The availability of hardcore porn to young adults is a genuine problem, there's isp level filtering but it doesn't work, part of the problem is image search, which embeds content into the page which means that it doesn't get picked up by the ISP's filter.
I think the situation could be greatly improved by not embedding explicit content into image searches and instead fetch explicit content from a separate cache which could be easily blocked by ISP level filtering. I'm no expert though, I suspect there's a performance penalty if you stop embedding the content, but maybe that would be a reasonable sacrifice.
As for protecting kids, I think we can agree that now that every kid has a smartphone with unfettered web access it's certainly more difficult to protect them from porn than it is to protect them from, say, alcohol where you generally need to prove your age etc.
I am by no means saying that state imposed filtering is an appropriate solution, but I'm not entirely certain what other effective solutions are available - it's a genuine problem.
It is? Teens are going to be interested in sex - porn is probably the safest way for them to explore that. Yes, clearly porn is a fantasy and has issues to do with expectation, but the answer to that is to educate them more, not try to keep them ignorant.
This kind of thing is a lazy and stupid attempt to do something no one will go against, because if you say anything about it, you can be smeared for being pro-porn and anti-child, regardless of the truth.
Fair, I agree that it can be seen as a shrewd move by government for exactly this reason.
It goes way beyond porn though, if we allow gov to block anything it doesn't like then we're on a road to a bleak future (hint: we are already).
IMHO it's far, far better for families to actually deal with this new reality by being honest and educating their children. Honestly, I try not to really worry too much.
But I agree with you on education, and maybe I now have to concede my original point, since you're right to say that if children received better education there would potentially be less of a problem...
I can generally see why people would want to filter away adult content from accidental viewing by children. What I think is completely doomed is attempting to keep it away from children that are actively searching for it. It'll just start circulating on USB sticks.
Don't worry, they are already working on a law to make it illegal to use non-government sanctioned USB sticks with built in remote access and bio-metric access control so the government can monitor everything that is put on it and by who.
Why?
And who took it upon themselves to establish this as fact for the rest of us?
</sarcasm> for those who didn't get it.
I am all for protecting kids from the extreme sides of porn but that is something a parent should be doing. You know like how they protect their children from drugs, alcohol, violent movies and games, the stuff kids shouldn't be exposed too.
There are plenty of parental control systems available for computers to prevent accidental exposure (not perfect but good enough) should a parent want a more automated solution. But putting the government in control of picking what is acceptable porn for consenting adults and what is not is not the solution.
I am a 30-something male. I have a wife. I look at porn. Big deal. People act like they don't care about porn but if that were true it wouldn't be such a huge business. Enough people pay for the crappy porn you get on TV for it to be a profitable business for god sake. Literally everybody looks at porn and I would be more worried about those who don't than those who do.
This is a terrible step down a dangerous path and of course it is wrapped up in a "think of the children!" spin.