Great Aussie Firewall

The Australian government is moving forward with plans to filter out over 1000 Websites they have deemed inappropriate for public consumption. The effort, now referred to as the Great Aussie Firewall, has sparked protests and concern about what other forms of censorship this could lead to over time.

For more about the recent battles being fought: Great Aussie Firewall

Personally, I welcome the effort to begin the process of improving the overall value and usefulness of the internet by reducing the odds that users are traumatized by inadvertently arriving at a Website with material unsuitable for all but the most twisted and sick among us.

The Australian “solution” may not be the perfect one, but something does need to be done. One things the internet has proven is that there are far more wicked people with bad intentions surfing among us then we would have imagined 10 years ago. While we can’t completely block their ability create or consume their filth we can, and should, remove it from the “mainstreet” internet.

There are no easy solutions and more regulations are not comforting, but my fear of the harm the sickest amongst us can do through their Websites and content is greater then the fear of giving our government some leeway in preventing the most extreme content from making it’s way into the minds of innocent internet users.