of nationalistic pride, albeit few still. But it's an important theme, only if both side can put behind their bias can there be a better and more peaceful ending in the China-US conflict to bring benefit to us all. There are many intelligent and rational Americans, it's a sad story for Iraq and we wish them best, but at least the news is helpful in helping us collectively realize what the media has been doing to our brains.