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Legislation presented by a Pennsylvania congressman would seek to eliminate sites like MySpace

Social networking sites like MySpace and Friendster are still under continued attack - this time by Pennsylvania congressman Michael G. Fitzpatrick.  Fitzpatrick believes the "Deleting Online Predators Act of 2006" would be able to eliminate several different sites while using extremely broad terminology to possibly go further.  Sites like MySpace are being blamed for becoming a common target for sexual predators who aim to exploit children.  Schools and libraries would also be forced to block the availability of social networking sites.  The Los Angeles Times reports:

It also would ban access to chat rooms and could block a variety of online forums. In addition, the bill would require the Federal Trade Commission to create a special website for parents and teachers warning of the potential dangers of social networking sites.  Those sites, among the fastest-growing on the Internet, allow people to create their own Web pages and share photos and messages.

Considering the sheer number of users that are on MySpace, the number of sexual predators is still remotely small.  The company is taking the challenge seriously by hiring new staff members to monitor the site for potentially dangerous users.

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America owns the internet and free thought???
By Icehawk on 5/12/2006 10:07:14 AM , Rating: 2
I just love how Congress thinks "we" (err, the government that is) owns the Internet and can set the groundrules. Whatever happened to caveat emptor and things like personal responsibility and good parenting?




By killerroach on 5/12/2006 10:12:27 AM , Rating: 3
America's also the land of the quick fix... why actually solve problems when you can make people believe you've solved problems?


By rrsurfer1 on 5/12/2006 10:20:40 AM , Rating: 2
Exactly.


By Scabies on 5/12/2006 10:25:11 AM , Rating: 2
yeah, like removing myspace will cure people of psychological diseases/disorders. Why go take care of pedophiles when you could go take care of one of their sources? Hard stuff is for sucks, We congressmen deal with more important things than solutions.


Case in Point
By Master Kenobi (blog) on 5/12/2006 10:27:14 AM , Rating: 3
America is also the land of terrible parenting. You don't hear about this in other countries because parents actually "parent" their children, in America, there is a ton of parent's that let society raise their children, I know my parents were that way. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't. Lawmakers know this and propose these kinds of radical laws in an effort to let the government parent the kids, because a lot of the parent's sure arent!

Come on, Game Ratings. Guns in Schools. Gangs. Drugs in Schools. It's all attributed to the lack of good parenting here in the States, get used to it because its not likely to change anytime soon. Now I'm not saying go nazi on your kids and make em zonbies, but take a little more time to keep an eye on your kids and then steer them in the right directions when they start getting off course.


RE: Case in Point
By Tebor0 on 5/12/2006 11:11:10 AM , Rating: 3
While I normally enjoy jumping on the "We hate America" bandwagon I'm afraid that you're wrong here. This is not an America only problem.


RE: Case in Point
By OrSin on 5/12/2006 11:35:47 AM , Rating: 2
As much I will agree thier is alot of bad parenting going on. Its alos alot harded to raise kids now thier it ever was. I remmebr all a kid needed a garden hose to get a drink, 8 hours of sun light, and a few freinds and you was good parent. Now you can even drink from a the sink and the UV rays will kill you and the Freinds all want o build car bomb. And don't even let start on the nieghbors. I grow up easy but nowadays my kids needs to be 24 hour lock down to even stand chance. It's a whole different world now. But yes this law is still dumb.


PS
Kids can even watch TV at 6:00pm with someone monitoring the shows. I remember the bad crap only came on at 10:00pm


RE: Case in Point
By reiters on 5/13/2006 1:17:25 AM , Rating: 2
I completely agree with the fact that there is a lot of bad parenting going on. I think too many parents expect the schools to teach their kids values and morals, but then neuter the schools ability to even scold a child for their bad choices which is needed for them to learn to make good ones.

