[OT] Re: HB 139 Meeting Today ?

[Jonathan Duncan]

On 07 Feb 2008, at 10:04, Thad Van Ry wrote:

> The bill says:
> (4) "Restrict access" means to use a reasonable method for
> ascertaining the age of a
> person using wireless Internet access or preventing the display of
> material harmful to minors
> over the wireless local area network, including:
> (a) visually inspecting a government-issued identification document;  
> or
> (b) requiring the provision of a valid credit card number.
>
> In my reading of this, it means you have to either verify the age
> using one of the two methods OR filter access to prevent the display
> of material harmful to minors over the wireless LAN.
>
> BTW, I wrote to my representative (Roger Barrus) about this bill. He
> said that it probably has a good chance of passing because of the
> "protect the children" theme.
>

If our legislators are dense enough to fall for the emotional factor  
of something without considering the full effects of a bill then we  
are all lost.  Of course, the problem may not lie with the  
legislators, but with the people who know about it and are ignorant to  
how useless it is and become squeaky wheels that push the legislators  
into doing something because they are the only ones that are being  
heard.

I am glad that some of us have already stepped up and showed some  
opposition.  Go Team!

Pass anything just because it appeals to emotion is ridiculous.  How  
about a bill that suggests we, "Kill all adults because adults are  
harming children".