possible censorship in australia
Buzzou
Join Date: 2006-12-14 Member: 59056Members, Constellation
Join Date: 2006-12-14 Member: 59056Members, Constellation
<div class="IPBDescription">the australian government's web filter impacting online gamers</div>oh my god i can't believe this is happening in my own country...
<a href="http://www.theage.com.au/digital-life/games/web-filters-to-censor-video-games-20090625-cxrx.html" target="_blank">http://www.theage.com.au/digital-life/game...90625-cxrx.html</a>
at first i was in support of the web filter, as i thought it would only really block child porn and other ghastly stuff. but becuase these idiots haven't created a 18+ classification for video games in australia, they feel the need to block any game that meets that criteria.
fortunately i can recall Flayra saying natural selection 2 will be suitable for 15 year olds, so they can appeal to as wide a market as possible.
But what if someone made a gory mod for NS2, could i be blocked from servers running it?
what is the Dev's opinion on censorship like this?
<a href="http://www.theage.com.au/digital-life/games/web-filters-to-censor-video-games-20090625-cxrx.html" target="_blank">http://www.theage.com.au/digital-life/game...90625-cxrx.html</a>
at first i was in support of the web filter, as i thought it would only really block child porn and other ghastly stuff. but becuase these idiots haven't created a 18+ classification for video games in australia, they feel the need to block any game that meets that criteria.
fortunately i can recall Flayra saying natural selection 2 will be suitable for 15 year olds, so they can appeal to as wide a market as possible.
But what if someone made a gory mod for NS2, could i be blocked from servers running it?
what is the Dev's opinion on censorship like this?
Comments
That's why germans demonstrated Nationwide.
That's why current Gouvernment is -hopefully- replaced by younger Parties that know what they're doing.
A Filter against Photos and Videos of Childabuse? Forget it, that never works.
It only opens the Door for the Gouvernment to hide anything that they don't like, like Oppinions that don't match their own.
back on topic - i'd be suprised if NS2 managed to out do violence/sex/language as in the games that do get accepted (GTA4 for example)
anyway the web filter is cracked in 5 minutes i hear.....
In France Nicolas Sarkozy and is teletubbies friends are making anticonstitutionnal laws to "reduces illegal download", where a judge can cut our internet connection for a year and take tens of thounsands of fine for downloading a movie ^^ even granny rapers gets away with less :p
Germany, help us :D
not many games have been banned but one that i recall (not the name sorry) was a graffitii game where u would graffiti public walls and beat up council workers. clearly games like gta and fall out 3 ect are much more graphic and gory but they are fine.
the problem the censors in australia had with fallout 3 was not the amount of violence but rather that the game contained the drug morphine which could be used by the player to gain an advantage in combat... get this, the problem is not taht u can use morphine but that it has a benefit associated with its use.. if it were featured in the game as a poison it would be fine according to the cencors.. basically the government is block anything that even hints at ideas that are not inline with their policies.
so obviously its not about banning indecent material (which should never be banned in a free society anyway) rather an attemtp to outlaw political decent.
just my 2 cents.
The German government just decided to set up a web filter, so we're all doomed. :(
But it's a damn good one, you need around 23 seconds to bypass it.
<a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=106772" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/index....howtopic=106772</a>
It will never pass though to be honest, theyre just scaring people.
I hear Nasa is looking for Volounteers for Moon- and Marsmissions.
Seriously, Space is the only Location where you're free of this Bull######.
This stinking Rock ends up to be like Orwell predicted in 1984 - ITS A NOVEL, NOT A FREAGGIN MANUAL!!!
germany can't help, but maybe this can...
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirate_Party" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirate_Party</a>
<a href="http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parti_pirate" target="_blank">http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parti_pirate</a>
<a href="http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piratenpartei" target="_blank">http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piratenpartei</a>
and for the aussies
<a href="http://www.pirateparty.org.au/" target="_blank">http://www.pirateparty.org.au/</a>
=)
vote!
I think it's only the beginning though. Watch yourself.
I think it's only the beginning though. Watch yourself.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
ok i know it sounds like an off topic thread, but in my post i did ask specificially how this issue could possibly effect NS2, hence why i posted it here.
but true, there hasnt been much discussion regarding that...
China, yes china - the country that uses military force against its people for wanting democracy, censors the internet. North Korea censors the internet - in fact it doesn't allow it.
When the UK tries this crap there better be strong opposition to it or else we honestly don't deserve free speech.
