We’re asking for trouble
I’ve noticed that some people (mostly the kind of people who write into national newspapers) seem to think that sites like Facebook, myspace, bebo and twitter are evil and that the only solution to these hotbeds of paedophiles and sexual deviants is to rely on the government to clean it up. I have seen many letters calling for the government to step in and regulate the internet. The same government that everyone complains about, perhaps more out of habit than actual distrust.
I have several problems with this. Firstly there is the huge logistics problem. How can the UK government police the international internet? They haven’t managed to sort out the huge internet issues, how can they hope to deal with hundreds of smaller ones?
Secondly, it seems we’re always concerned that the government is taking away our liberties. That there are too many CCTV cameras and far too much red tape in our lives and yet these people want to hand over more of our freedom to the same governement that has put up the cameras and the red tape. These people probably have had very little interaction with social networking sites but have heard the buzzwords and the few, very few stories when someone is stupid and doesn’t protect themselves.
Thirdly, it seems to me that these are the people who have their voices heard. The uninformed minority have their letters printed and push further. The government seems happy to take away our freedoms without our consent, if we start offering them up on a platter they’ll take more and more. Before you know it we’ll be living in an Orwellian 1984 state. The recent anti-terrorism poster campaign is an example. They will make us suspect everyone and heighten our fears, then when they bring in new laws to ‘protect’ us, we won’t question it. Eventually we’re in a position where we have no voice.
The jump from Facebook to 1984 might seem extreme but it always starts with the little things. I believe EVERY liberty is worth fighting for. The internet is an open forum, I can write my blog without fear of recrimination, everyone has the opportunity to express themselves, whether you agree with them or not.
‘I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.’
Exactly, though I suspect (hope!) that most of the people who want the internet policed are not the same people who think there is too much CCTV. Then again, they probably are. People aren’t that capable of thinking for themselves these days, they are told what to think by the media (just the same as it is in 1984, as it happens…)
There IS too much CCTV. And too many stupid and badly written laws. I wonder if you know how many illegal things you do a year without realising. I bet it’s more than zero. The law should be understandable and memorable to the vast majority of the population, but as it is even the highly trained legal professionals only know a small subset of the law!
Ridiculous. And getting worse, month by month.