Government Intervention Of The Internet
...information across large distances quickly.
Computerization has
influenced everyone's life. The natural evolution of computers and this
need for
ultra-fast communications has caused a global network of interconnected
computers
to develop. This global net allows a person to send E-mail across the
world in mere
fractions of a second, and enables even the common person to access
information
world-wide. With advances such as software that allows users with a
sound card to
use the Internet as a carrier for long distance voice calls and video
conferencing, this
network is key to the future of the knowledge society. At present, this
net is the
epitome of the first amendment: free speech. It is a place where people
can speak
their mind without being reprimanded for what they say, or how they
choose to say it.
The key to the world-wide success of the Internet is its protection of
free speech, not
only in America, but in other countries where free speech is not
protected by a
constitution. To be found on the Internet is a huge collection of
obscene graphics,
Anarchists' cookbooks and countless other things that offend some
people. With over
30 million Internet users in the U.S. alone (only 3 million of which
surf the net from
home), everything is bound to offend someone. The newest wave of laws
floating
through law making bodies around the world threatens to stifle this area
of
spontaneity. Recently, Congress has been considering passing laws that
will make it
a crime punishable by jail to send "vulgar" language over the net, and
to export
encryption software. No matter how small, any attempt at government
intervention
in the Internet will stifle the greatest communication innovation of
this century. The
government wants to maintain control over this new form of
communication, and
they are trying to use the...
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