[AusNOG] Understanding lack of Aus connectivity to melbournefreeuniversity.org.

[ComKal Networks]

Hi Nathan,

<snip>

> At the risk of going off on a tangent, while I can understand
> why this debate stirs up emotion, what I'm keen to understand
> from members of this group is why, because it relates to the
> internet, the emotional response seems to be much greater
> than if a law enforcement organisation (or any organisation
> complying with a court order) enforces a legally binding
> request to do just about anything else that affects shared
> infrastructure in society at large.

People get more emotional about internet access because its
an instant gratification thing. You might spend 30 minutes
driving to a shop or a few hours driving to a destination
further away, if the police setup a road block, whats another
5 minutes spent taking a detour, yes people will grumble
but accept it and move on because your mind is also
occupied in the process of getting there (driver or passenger
it doesn't really matter).

Shutting down a road or physical access though will normally
only last hours or certain parts of a day.

Shutting down access to a website normally lasts days to
weeks, which when you look at something you are
conditioned to get an instant response to is a very long
time compared to "On a daily basis Police shut down a roads
to stop motorists getting to the scene of a crime or accident"

If your favorite hangout/shop/area in the real world was
cordoned off by the police for a month bet you would
start to get emotional about that :)

There is also the added aspect of changing an 'Access All
Areas Pass' to a 'Restricted Pass', never sits well with anyone
when suddenly someone else tells you what you can and
cant access anymore and you dont know for how long or
if its forever.


Cheers
Ian Manners
ComKal Networks Australia