At 01:21 AM 10/26/00 -0400, Neil Johnson wrote:
Its called 'parenting' but most are too busy, so they ask the State, or machines (censorware, v-chips, rating systems, etc.) under others' control, to do it instead.
Any parent who lets a child have a TV or a computer in their bedroom now days is nuts.
Yep. And any parent who relies on v-chips is *abdicating responsibility* by depending on someone else's ratings. Similarly with internet content ratings or MPAA filtering (PG vs R) or FCC filtering (content vs. broadcast time, or their stupid labels on broadcasts). To Bear: my reference top "machines under others' control" means censorware which hides its list of sites from parents. Certainly relying on other editors (filters) is useful, but parents have to pick the editors carefully. This is not a political but a personal responsability issue; as far as the state goes, no filtering can be *imposed* by others in a free society. My point was that a parent voluntarily chosing some black-box default is not doing their job. \begin{political} A parent forced to use filtered feeds needs to eliminate that force, then that imposed filter. Anyone can open up a ratings system and filtering tools. And they are free to have open or secret lists and rules. You are free to pick and choose raters you like ---just like you can chose to eat kosher-rated, or 'organic'-rated, or whatever. But the filters can have no support from the State, for that is censorship. Freedom + filters = lame parenting; State + filters = censorship. \end{political}
However, that's my responsibility as parent, and not something I desire to give up to anyone else non-voluntarily.
Precisely.
As for the V-Chip. I've seen enough programs rated "For All Ages" that are not appropriate for young kids to know that they are worthless.
Yes. Plus the insult of being forced to pay for it. Along with CALEA, locatable cell phones, parental advisory labels, etc. .... This post is rated: VG for reference to government violence NS for no spam countermeasure schemes NG for no mention of geodesic global economies NK for no observations about who needs killing NC for no alternate-universe mis-physics NE for no spurious Emily Dickinson grille ciphers