The Inquisitr - Latest Comments in Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Ned — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 03:09:14 -0000

I have tertiary syphilis.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Jessica — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 03:53:09 -0000

Very well written article, and you did a good job of organizing the info for normal people (like me) to understand. As an American expat, I lived overseas for most of the Bush regime and I had to sit and watch while he and his people royally f*cked over our civil liberties and freedoms in the name of "security". If your article can help Australia avoid that situation, then it might make me feel better.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

mkklk8 — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:05:31 -0000

Wow. I'm so glad I changed my mind about moving there.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Snake_Oil_Baron — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 01:33:00 -0000

This behavior will spread to other democratic governments. Censorship does not need to be perfect to be politically beneficial to a state. Whether that benefit is minimizing dissent, appealing to the political sentiments of a majority or for peddling influence to various interests, it is too attractive a power to resist. China and Saudi Arabia prove that it is workable - in an imperfect sense - and Australia proves that it can be implemented in a democratic nation with only temporary opposition. This will spread.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

alphamale11 — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 04:09:41 -0000

Seems you will have to buy your computers from China. Their manufacturers are putting the filters in as they manufacture.
Ireland wants to burn books and have blasphemy laws now. Ironic isn't it, we are hammering totalitarian governments to ease up when supposedly free countrys are going the other way.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Jo-Anne — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 07:05:20 -0000

What the Government has not understood on the subject of children accessing porn on all computers public and private is that they will continue to do so because some adult person has taught them how to do it.The do gooders are up in arms over a few complaints and my guess is that as usual the minority seem to have the loudest voices. I have no desire to look at Porn but if I so desired it should be my right to do so after all I pay to use the net. To me it is an infringement on my rights as an adult for our Government to decide what I can or cannot access on a computer I paid for, Yes I am an Australian also.As a female I am against anything that exploits children to benefit a male person and yes the predators need to be stopped from viewing such porn but how to stop them is beyond my simple way of thinking.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Peach — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 22:49:11 -0000

I'm an Australian, and I must tell you that the internet censorship issue, along with the refusal to allow an adult rating for video games, is an incredibly hot issue.
Very few were in favor of the censorship, and those who were only supported it due to the misguided notion it would help fight child pornography, which it will not in fact do.
Many others such as myself felt the money would have better spent cracking down on that kind of thing, rather than trying to turn us into the next China.

Yesterday, the first of June 2009, a law came into effect barring cigarettes from being sold at a counter with anything else, and they must not be kept out of site in some states.

This country is sliding downhill fast, I'm sad to say.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

KickAssFairy — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 18:38:08 -0000

MYGOT.... didn't know australia was on that wave too?? But you forgot to black-out sweden as well. There they have a non-government organisation calling the shots (led by major entertainment industries) it's called IFPI which is the scandinavian equivalent of RIAA. This organisation, have pressured the swedish government into surveying internet trafic and cellphone calls/texts. But sweden is fighting back, a while ago, The European comunion, called to vote the new representatives from governments all over europe. And in sweden there was a party called Piratbyrän (The Pirate party) that was selected, to be represented in european council (kinda like the US senate and kinda not...) Their issues are mainly about net neutrality but also about making musik and movies more accesible and maybe free of charge.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

stuart may — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 18:34:24 -0000

lol - Minsiter for Censorship

way to spin

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

gef — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:17:54 -0000

i no weve got slower internet speeds compared to other countries but i would have never guessed a stupid firewall was behind it

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

American — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 12:31:51 -0000

How the heck do you "bet" with "absolute certainty"? It's a contradiction in terms.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

red green — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 09:05:43 -0000

And what does one expect from a country that decided that all law abiding citizens should hand over their guns? Look at crime in Australia today - it's still there, diffeent weapons, and the citizens can't defend themselves or enjoy a hobby or sport that uses most any gun. Sad - I lived there many years ago, and found the people to be wonderful, fair and bright - WHAT HAPPENED?

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Kandice — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 19:33:18 -0000

Upon reading this I too am ashamed to be an Australian. I find it simply horrifying that our government stands on some sort of moral pedestal condeming China for its censorship but then doing the very same thing but with a "western spin". The fact of the matter is that the lack of a bill of rights results in rights such as freedom of speech not being adequatley protected. I am ashamed that a country can be so "forward" yet so backward at the same time. Never have I, as an Australian, felt so deeply ashamed and politically invalid. Censorship is, by my standards, wrong. people should have the ability to chose what they view/read/interact with and should only be limited in doing this if it adversley affects the quality of anothers existance.

