Comments on: Is the Internet broken?

By: Do We Need a New Internet? | Richard K Miller

Do We Need a New Internet? | Richard K Miller — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 20:14:10 +0000

[...] previously asked, Is the Internet broken? One place it might be broken is in the ability for parents to protect their children, and [...]

By: Richard K Miller

Richard K Miller — Sat, 08 Dec 2007 21:23:49 +0000

Pete: Neither H2M or CP80 would censor the Internet, only classify speech into “harmful to minors” or not. This helps preserve free speech by empowering parents to choose.

Vint Cerf and others believe that the more regressive Internet is the one without an identity system. I’m not sure why you believe we can’t change it. The Internet is a tool we built. If it’s not working we can change it.

By: Pete Ashdown

Pete Ashdown — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 18:46:49 +0000

China believes we should change and regulate the Internet in a regressive manner. However, in spite of spending hundreds of millions of dollars on censorship, the data still gets through.

What I see from CP80 and others cringing over content they don’t agree with is a lot of hand waving and “We should do this sentiment.” What they fail to realize is that routers, computers, and digital data have no moral standards. It isn’t so much that I believe change will never come to the Internet as we know it, it is that regressive change is impossible.

By: Richard K Miller

Richard K Miller — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 15:34:43 +0000

Missy, funny.

I think you’re right about not saying “that’s the way I am” or “that’s the way it is.”

CP80.org has educational material you could use in a letter. I’d also mention the H2M proposal and point people to the video. And I’ll keep my eyes peeled for ways that non-inventors of the Internet can get more involved.

By: Missy

Missy — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 19:52:29 +0000

I thought you invented the internet? Were you just kidding about that?
That’s surprising that Pete believes “we shouldn’t change it.” There aren’t many things I can think of where that statement would be appropriate. Elder Maxwell once said, “There are very few things in life we can say, ‘That’s how I am.’” I’ve always been drawn to that idea and I think it applies to much more than the personal characteristics and attributes we’re trying to develop. My guess is that a lot of people feel intimated by the series of tubes and pipes we call the internet, intimidated to the point that they aren’t aware it could be fixed or changed. How would you suggest the average Joe voice they would like to see some changes? Sometimes I fear because I don’t understand the technical aspect well enough should I even be allowed to comment. While I am willing to educate myself, I recently attended the Protecting Families from Pornography Conference, I’m not quite sure where an average citizen like myself, where would my efforts be well spent? If I was going to write a letter to someone about my grievances, who would I send that to? That’s not a rhetorical question; most of the conclusions I’ve come to are not on so grand a scale as how we change the internet.