Posted on 06/02/2005 1:17:06 PM PDT by freepatriot32
The Danger.
No bill has been introduced yet, but Senator Stevens has promised one, and when it arrives it is likely to come straight out of the Commerce Committee he chairs and move directly to a vote with little time for public comment. The time to act is now.
You can read more about this at...
Center for American Progress: Think Again: The New Content Commissars
Jammed.com: Transcript of Sen. Stevens' remarks on Internet "indecency" laws
DownsizeDC.org commentary
This bill would deny you the right to watch mature programming on cable TV for the sake of parents who are too lazy and irresponsible to bear the burden of doing their jobs as parents. Those parents who object to cable TV programming already have several ways to deal with this problem:
They can buy a reduced set of cable programming (this is the approach used by DownsizeDC.org President Jim Babka who has three children under 10).
They can no have cable at all, but rely on broadcast TV only (which is now heavily censored).
They can restrict cable to only one part of their house and not allow their children to watch TV there.
They can block cable channels they consider inappropriate for their children. But some parents, rather than take any of these responsible steps, want Congress to do their parenting for them, at the expense of everyone else who wants to be able to watch mature programming.
And, we might add, Congress has no constitutional authority for such censorship, something that should concern every American who still cares about constitutional legality.
Many Americans have excused broadcast censorship because the government supposedly owns the broadcast spectrum, but no such excuse exists here. Congress can make no claim to own cable networks, local cable providers, or even the TV sets in your home. They simply don't have the authority.
Why Take Action?
Please help us stop the growth of the nanny state.
Please help us stop the Congressional urge to turn the entire country into Disneyland.
Please help us preserve the benefits of adulthood. Please help us preserve the First Amendment.
Please don't reward the busy-bodies who think they know what's best for you and your family.
Please stop the political habit of using children as an excuse for extinguishing American freedom.
Please don't let Congress reward the whining of irresponsible parents who want others to do their job for them. To send your message to Congress opposing this censorship click here.
Freedom for all or freedom for none. Some people just refuse to accept that basic truth.
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Any discussion of external costs always gives Libertarians cognitive dissonance!
I was actually quoting some of the Founding Fathers. “Our Constitution was made for moral and religious people,” stated John Adams. George Washington said, “Of all the dispositions and habits that lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.“ James Madison agreed: ”We have staked the future upon our capacity to sustain ourselves according the Ten Commandments of God.“
But I suppose a libertarian could be forgiven for confusing the Founding Fathers with Mussolini! After all, they are all a bunch of statists, right?
I hope you weren't expecting a rousing "Small Government, Constitution supporting" response around here.
Haven't you heard? "It Takes A Village".
Yeah, just like taking a dump is natural and yet we control where that activity takes place for the PUBLIC HEALTH. Likewise you're not permitted to burn garbage in most cities, why? For the PUBLIC HEALTH!
And yes, cable television is public broadcasting in that it is ubiquitous. For example, I have a satellite connection; is that airwaves or cable?
The PUBLIC most certainly has the Right to regulate what is broadcast to the general public. Frankly, I would prefer that the industry regulate itself and exercise discretion over its programming. Unfortunaley it has proven itself incapable of self discipline.
Have you ever read the lyrics of a rap album? Are you willing to defend that level of stupidity going out over the airwaves?
Finally, whether the gov. gets involved or not, this debate is crucial for the protection of our societal environment. And in spite of libertarian denials our societal environment does require protection.
We're talking about cable here. That is no more a public airway than Free Republic.
The difference here is, whatever pollution the Howard Stern factory might be spewing, the people downriver are voluntarily paying to be exposed to such pollution.
Subscribing to cable television is a wholly voluntary activity. Nobody is exposed to the pollution against their will.
Microsoft Windows is ubiquitous, does that make it publicly-owned? Coca-Cola is ubiquitous, does that make it public? Wal-Mart is pretty damn ubiquitous, too. Is it a public institution?
The PUBLIC most certainly has the Right to regulate what is broadcast to the general public.
Whether or not this statement is true, cable is not broadcast to the general public. It is only broadcast to voluntary subscribers.
Have you ever read the lyrics of a rap album? Are you willing to defend that level of stupidity going out over the airwaves?
I didn't realize there was a "stupidity" standard that allowed the banning of stupid lyrics. Now, if those lyrics involve swearing and such, they can certainly be banned from the public airways. However, they certainly cannot be banned from pay services such as XM or Sirius.
Spot on commentary...Congress is in a big regulation mode--I mean look what Sarbanes Oxley has done to business...don't get me started on that it's been the worst thing ever!
I miss Hank the angry, drunken dwarf.
So you are taking the position that society has zero impact whatsoever on children - that 100% of the variance in how children turn out is explainable through the parents?
The people who live downriver from the factory did not buy the widgets but they still have the polluted water in their back yard.
No, I'm not.
The people who live downriver from the factory did not buy the widgets but they still have the polluted water in their back yard.
Following your analogy, the people downriver specifically bought their houses because they wanted to drink from the polluted river, for whatever reason. Nobody forced them to move into the neighborhood and they knew exactly what they were buying into.
I have not turned on the TV in years. The last time I turned the TV was 9/11 and before that it was years. I don't want to block outlets like FOX news or some Christian programing. I'd love to see hollywood shut down cause no one watches anything they produce. Watch the liberal actors whine because they have no money. I do understand the points you are making.
Ok, so the a society's moral values are an externality. Now the only question is this: how do we deal the external costs?
By taking responsibility for the upbringing of our own children. Certainly not by calling for more government intervention in what programming cable companies provide to their customers.
1. I never quoted Mussolini, that was your inference. I merely posited two solutions to dealing with externalities: regulation or litigation. I think they are both legitimate ways to handle externalities. Your way to handle externalities is to pretend that they don't exist. 2. Those aren't prayer quotes, they are statements about the importance of morals. But go ahead and present the true picture of the founding fathers.
You just conceded that parents cannot explain 100% of the variance in how kids turn out - that society does in fact have some influence. With devoted parents that influence is smaller, but you can't shut it out completely. As another poster pointed out, even Amish children know who Madonna is. So your choice as a parent is to socially isolate your children, or to allow some exposure to society at large. Christians are already criticized for homeschooling their kids - they are being poorly socialized for doing so.
Society will never be "perfect." Bad influences will always be out there. It's simply the cost of living in a society. Giving government more power to make society "better" will, in the long run, rob us of our freedoms and make the situation worse.
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