I do my best to guide my children in the right direction with very high morals and standards. I put together my own firewall to prevent them from viewing things they shouldn't. They are not left alone with the computer for any period of time (they are 9 and play barbie.com)

The real problem I have is the total moral decline of society as a whole which undermines the things I try to teach them. I don't want to segregate them from society which would leave them unprepared for real life in the future, but I also don't agree with many things they are exposed to in schools in which I have little control over. 12 year old girls wear things to school that shows way too much. The parents buy this stuff for them and then wonder why the boys look at them the way they do. It wasn't easy being a 12 year old boy. I didn't need any extra distractions. NOT that anyone has ANY excuse for doing anything inappropriet...that IS NOT my point.

What's a parent to do. I am not one to say shut down the internet. I am a system administrator for an internet based company. I also know that schools don't always have the most up-to-date IT staff because of budgets. You can't expect a strained school IT staff of just a few to outwit hundreds of kids collectively. Kids are crafty these days and will find ways around about anything the school comes up with to stop them.

These could be difficult days ahead to the parent wishing to raise kids that will be productive in society and that have not been tainted by society.


Bullshit
By TomZ on 5/12/2006 9:52:54 AM , Rating: 5
More bullshit proposed legislation. This congressman is very misguided. Obviously there can be some risks in using these sites, however, life is full of risks. Should we outlaw cars because someone might get hurt in a car accident?

Parents obviously need to be aware of what their children are doing, especially online. But risks due to using MySpace are no greater than other risks kids take everyday.




RE: Bullshit
By Quasmo on 5/12/2006 10:35:32 AM , Rating: 3
Since when did the government tell us how our internet experience is viewed. I think theres another country that does this. OH YEAH! CHINA!


RE: Bullshit
By Trisped on 5/12/2006 6:34:03 PM , Rating: 2
There is more then one problem with myspace. The increase in child predators that have resulted from myspace alone should be enough to shut it down. Then there is the free porn problem, where anyone can access any level of porn they want, even minors which has been the focus of many laws. There is also the addicting nature of the site, where high school students are caught spending hours reading their friends sites and updating their own, rather then doing homework.

I do not think the site should be shut down, but that it should no longer be accessible from school computers.

For another point of view then the one on this form may I suggest the KNX1070 special found http://www.knx1070.com/pages/3186.php or the direct file download found http://www.knx1070.com/episode_download.php?conten...


RE: Bullshit
By Samus on 5/13/2006 5:47:01 PM , Rating: 2
Most educational facilities already block myspace, however, you can just use a proxy domain to bypass it.


But can they really shut it down?
By DangerIsGo on 5/12/2006 8:04:48 PM , Rating: 2
Sure they can shut it down, but I can guarantee you another site just like it, maybe bigger will pop up. Look at napster. Just as it shut down, many more, including the popular KaZaA popped up and theyre still having problems with kazaa! If you shut it down, more will come. The only way to fix this problem is to regulate myspace and those site. The site facebook.com USED to be for college students only. A nice mostly mature site for students, not kids. Now, its used for high school too. What a joke! 'Now you can add your high school friends into your network too!' Bullshit. Soon itll be middleschool too! Ridiculous. It should be for college only and should stay that way. I know I was in high school too but facebook is going to be like myspace someday and its pretty sad how it started out as a great idea for college students only.

Also regarding the high school students surfing myspace, there are proxy redirects like www.hidemyass.com where your on a remote computer redirecting you around the schools filter. I know becuase when I work at my high school over the late spring/winter, I watch the kids as they go to these redirect sites and get to the sites that are banned on our network. I think they should delete myspace and start over, only allowing people over 18 to do it. You would need a CC to verify age. I know its stupid but hey, if you want to keep tabes on these 40yr old men who cant get a life, well your going to have to go to more extreme measures.




RE: But can they really shut it down?
By Scabies on 5/12/2006 9:47:41 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
if you want to keep tabes on these 40yr old men who cant get a life, well your going to have to go to more extreme measures.

Good point. A halfhearted effort in the Legislative wont go far against those that try and do anything to get their fix.


By LuxFestinus on 5/12/2006 10:52:13 PM , Rating: 4
If the opposite of pro is con, then the opposite of progress is congress.


