There they go again...

The passage of DOPA (HR 5319), Deleting Online Predators Act, is the latest effort on the part of the Congress to manage the unmanageable (and perhaps do some fear-mongering among constituents in this election year?).   ALA's objection to the legislation was expressed in Beth Yoke's testimony before the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.  The position is predicated on three premises:
1. The legislation will limit access to a broad range of essential interactive web applications in schools and libraries
2. It will exacerbate the digital divide, impacting disproportionately those with no or limited computing resources of their own
3. Education and parental involvement are the keys to keeping children safe and helping them to develop judgment that will help them keep themselves safe.

That this sort of legislation would be passed in an election year is not so surprising -- the Internet has become a favorite whipping boy for legislators hoping to evidence their inclination to save us from dangers real and imagined.  Who can  argue with keeping children safe from predators?  In fact, as Yoke's testimony suggests, preventing access in exactly the places where children might be instructed to use such services safely and responsibly will probably leave children less safe.  The magnitude of the rejection of this argument (410 -15) is chilling indeed. 

A number of discussions on the subject points to it unenforceability, but this is the sort of legislation that enforces itself... or rather, by threatening the withdrawal of funding, 'encourages' affected institutions to self police -- or else.  Lets hope cooler heads in the Senate prevail.

Like it or not, the trajectory of increased connectivity is an immutable trend of social and technological change.  It pervades our private lives, education, and business. Vague, blunt, clumsy efforts on the part of mostly privileged, middle-aged, white American males will not stem this change, nor keep our children safe from its side effects.  Such efforts can, however, further damage our competitiveness by stifling innovation and complicating local decision making and operations in libraries and educational institutions.

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thanks to Marshall Kirkpatrick whose blog post on this topic has links to other interesting commentary on this issue.
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image: When I saw this class-rebuild project on display at the Center for Wooden Boats, i wondered... could that be a....?  In fact it was... a Herreschoff 12 1/2 foot gaff rigged keelboat, a craft designed by perhaps the greatest arbiter of beauty in sailing lines.  If memory serves, E.B. White's life-long passion for 'messing around in boats' was nurtured on the Maine coast in just such a craft.  E.B. White's son, Joel White would later channel this love in his own boat designs.  More about White's boats in Wood, Water and Light: Classic Wooden Boats.

Comments

[chaals]

I have to say that if the DOPA saves just one child, it probably isn't worth it. A generation who grow up isolated from most of society put at risk far more than the one child saved.

I think it will actually fail in its primary aim - instead of encouraging children to learn about the world as it is, they will be encouraged to grow up in a never never land without ever meeting the challenges and dangers of the real world in an environment where their peers and people who have a lot of expertise in helping children can lead them through.

When I was a teen I had a lot of interesting experiences. I don't think that they particularly hurt me, because when I was a younger child I had discovered enough of the world to recognise most of the major dangers, in an environment where both parents and teachers were able to guide me.

I did make stupid choices, and occasionally even put myself at some (calculated, if not well-calculated) risk. I still sometimes do, as an adult. With less experience to fall back on, I worry that children will make more, stupider, bad choices for longer - and the choices that a 10 year old can make are generally much safer to mess up than those on offer to a 19 year old.

(And if you exempt Google and Yahoo then you make the bill entirely pointless, although you do create an artificial inducement to monopoly.)

[Rose DesRochers]

I respect your opinion on this, however I was surprised and disappointed that the vote was 410-15. Many of those who oppose DOPA do so because they believe that children should be educated and not restricted. I agree that they should be educated, but let us face it, not all parents do their job and the parents who are doing their job are left with schools and libraries that are not doing their job.

I can not speak on behalf of the US, but I know that surprisingly some Canadian public libraries and schools do not monitor children’s internet access nor do they have filters in place. We were all teens once. I keep hearing the same comments. “Parents do your job.” Well I ask you this, “How many of you rebelled against your parents?”

No matter how much we take care of our children and educate them, it only takes them making one unhealthy choice to put them at risk. You can educate your child untill you are all blue in the face. The truth is that children don’t often think of the consequences of unhealthy choices. If DOPA will save just one child, don’t you think the bill is worth it?

I do want to add that while I support the bill, I do think that the legislation should be rewritten so it does not block sites such as Yahoo and Google. I think they need to better determine what sites will be blocked before passing the law.

These are just my thoughts!