IP: One Vet's Opinion

[Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

http://vets.com./aaaaa/vetsop.htm


One Vet's Opinion


by Charles Napier


"The Blue Ribbon"


We got in a piece of e-mail the other day asking about the blue ribbon
displayed on the home page. It asked "Why are you for pornography?" It then
continued downhill from there.


All right, let's get the record straight. I am not for pornography nor is
any other member of our post that I know of. However no one in our post is for
censorship and that is what the blue ribbon is about. Mllions of other vets
and myself took a oath to support and defend the "Constitution of the United
States." And if you can remember the first amendment to that constitution
you realize the meaning is very clear. This makes the current law that
President Clinton (this is the guy who burnt his driver's license in a
public place exercising his free speech) very unconstitutional to me and
many other
vet's that I know.


I have a 12 year old daughter at home (the other three being grown and gone)
and she uses the web all the time. I certainly don't want her or my
grandchilren running into something perverse while they are trying to get
some entertainment or educational value from something on the net. That
does not mean though that I want the government of the United States that is
currently run by a group of people who can't balance a budget, make
good on their promises or find their backsides with both hands and a road
map telling her, my grandchildren, me or anyone else what we can look at.


I am absolutely positive that she can make better choices about what she
sees on the net than a group of political hacks appointed by a person I
wouldn't buy a used Mustang from. Also what shows on the computer screen or
television in my house is MY responsibility not a burocrazy from the
federal government. In addition to insure she makes good choices her mother
and I spend time with her encouraging her to use the net and discussing
with her what is good and what is bad. If something does go wrong it is our
fault not the goverments.


And that is the way it should be.


It is this vet's opinion that 90% of the problems that face America today
come from parental abandonment of responsibility and not from lack of action
on the part of our government. I myself insist on having every right that's
in the "Bill of Rights." I also know that with every one of them comes a
responsibility to use that right properly.


While I applaud the efforts of "Safe Surf" I feel that it is a shame that we
have to have an organization do what parents should do as part of their
parental obligation. Their meta code is in our home page and we will keep it
there (we are rated for all ages) but it seems wrong to me that we have to
have it because there are people out there who can not or will not control
their children.


If Congress and the President really need to pass a law about the "Net" how
about one that puts the onus back where it should be, the parents.


That's this vet's opinion.