5 ms·

well a huge number of things are already banned/illegal: CP being one of them. do you have a problem with that? Note sure why making hardcore porn opt-in is suc

by retube 13y ago

well a huge number of things are already banned/illegal: CP being one of them. do you have a problem with that? Note sure why making hardcore porn opt-in is such a big deal.

vidarh 13y ago
Part of the problem is that pretty much everywhere such filters have been installed, sooner or later there's been revelations of perfectly legal content being blocked. More than once this has been political speech. They're building all the tools of a police state. With the best of intentions, mind you. But it's not them we're afraid of (we might dislike having to opt in/out of porn, but that's merely a nuisance) - with some luck they'll get voted out in a few years time. What at least some of us are afraid of is that some day down the line someone else gets into power who decides to take full advantage of all the nice tools their predecessors have given them. Put all the tools in place, and that someone might even be more inclined to seek power, knowing the power can extended all that much easier.
TeMPOraL 13y ago
Because the infrastructure required to get hardcore porn to be opt-in a) doesn't exist yet, and b) introducing it will be extremely dangerous as it will definitely be abused to filter other content the government doesn't want you to see. This whole issue is not about porn.
LoganCale 13y ago
You are conflating illegal child pornography with legal hardcore pornography in that sentence. Was that just poor phrasing? Why is making legal hardcore pornography opt-in a big deal? So many reasons. First, because there's nothing wrong with it and it's something a good many of ordinary people enjoy. Second, despite the previous, in many societies it's still not considered a socially acceptable think to admit to liking even though almost everyone does, so people are far less likely to speak up in a manner that identifies them in order to protest it. Third, some of the actually banned (and not just filtered) content is rape fantasy, which is a hugely popular fantasy among women, and many object to its being banned. Fourth, and perhaps most importantly, making it opt-in is a big deal because it takes a freedom and weakens it. If we have to ask the government for permission to do something, it's not a freedom, it's something being allowed by government for now, and they can change it whenever they want. This is the same reason people advocate open source tools and non-proprietary protocols—so we have our own freedom of choice and can avoid being locked into the whims of whoever holds the power. Porn is an easy place for them to start, because large subsets of society won't speak out in defense of porn, but I guarantee if this sort of filter remains in place long-term, it will be used to block more than porn. That may not even be their intent right now, but when you have a massive internet filtration system in place, it makes it extremely easy to justify adding in a few more filters blocking sites troublesome to the government in a few years.
darkarmani 13y ago
> making hardcore porn opt-in Such unfortunate phrasing...I think making any kind of porn is currently opt-in.
CamperBob2 13y ago
What's 'hardcore porn'?
- nailer 13y ago
  Anything involving penetrative sex or an erect penis. Children in the UK see softcore porn in corner stores every day - eye-level newspapers display models wearing thongs with the camera zoomed in to their ass crack on their covers, and there's a bare breasted woman inside.
  - CamperBob2 13y ago
    Funny, our Muslim friends have a rather more "conservative" definition. Are you saying that yours is the definition that should apply across all cultures and creeds, suitable for enshrinement in national law?
    - nailer 13y ago
      > Are you saying that yours is the definition that should apply across all cultures and creeds, suitable for enshrinement in national law? 1. I'm just stating what the common definition is. 2. I personally don't even believe in this distinction at all, however my views are not common. 3. Conservative muslims would probably share the same distinction, but argue that all pornography, 'hardcore' or 'softcore', is immoral.

by retube 13y ago

well a huge number of things are already banned/illegal: CP being one of them. do you have a problem with that? Note sure why making hardcore porn opt-in is such a big deal.

vidarh 13y ago

Part of the problem is that pretty much everywhere such filters have been installed, sooner or later there's been revelations of perfectly legal content being blocked. More than once this has been political speech. They're building all the tools of a police state. With the best of intentions, mind you. But it's not them we're afraid of (we might dislike having to opt in/out of porn, but that's merely a nuisance) - with some luck they'll get voted out in a few years time. What at least some of us are afraid of is that some day down the line someone else gets into power who decides to take full advantage of all the nice tools their predecessors have given them. Put all the tools in place, and that someone might even be more inclined to seek power, knowing the power can extended all that much easier.

TeMPOraL 13y ago

Because the infrastructure required to get hardcore porn to be opt-in a) doesn't exist yet, and b) introducing it will be extremely dangerous as it will definitely be abused to filter other content the government doesn't want you to see. This whole issue is not about porn.

LoganCale 13y ago

You are conflating illegal child pornography with legal hardcore pornography in that sentence. Was that just poor phrasing? Why is making legal hardcore pornography opt-in a big deal? So many reasons. First, because there's nothing wrong with it and it's something a good many of ordinary people enjoy. Second, despite the previous, in many societies it's still not considered a socially acceptable think to admit to liking even though almost everyone does, so people are far less likely to speak up in a manner that identifies them in order to protest it. Third, some of the actually banned (and not just filtered) content is rape fantasy, which is a hugely popular fantasy among women, and many object to its being banned. Fourth, and perhaps most importantly, making it opt-in is a big deal because it takes a freedom and weakens it. If we have to ask the government for permission to do something, it's not a freedom, it's something being allowed by government for now, and they can change it whenever they want. This is the same reason people advocate open source tools and non-proprietary protocols—so we have our own freedom of choice and can avoid being locked into the whims of whoever holds the power. Porn is an easy place for them to start, because large subsets of society won't speak out in defense of porn, but I guarantee if this sort of filter remains in place long-term, it will be used to block more than porn. That may not even be their intent right now, but when you have a massive internet filtration system in place, it makes it extremely easy to justify adding in a few more filters blocking sites troublesome to the government in a few years.

darkarmani 13y ago

> making hardcore porn opt-in Such unfortunate phrasing...I think making any kind of porn is currently opt-in.

CamperBob2 13y ago

What's 'hardcore porn'?

nailer 13y ago
Anything involving penetrative sex or an erect penis. Children in the UK see softcore porn in corner stores every day - eye-level newspapers display models wearing thongs with the camera zoomed in to their ass crack on their covers, and there's a bare breasted woman inside.
- CamperBob2 13y ago
  Funny, our Muslim friends have a rather more "conservative" definition. Are you saying that yours is the definition that should apply across all cultures and creeds, suitable for enshrinement in national law?
  - nailer 13y ago
    > Are you saying that yours is the definition that should apply across all cultures and creeds, suitable for enshrinement in national law? 1. I'm just stating what the common definition is. 2. I personally don't even believe in this distinction at all, however my views are not common. 3. Conservative muslims would probably share the same distinction, but argue that all pornography, 'hardcore' or 'softcore', is immoral.