There needs to be more otucry about this becuase as it stands few are truely aware of the extent of censorship in Australia, there needs to be concerted politcal outcry and action.

Anyone for a protest?? lets get this moving

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

NH — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 16:47:22 -0000

As an Australian living in the USA, I am dismayed at the path my country is taking. The fact they have now blocked the website ( wikileaks ) because it gave up the "secret" list of blocked sites is mind blowing. Wikileaks is not an illegal site, is a site opposed to and critical of government hypocracy, and the Australian government put it on the black list. Australians are typically apathetic and this legislation will keep us in the dark. I urge all Australians to petition Stephen Conroy's website with email, pepper the newspapers with letters to the editor and keep the pressure on. This is the biggest affront to personal freedoms in Australia and puts us in the same league as North Korea and China.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Ryan — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 10:14:34 -0000

Hello. I'm an idiot who chooses to take no responsibility for anything I do. On some days this concerns me, but waking up in the Australia of tomorrow, I can safely note that I no longer have to think for myself as the government will do that for me. Thank God the Australian Government is going to implement a policy that suits myself and the small majority of others like me. Oh, sure, reasonable adults who would like to form their own opinions and indulge in pastimes that they enjoy might be affected, but frankly, who cares about normal people?

Three cheers for Big Brother! Hip Hip....why is nobody cheering?

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Jack — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 03:47:49 -0000

I see the New world order is well on its way! we will live like mindless drones only doing as we are told. life will not be about enjoyment or self progression. we will only live to make the elite happy ( most of which consist of the Jew).

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

kally — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 13:59:20 -0000

wow that so weird how ppl could loss so much wight but i bet they try so hard 2 get like cause there are some ppl that just give up and they think they cant do it nomore

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

anon — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 12:52:02 -0000

I live in Australia and have been reading a lot about this ON THE INTERNET... the current government still has another ~2 years in office but I really really hope that this fails like most other proposals by the Rudd government (his son plays WoW btw).

The government has kept this one very very quiet and almost nobody I know has heard about it. The problem is that the mainstream media don't understand what implications this would have, they just think it blocks CP and terrorism

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

anon — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 12:46:39 -0000

omg
i just had the best idea for a get rich quick scheme

1. register for a site that is legal but you know will get blocked anyways have to pay to join
2. sue the government
3. ?????????????????
4. Profit
5. leave australia and go live in Canada or something
6. ????????????????
7. Profit

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Anon — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 15:31:01 -0000

oh good god.

you think that the Australian filtering proposal is made up?

please, just get back to your rock.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Mudshark — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 20:29:06 -0000

Not at all true, you wankers, what are you smokin'?:
http://strangemaps.wordpres...

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Tim — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 20:55:44 -0000

I have a plan: Create an ISP in Hutt River Province and it will not have to censor anything because it is not an Australian ISP. BTW Hutt River Province is in Australia but is a seperate country.

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Aussie in US — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 19:10:22 -0000

Out of the frying pan and into the fire...

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Jacob — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 00:18:00 -0000

i reckenn the government should shove the proposal up its arse and rotate it is bullshit, what is wrong with adult supervision and net nanny?? and since when does australia represent a great percentage of pedo's this will do jackshit and piss 20 million people off!!!!!!!

Re: Great Firewall of Australia: What’s not mentioned makes it even more scary

Papachango — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 23:53:55 -0000

Shaun - I don't see how it is 'vote grabbing populist nonsense'. As you admitted earlier in your post, its massively unpopular. Apart from loony lefty Clive Hamilton and religious conservative Steve Fielding, I haven't heard a single published voice in support of it. Labor, Liberal, Green voters are all against it - in pop-polls only something like 2.5% say they support it.

It makes me wonder what on earth Conroy is thinking. I can think of only two plausible explanations:

1. Conroy is relying on a survey that showed more than 50% of parents were supportive of voluntary ISP-level filtering. He is too stupid to see how changing 'parents' to 'general population' and 'voluntary filtering' to 'compulsory censorship' might just possibly affect the percentage in favour.

2. Conroy is not actually that stupid, and this is a deal done behind closed doors that benefits all political parties by controlling anti-government dissent. Labor are rushing to do it now, hoping that the fuss will have died down before the next election, especially if a gentleman's agreement has been reached not to campaign to overturn the legislation.

I hope it's number 1 - number 2's just a bit too conspiracy theory for my liking.