Better idea....
By Vamp Armand on 5/12/2006 11:39:35 AM , Rating: 2
How about when a sex offender gets put in jail we keep them there for more than 3 years. Let's try that before closing down web sites and taking away free speech.




RE: Better idea....
By rrsurfer1 on 5/12/2006 11:42:04 AM , Rating: 2
<sarcasm> No way! Thats crazy talk. </sarcasm>


RE: Better idea....
By bldckstark on 5/12/2006 12:38:25 PM , Rating: 3
I'm sorry but that is impossible. There is no room in the prisons for this type of criminal because they are full of the most evil, disgusting individuals a society can create. You know them, the ones who sit on their couches, laugh at cartoons and eat Twinkies. Those damn pot smokers have got to go. Look at what they are doing to our children! Look at all the dangerous acts they commit and all that fighting and ill tempered behavior! They deserve much more time in jail than a simple pedophile. Oh, and the pedophile should be able to be convicted 7 or 8 times before he gets anything more than 1.5 years with good behavior.

Yes, that was sarcasm.

The only good news on pedophiles is that while they are in prison if anybody finds out they are in for child molestation they usually get gang raped, and fairly often at that. I know, I was a prison guard for a while. If the power goes out, the CM's often get the crap beat out of them, and the guards don't move too fast to help either. I have known guards who check the records of new "offenders" and let others know if they were convicted of molesting children, just to make sure they got theirs.


/boggle
By One43637 on 5/12/2006 1:42:17 PM , Rating: 2
wouldn't it make more sense to go after the sexual predators that use those websites instead of raising all this fuss over social sites?




It's all fun and games now
By Regs on 5/12/2006 3:50:49 PM , Rating: 1
However when your 16 year old daughter is posted nude all over the internet you might have some concerns.


RE: /boggle
By Xonoahbin on 5/12/2006 6:36:06 PM , Rating: 2
If your 16 year old teenage daughter is posted nude all over the Internet, first of all you need to be slapped and second of all she does. She's stupid to do that to herself and you're stupid to let her. People are the problem here, not the social networking sites. I'm a proud member of Myspace and I'm definitely under 18. But, I'm safe on it. Particularly because I'm a guy (and a rather big one at that,) but I've got sense to be smart about it. It's the parents' fault if their children aren't.


RE: /boggle
By Regs on 5/12/2006 10:57:22 PM , Rating: 2
It's not just Myspace. It's mostly a number of other "questionable sites". Myspace is the most innocent of them all but unfortunately if you go after one, you have to go after them all. If you saw how some of these other sites operate and how the higher their own lawyers to circumvent the laws for their own perverted reasons -- you would agree with me. Myspace is just the more popular one.


Why do people never learn...
By rushfan2006 on 5/12/2006 10:42:52 AM , Rating: 3
I have no problem if the government wants to create a website parents can go to to educate them of potential dangers of "social networking websites", however that's about all I'm ok with.

If the idea is to shut down the sites or whatever -- that is crap.

Call me funny but the thing that boils my blood the most in our world today is the base idea that I believe "all things are situational, you do not "punish" the many because of the few"...its as simple as that.

You are always going to have trouble online and of course some sicko's exist out there....stomp on those folks, its not everyone else's fault for the sick and demented acts of a few folks out there.

This is the same crowd saying "guns kill, get rid of people"....um....people kill, not guns.




RE: Why do people never learn...
By rrsurfer1 on 5/12/2006 11:41:23 AM , Rating: 2
His idea isn't to shut down the sites. It's simply to block library and school access to them. I still don't agree with him.


Idiot
By lemonadesoda on 5/12/2006 4:00:25 PM , Rating: 3
What the senator fails to understand (or has chosen to forget) is that myspace creates a PUBLIC and ELECTRONIC record of the activities and actions of these "net activites".

Far better to have record and the opportunity to track, check, have objective evidence, etc.

I think there must be an election coming up, and this senator believes he will get his name and some column inches in the press. Well it worked. But for the informed, he is shooting himself in the foot.

