[ NNSquad ] Internet Border Patrol

[Ed Jankiewicz <edward.jankiewicz@sri.com>]

Forgive me if this has been discussed ad nauseam already, and a bit off 
subject, but rather than having content providers be responsible for 
"tailoring" their content standards to the whims of various countries 
(removing everything possibly offensive to anyone, which I believe is a 
recipe for vanilla pudding* rather than the sumptuous hot and cold 
buffet we'd like the web to be) or cutting entire countries off from the 
global internet, why not empower sovereign nations to patrol access at 
their borders?   Some of the technology exists, some still needs to be 
developed, but a nation should be able to define and enforce what is and 
is not permissible to cross its border (in or out) regardless of whether 
it is a person, a truck, or bits on a wire.  If YouTube has enough stuff 
that Puritanical Regime would rather its people not see, they may block 
outgoing access to YouTube.  If it is just a few postings or subjects, 
they can filter out those subjects.  If stuff still squeaks through, 
perhaps they would like to develop an intelligent content-aware 
firewall.  And when people find new ways to get around these controls, 
the government can find even more clever ways to block them! 

Eventually these governments would soon be so busy with Internet Border 
Patrol that they would not have time to interfere with freedom of speech 
and thought in the Real World!

Ed J.




*oops, forgot about the vegans, gluten-sensitive and 
lactose-intolerant!  That would be vanilla soy milk...maybe...