UK to Censor Esoteric Websites

UK to Censor Esoteric Websites

www.ultraculture.org

UK Prime Minister David Cameron has recently set large segments of the world up in arms by deciding to set up a country-wide firewall that will block access to pornography unless citizens opt out. (Similar measures were tried earlier across the EU and summarily thrown out.) But the block apparently won’t be limited to porn: ISPs will also be forced to block violent material, extremist sites, pro-anorexia and pro-suicide sites, alcohol, smoking, web forums (?!) and even… esoteric material.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Now this is just getting weird.

I get filtering out "violent material, extremist sites, yadda-yadda..." I think it is assbackwards protectionism at its worst, but I get it. But esoteric sites? Really?

I'm having a hard time fumbling my way down the line of reasoning that would lead policy makers to deem esoterica a public health hazard. I'm trying to imagine the ad campaign, ala' D.A.R.E.:



Seriously, though, what gives?!

www.ultraculture.org
(visit the link for the full news article)

This is just a strategy used by governments, you just have to read between the lines.

When Governments want to ban something that a lot of people might complain about they threaten to ban a whole bunch of other stuff as well. But this is just a threat. Because they know the people are going to complain and force the government will take a step back , but they only step back as far as the original thing they want to ban which in this case is access to certain types of porn and maybe a few other sites as well.

This way 'the sheeple' think they have a victory and have excersied some power over thier government and they still feel in control. But in reality the government got what they wanted in the first place.

You just have to look at the bigger picture. They do NOT want to ban Esoteric, alcohol, smoking, web forums they are just trying to get people to complain so they can appear to be beaten back..to a point.

Must be an election coming up. then after the election they'll drop the idea.

Ive always found when an authority figures try to ban a topic, it tends to draw people to it. Almost ads a sense of legitimacy to something as well.

Almost like "what are they hiding." type of thing.

Nazi's loved to ban and burn knowledge as well.

funny to see a country that fought so hard against fascism fall to it less than a generation later.

Would that include ATS? Because there are threads regarding esoteric subjects on this site.

Second.

The next election cycle isn't until 2015? And who is being pandered to? Is there some kind of vocal anti-esoterica demographic in the UK? I certainly can't find one. If anything, according to site, the only people who give two shakes of a wand are a bunch of butthurt Pagan groups who are kicking up a fuss over it.

Am I missing something? Is there some kind of silent fundamentalist majority?

Bafflement.

reply to post by Lunarian


Most likely.

Also we are to have modesty bags to cover up inappropriate material (girls in bikinis) on all magazines containing the material.

What next, modesty bags for women on the beaches?

This country is rapidly falling into dystopia.

Originally posted by Lunarian
Would that include ATS? Because there are threads regarding esoteric subjects on this site.

Second.

edit on 29-7-2013 by Lunarian because: (no reason given)

Well, since the very broad term "Web Forums" was on that list, I guess it's safe to assume so. Goodbye, UK brethren, we'll see you beyond that Great Firewall in the sky.

reply to post by Eidolon23


Well, I make a living writing about esoteric stuff and about 12% of my business comes from the UK. Obviously people in the UK are interested in these things.

They already started to block bittorrent websites, we get a blank page with small text to the top right saying

Error - site blocked

I belive these are just small stepping stones to eventually block any websites that question government actions and policies.

reply to post by Eidolon23


well that is retarded.

I dont see how someone with a public office can still have enough public support after even mentioning this ass backwards idea to stay in office.

What is next, foul language?

If they really want to see how people will respond to this level of interference then they should continue down these lines.

What leaders sometimes dont realize is that all they do and think of doing is the product of the minds of their mentors. Those that taught them the skills necessary to place free men under the yolk of authority. This is not a new idea and they arent so innovative, or original. You are all but men.


What leaders also dont realize is that men are flawed and sometimes they make mistakes, BIG mistakes. Even collectively and after much reflection, people can still err...big time. So even though those that gave them formation and direction and instilled in them a sense of a higher purpose may have been small and insignificant men in their own right. All the teachers of men arent smart enough to out wit human nature. You cant see the bigger picture if you are in it.

They can study human nature, analyze it to its most finite details and still not know what is the driving force behind the human psyche or how it will respond to its environment at any given moment. There is chaos to account for gentlemen.

So I suggest that they learn humility and to give value to that which they already have. Power, wealth, comfort, ect.....Be thankful for that and learn to live and let live. Hunger for more is worthy of losing it all.

Eventually your nonsense will drive the animal in us to the forefront of your experience with us. How do you plan how a wild dog will bite or how the winds of a storm will blow...?

Cut the crap.....for the sake of us all....or all that is now will be torn down and burned with the fury of a caged animal fearing his death and tasting his survival in your blood.

Originally posted by Eidolon23

Originally posted by Lunarian
Would that include ATS? Because there are threads regarding esoteric subjects on this site.

Second.

edit on 29-7-2013 by Lunarian because: (no reason given)

Well, since the very broad term "Web Forums" was on that list, I guess it's safe to assume so. Goodbye, UK brethren, we'll see you beyond that Great Firewall in the sky.

Actually, if you read the information it says that ISPs by default will be required to turn the content monitor on and people have to state that they opt out of using the ISP content monitoring. Nothing is being banned, people just need to say they don't want to use it.