<!--quoteo(post=1714313:date=Jun 27 2009, 09:48 AM:name=Nima_)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Nima_ @ Jun 27 2009, 09:48 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1714313"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I'll be moving elsewhere if it gets to that stage, but eventually it will be that way almost everywhere, without control of the media, they lose control of the people.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
And that is the way it should be, a government shouldn't have control over its citizens. The government is to serve us not the other way round.
Wrong.
A nanny state is the UK, a nanny state is when you're babied and given everything you want.
In the case of Australia they're just molly coddling them to think how they want them to think, like China.
The Terror we all fear isn't coming from uneducated Savages living in Huts made of Mud, it's coming from the People we <i>think</i> we voted for.
When we are cut off for good, remember me. I'll say goodbye today, since it could happen any Day now.
China, yes china - the country that uses military force against its people for wanting democracy, censors the internet. North Korea censors the internet - in fact it doesn't allow it.
When the UK tries this crap there better be strong opposition to it or else we honestly don't deserve free speech.
And that is the way it should be, a government shouldn't have control over its citizens. The government is to serve us not the other way round.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
As far as i know the UK has the oldest filtering-system.
<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7904607.stm" target="_blank">http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7904607.stm</a>
<a href="http://www.iwf.org.uk/" target="_blank">http://www.iwf.org.uk/</a>
knock knock. Wake up, neo
<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7904607.stm" target="_blank">http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7904607.stm</a>
<a href="http://www.iwf.org.uk/" target="_blank">http://www.iwf.org.uk/</a>
knock knock. Wake up, neo<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
At least the ISP still has the say - the government still has to ask the ISP to do it rather than it just happening.
EDIT: It appears I was wrong :( GG.
Heh. Australians happen to be incredibly lazy and/or apathetic.
Consider the Australian response to the Howard government's "WorkChoices" Workplace Relations reforms - practically non-existent.
Consider the Australian response to the Howard government's "WorkChoices" Workplace Relations reforms - practically non-existent.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Actually the unions put together a large and quite effective campaign, blending rallies, protests, advertisements and distributed media including paphlets and bumper stickers. Certainly it wasn't blood on the streets, but there was a sizeable reaction.
That said, we're not a revolutionary people. Heck, we were given the chance to peacefully break away from the British monarchy, a monarch who's representative by the way had dismissed the democratically elected government of Australia once before in our history, and we voted NO. Other nations fought brutal and bloody wars for the same priviledge which we just passed on.
Regardless of all that, the filter currently cannot pass the Senate, and the Government knows this. I won't rest easy until all mention of it is gone, but it won't be reality in the immediate future. And even if it was, NS2 would never be affected; there's more chance of the Kharaa invading Earth tommorow than there is of NS2 being rated R18+.
We where only around 500 to 1000 People per Location (one Location reported 50 Persons at max due to bad Weather or something), but Parties responsible for that suffer already a major Drop in Membercounts despite the Fact that there's been no Mediaresponse whatsoever.
Most of them where no older than 30, so I do think that those old coots either don't know whats happening, don't take interest in it or simply don't care at all since they're "on the other side" soon anyway.
Unfortunately for Australia, we're more and more like America. It's the corporations that have the voice. The money makers. If there's profit to be made, who cares if it's the right thing to do?
But then.... that's our own fault. Seems like that's a common theme among the under 40's. Anything that makes money must be good, who cares about common sense?
Censorship is not acceptable, for any means or purposes. In a real just county, the court will have to make a decision, not some government official making secret lists. Seriosly to OP, you shouldn't really need to ask game developers whether censorship is morally a good thing. Criminals should be prosecuted, not censored.
I wouldn't be surprised if they were going to apply it to some torrents sites because its so hard to win a court case. Or games in countries like germany where ministers have talked about banning game sales. Once you start that path, there's no turning back.
To me, this is just another kind of homophobia. These legislators (probably rather aged people) just want to ban anything they don't approve or dislike. Decades ago it was porn, ######s etc. Now its violent games etc. Someone being ###### or playing violent games doesn't affect anyone else, nor is it any kind of aggression, I don't see any moral right for others to "ban" it. In the end, the excessive gore of some violent game is just bits in the graphics card video memory.
Why is g-a-y a banned word btw?
i bet its also to do with commercialization - your blocked until you pay the monthly unblocking fee kind of thing.
can be used as insult, even when "they" refer to themselfs.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I only hope that it backfires.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
we do all. we have to spread the word, tho.
And they lied. Now it's a mandatory always-on filter.
@schkorpio: that (commercialisation) is a moot point, because it would be <b>illegal</b> for a company to offer such a service.