Against KOSA

[ndrosen]

I emailed my Congressman the other day, urging him to oppose the misnamed Kids Online Safety Act, which was passed by the Senate, and is now before the House of Representatives. I made the points that the requirement for identification would lead to increased danger of identity theft, as a result of hackers managing to steal the information on Internet users which websites would be required to obtain, and that the proposed law violates the First Amendment rights of all Americans by holding websites culpable for the vaguely defined “mental health” of juveniles.

For example, a truthful article about global warming or the situation in the East China Sea might result in teenagers (and adults) being beset by worry, but would be legitimate news which people have a right to publish and to read. I also gave the example of an advice column that might upset some recipients of advice, or a website arguing that abortion is very wrong, which might upset a pregnant teenager.

Let’s hope that the bill is voted down.

Comments

[dewline]

Yeah. This will also create a certain amount of international havoc, I suspect, if passed.