Mandatory ISP filtering
Many of those who believed that Howard was a censorious totalitarian and that a Rudd regime would be a win for freedom will be more than a tad disappointed with the latest news out of Canberra.
See, Senator Stephen Conroy is determined to implement mandatory ISP filtering. That's a pretty radical idea with a Big Brother feel to it (er, that's the George Orwell variety, not the Gretel Killeen kind, BTW).
Of course, any sensible person would be against net nasties like kiddie porn. But as always happens when people try to censor stuff, it's debatable whether the censorship method will actually work. And there's a good deal of subjectivity about what other stuff qualifies as obscene and worthy of censorship. It's this bit that worries me:
Senator Conroy said the Australian Communications and Media Authority would prepare a "blacklist" of unsuitable sites.
It is unclear exactly what will be deemed inappropriate material.
He's a contradictory fella, this Conroy. Not so long ago he was a poster boy for the civil liberties crowd. See, because he and his wife couldn't have kids he railed against the IVF laws in place in Victoria and actually went interstate so he could legally rent out some chick's womb. Now, he's trying to outdo Fred Nile!
He perfectly illustrates the paradox of the jackbooted fluffy wuffy: they're all for the freedom to do what they want (often demanding that the very people they sneer at -- the long-suffering Aussie taxpayers -- foot the bill). But they won't hesitate for a moment to try to limit the freedom of others.