Wouldn't is be great if there was a public wbesite with the names of senators and two vote buttons, one labelled, "SENSIBLE", and the other labelled "IDIOT". I wonder how long that website would last.... LOL




RE: Idiot
By Scabies on 5/12/2006 5:42:55 PM , Rating: 2
Senator Joe Blow today announced a new bill that will block select URLs from public school and library computer labs. This bill was drafted to battle concerns that children were becoming misinformed about political candidates, and were convincing their parents to vote "against their better judgement." Websites such as www.MySenatorIsAD*uchebag will no longer be accessable to children under 18, except under parental supervision.

sigh.. to summarize, Child Molesters and Pedophiles dont deserve much, aside from a good 'mistreating' in prison for a drawn out period, and the bill that this article cites is a poorly-guided legislative gesture that will not bring about any reasonable positive outcome, other than (3% of) kids at school will now be doing more school work, and (3% of) existing whackos will have to research elsewhere.


Contact Him
By rrsurfer1 on 5/12/2006 9:58:53 AM , Rating: 4
If you think this is moronic... as I do....

Make your voice known - http://fitzpatrick.house.gov/writeme/write.htm




hmmm
By eheia on 5/12/2006 12:39:05 PM , Rating: 2
i guess i dont see the problem. i think you need to actually read the article. what i took from the article is that they want to eliminate access from schools and libraries for those under 18, not shutdown the site. I guess i have no problem with this if its just blocking access from schools and libraries for kids. please correct me if i'm wrong.




RE: hmmm
By Scabies on 5/12/2006 1:36:34 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
His legislation, called the Deleting Online Predators Act, "is essentially a bill to protect children from the Internet."

Cause, you know, the internet is gonna rape you. Not to make fun in a serious situation, but honestly the internet has always been dangerous, if not properly monitered. Then again, kids wouldnt go looking for bad stuff with a greater moral influence at home.

After reading the (somewhat self contradicting) article in the LA Times.. This House member must be pretty bored, or have very vocal constituents. So kids cant update their social networking site from school or the public library, does that really bring down the number of predatory incidents by more than about three? If anything, whackos read this and think "Myspace! Why didnt I think of this before? There is even a search by zipcode and by age function, with a filter to return results for only users that have pictures!"
Congradulations, now the problem is worse.
<thought>dumb dumb dumb.. who elects these people? </thought>


Moronic Politicians
By rrsurfer1 on 5/12/2006 9:53:53 AM , Rating: 3
Yea, lets just eliminate the whole thing cause of a .5% criminal element... cause you know in the non-virtual world there are no criminals to worry about...

The guy that suggested this is an idiot.




Let's face it...
By killerroach on 5/12/2006 9:58:41 AM , Rating: 3
"Protecting children" has been a great issue for politicians to grandstand over, even if their actions don't amount to anything. In Michigan, like many other states, we have a law that says that a registered sex offender can't live within 1000 feet of any school, because of fears that a sex offender might abduct a kid as they're walking to class. Only problem is, most children are molested by family and acquaintances rather than strangers, although the cases involving strangers are almost the only ones to actually make the evening news.

So kids, here's a tip of advice for you... walk to school with confidence, but keep at least one eye out for anything suspicious. But you might want to take a pass on the next family reunion.




By aznsoda on 5/12/2006 9:55:48 AM , Rating: 2
This is the stupidest thing I've heard...Next thing you know it we'll be censored off worse than china...bump that...




agree with others above-
By irev210 on 5/12/2006 12:38:47 PM , Rating: 2
Today, america is about the government telling us what we can and cant do -- for our own saftey.


Just like the national seatbelt law. I always wear my seatbelt because it can and has saved my life. However, if I didnt want to, why do I have to? I think it is a start of a long road. What, is the gov going to tell you what you can and cant eat? Or, what you can or cant say in public... and all the other rights we fought for.

America started moving backwards since the 70's. Definitely is no longer land of the free... just more free than most other places in the world.





gjl;wehkljhedgn
By Soviet Robot on 5/13/2006 11:46:48 PM , Rating: 2
As much as I fucking hate myspace(which is owned by rupert murdoch and censors its users), you don't fight censorship and stupidity with more censorship and stupidity.




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