4 ms·

And what makes a site a social media site? Anywhere you can post interactive content? You do realize that laws like this would apply to sites like HN, Reddit,

by lukev 3y ago

And what makes a site a social media site? Anywhere you can post interactive content? You do realize that laws like this would apply to sites like HN, Reddit, the comment section of every blog, and every phpBB forum you ever used? It's not just Instagram and Tiktok.

anonym29 3y ago
Trying to force independently owned and operated forums to enforce laws that might not even be applicable in the country that the owners / admins live and work in is going to be about as effective as trying to force foreign VPS/server/hosting providers to delete copyrighted content from their server using laws that don't apply in their jurisdiction.
thinkingtoilet 3y ago
I think a perfectly clear line could be drawn that would separate out phpBB from TikTok very easily. I genuinely don't understand this comment, we shouldn't do it because it's hard or the results might be imperfect?
- lukev 3y ago
  Kids want to communicate. Whether it's TikTok, Discord, phpBB, chatting in Roblox or Minecraft, they will if they can. If we want to "ban social media" we'll need a consistent set of guidelines about what counts as social media and what doesn't, and what exactly the harms are so they can be avoided. I don't believe that's as easy as you think.
- CalRobert 3y ago
  Any clear line would be gamed pretty quickly I imagine.
- woodruffw 3y ago
  I think your comment would be much stronger if you laid out precisely what you think that line would be. Laws do not have to be perfect to be good, but they do have to be workable. It's not clear that there's a working definition of "social media" that includes both TikTok and Reddit but doesn't include random forums.
  - thinkingtoilet 3y ago
    So if a random person on the internet doesn't have a perfect solution then it shouldn't be considered?
    - lazyasciiart 3y ago
      Their opinion that it would be straightforward shouldn’t be considered.
    - woodruffw 3y ago
      This is not a charitable reading. Nobody is asking for a perfect solution; it is reasonable to demonstrate some prior consideration for the ways in which most solutions are dangerously imperfect.
- chasd00 3y ago
  To me the issue is it’s a waste of government and waste of time. Parental controls already exist on all devices. The answer to every problem can’t be “more government, more laws”.
- borski 3y ago
  > I genuinely don't understand this comment, we shouldn't do it because it's hard or the results might be imperfect? Yes. Imperfect solutions, when driven by the government, don’t change for decades, causing terrible consequences. “SSH is a munition” comes to mind.

by lukev 3y ago

anonym29 3y ago

Trying to force independently owned and operated forums to enforce laws that might not even be applicable in the country that the owners / admins live and work in is going to be about as effective as trying to force foreign VPS/server/hosting providers to delete copyrighted content from their server using laws that don't apply in their jurisdiction.

thinkingtoilet 3y ago

I think a perfectly clear line could be drawn that would separate out phpBB from TikTok very easily. I genuinely don't understand this comment, we shouldn't do it because it's hard or the results might be imperfect?

lukev 3y ago
Kids want to communicate. Whether it's TikTok, Discord, phpBB, chatting in Roblox or Minecraft, they will if they can. If we want to "ban social media" we'll need a consistent set of guidelines about what counts as social media and what doesn't, and what exactly the harms are so they can be avoided. I don't believe that's as easy as you think.
CalRobert 3y ago
Any clear line would be gamed pretty quickly I imagine.
woodruffw 3y ago
I think your comment would be much stronger if you laid out precisely what you think that line would be. Laws do not have to be perfect to be good, but they do have to be workable. It's not clear that there's a working definition of "social media" that includes both TikTok and Reddit but doesn't include random forums.
- thinkingtoilet 3y ago
  So if a random person on the internet doesn't have a perfect solution then it shouldn't be considered?
  - lazyasciiart 3y ago
    Their opinion that it would be straightforward shouldn’t be considered.
  - woodruffw 3y ago
    This is not a charitable reading. Nobody is asking for a perfect solution; it is reasonable to demonstrate some prior consideration for the ways in which most solutions are dangerously imperfect.
chasd00 3y ago
To me the issue is it’s a waste of government and waste of time. Parental controls already exist on all devices. The answer to every problem can’t be “more government, more laws”.
borski 3y ago
> I genuinely don't understand this comment, we shouldn't do it because it's hard or the results might be imperfect? Yes. Imperfect solutions, when driven by the government, don’t change for decades, causing terrible consequences. “SSH is a munition” comes to mind.