Please check the facts before making it seem a bigger deal than it is, although to be fair it's unlikely that such a scheme would really be workable.

reply to post by benrl


Sounds about right.

Originally posted by DAZ21
reply to post by Lunarian

 

Most likely.

Also we are to have modesty bags to cover up inappropriate material (girls in bikinis) on all magazines containing the material.

What next, modesty bags for women on the beaches?

This country is rapidly falling into dystopia.

I'd just like to point out they usually *aren't* in Bikini's.
Our top shelves are lined with uncensored hard porn, and the middle shelves are for bare boobs, and the lower shelves are the bikini girls.

Apart from that I don't know what to say. It's about time kids had less exposure to this - having said that, I don't trust this government to make decent laws...

As a British person I find the idea that these new regulations are going to stretch to "esoterica" utterly ridiculous, unjustified, and unworkable.

Gore:
Any image which displays elements of the anatomical process, surgery, autopsy, crime scenes, aftermaths of terror attacks, in fact, some of the most important photo-journalism I have ever seen, will be pretty damned close to being banned, if the brush with which these things are marked, is as wide as simply describing it as "Gore".

Occult:
Britain has a massive tradition, and history of occult practices, druidism, these things are strung through both the pre and post Roman history our nation! How can the government place these things in amongst pornography as things to be banned is unworkable, and unreasonable. Will Harry Potter no longer be available for the young people, as streaming content? How about Twilight? This seems idiotic at best.

Anti-establishment:
So, let me get this straight, if the government do not like it, its banned, is that whats happening here?? I smell a sternly worded letter to the PM, and indeed, several terse visits with my MP in the offing. Obviously, they havent thought this through. The more they compress us, the more they destroy our rights and freedoms, to learn, to feel, to think, and to speak, the deeper underground they will push us. Like a liquid however, the British can only have thier will and thought compressed to a certain extent, before the pressure destroys the vessel.

There is a habit, for government these days to expand an idea that may not work too well, to the point where it cannot possibly function in any reasonable manner, and if enforced will represent a serious impediment to the liberty of the people. Typical then, that it came at a time when we, yet again, have a clueless, Thatcher worshiping moron in the driving seat. Someone needs to pull these idiots over for dangerous driving.

For those questioning the outrage here, suggesting that these things are not banned, only filtered, this is just another element of the monitoring that WE are the subject of, every single day. By observing the activities of people who are using the net for the same purpose that I do, near enough every day, right here on ATS, who will have to opt out of the scheme, the government are essentially going to increase thier illegal scrutiny of innocent people, all caught up in this net that was originally devised to prevent child abuse, corruption of children and so on.

The very idea that this site could be caught up in that filter makes me want to spit acid in the face of an authority figure. They are doing themselves no favour.

Originally posted by NeoSpace
They already started to block bittorrent websites, we get a blank page with small text to the top right saying

Error - site blocked

I belive these are just small stepping stones to eventually block any websites that question government actions and policies.

edit on 29-7-2013 by NeoSpace because: (no reason given)

I know, nightmare isnt it?

But in all seriousness i think this is why such a project would never succeed. Even torrent sites that make very little money have already come up with workarounds. The porn industry is the most profitable on the web by far, they are not just going to sit back and let a large chunk of the market slip away; workarounds would be in place as soon as any 'ban' came into effect.

On a side note, i was originally livid with this porn ban due to the infringement on our Human Rights, but now im just embarrassed that the majority of the people in our country will just sit back and allow this to happen and that makes me a little sad

Right... another beer it is, lol

Edit to add:

I've just realised that its kind of ironic that the Mr Cameron wants to ban online porn, yet he is quite possibly the biggest wa@@er ever.

Pirate radio anyone?

Where there is objection, there will be a way....hopefully

Originally posted by uncommitted

Originally posted by Eidolon23

Originally posted by Lunarian
Would that include ATS? Because there are threads regarding esoteric subjects on this site.

Second.

edit on 29-7-2013 by Lunarian because: (no reason given)

Well, since the very broad term "Web Forums" was on that list, I guess it's safe to assume so. Goodbye, UK brethren, we'll see you beyond that Great Firewall in the sky.

Actually, if you read the information it says that ISPs by default will be required to turn the content monitor on and people have to state that they opt out of using the ISP content monitoring. Nothing is being banned, people just need to say they don't want to use it.

Please check the facts before making it seem a bigger deal than it is, although to be fair it's unlikely that such a scheme would really be workable.

Good catch, would you mind linking and quoting? All the info I could find indicates a solid firewall, not an opt-out option.

ETA: here it is-

t the UK Open Rights Group have been talking with whistleblowers from the ISPs that have met with the government's censorship grandees, and they report that the censorware will come equipped to block an enormous swath of legal Internet content, and unless you untick the boxes, this will all be censored for your Internet connection:

Do you want to block

☑ pornography
☑ violent material
☑ extremist and terrorist related content
☑ anorexia and eating disorder websites
☑ suicide related websites
☑ alcohol
☑ smoking
☑ web forums
☑ esoteric material
☑ web blocking circumvention tools

boingboing.net...

Alcohol and tobacco???

Seriously???

Given that they are both a huge cash cow for the government, why would thry ban these websites?
...add the fact that Cameron has done a U-turn on plain cigarette packette advertising,

Have you any other sources