<major expletive>!!! Website blocked!

[PossiblyAnna]

I just tried to go onto the tsroadmap.com website, and it was BLOCKED by my Internet Service Provider!! (t-mobile UK) It's considered content "unsuitable for those under 18."

Great. Now I'm going to have to jump through hoops to get that removed.

That's just plain discriminatory. I guess we're just dirty, nasty, filthy, immoral people. And certainly, no one under 18 should need practical information to help them through a difficult time in their life; and they definitely don't want to get it from Godless perverts such as ourselves.


Nexy -- have you ever heard of that happening to *this* board???


That really pisses me off!!


%##&&!*^*^*^#!!!!

-anna

[Isobelle]

Check your internet settings. No site should technically be "blocked", unless there is some sort of parental control filter on.

[Sam]

Check your internet settings. No site should technically be "blocked", unless there is some sort of parental control filter on.

This is Europe. Most notably UK.

UK and France use a lot of blacklists. Some other countries do it too... to some lesser extent.

[nexyjo]

i've heard of lgbt sites blocked within certain public buildings, like in the hospital or library, but not by a provider. gotta love freedom.

[zoetrope]

Chill the hell out.

Or switch to Orange.

How do I remove Content Lock?

If you're over 18, you can remove content lock in two minutes. All we need are your credit card details, or name and address so we can verify your age (it won't cost you anything).

You can confirm your age by:

- Trying to access a blocked site and entering your details

- Dialling 1818 from your T-Mobile phone and following the prompts

Sam, what sites ~exactly~, with the exception of possibly paedophilia and jihadist sites, are blocked from the UK? Tell me, seeing as you know so much about Big Brother.

[WhothezarkamI]

Getting access wasn't the point, as such. She even said she was going to have to "jump through hoops" to remove the "content lock." The point, obviously, is that tsroadmap should not have been blocked in the first place. Under that policy you linked to, the only possible reasons for t-mobile blocking the site are that they feel it is "adults only" or "material of a sexual nature." I don't know about you, but I'm not comfortable with people objectifying and sexualizing us to the point where a website with helpful info for us has to be blocked as if it was pornography.

[zoetrope]

Sheesh. You peeps are real easy to wind up, aren't you.

Content Lock also prevents access to unmoderated content which means:

* Social networking sites
* User generated content
* Chat rooms

Key words are unmoderated and user generated (which, um, means pretty much the entire net, with the exception of iTunes and the BBC).

And, no, I don't think the content lock should be there in the first place, but getting shrill and tamping your feet over the possibility that it's due to sexualisation, puhleese.

[WhothezarkamI]

Tsroadmap is not "unmoderated" and "user generated." Words mean things, and tsroadmap does not fit the meanings of those words as used in society today. Puts it right back to the adult content thing, doesn't it. In addition, even if tsroadmap did meet either of those categories, the reason they block those categories is "because there's a chance under 18s may see inappropriate images or receive unwanted contact."

Ignoring the obvious does not make it any less obvious. Nor will it make the fact go away.

[Sam]

Sam, what sites ~exactly~, with the exception of possibly paedophilia and jihadist sites, are blocked from the UK? Tell me, seeing as you know so much about Big Brother.

Exactly? I wouldn't know. But the fight against the ones you mentioned often take collaterals. One notable example, however, is/was the wikipedia entry on Scorpions - Virgin Killer album. Then again, the ISPs in UK are trying to get rid of those blacklist because of those collaterals and because they simply don't work as advertised.

Not that those parental locks should be there either.

My comment was there only to point out we're in Europe. And things work differently here. Some things you just can't access. Others you need to 'prove' you're allowed to. ETC. In Hungary, for example, they can block any site, for any reason, at any given time. Censorship FTW. Not that they can't do the same elsewhere... but at least elsewhere people might make some noise about it.

I know wikipedia isn't the ultimate source we should rely on. But. It's a good start. So. Here.

I should note something tho. UK and France are not the only ones using blacklists. Nearly every country on the planet does. France... passes some weird laws for an EU country (similar to Hungary) so it's quite high on the list of countries that worry people who care about such things. It's also a member of G8. So is UK. By default those countries are scrutinised far more than anyone else. So I apologise for falling into that 'trap'.

[Sam]

WhothezarkamI: parental lock is not the same as blocking. And, as zoe pointed out, it's rather easy to remove that lock.

[zoetrope]

Sam, thanks for the illumination.







Zark, this misses one very important point, though........ TSroapmap sucks.

[ChloeB]

HI Anna,

Yes alot of the mobile internet providers in the UK do the same, phone and dongle internet.

Had to unblock 3 of mine ( t mobile - Virgin - 3 ) All you have to do is phone them up and say you want access. They will then put through a small charge normally £1 on your credit card to check you over 18.

And no you dont need to tell them what sites you want to look at

Chloe

[SarahElizabeth]

Block internet sites.
Control what the media can report.
Freedom going away.

[mfwhoknows]

Try using https://kproxy.com
This should work hopefully as I have the same problem with Orange accessing this place.

[Someone Else]

Proxies are the way to go in the interim.

http://www.proxysites.net/

They keep an up to date list of "known" proxies.

Edit:
Foxyproxyis a good tool to cycle through proxies for anonymous surfing and does a good job managing proxy lists.

You could also try to connect through an SSH tunnel.

[WhothezarkamI]

@Sam: I know it isn't the same thing as completely blocking access to the site. That wasn't my point.

Zark, this misses one very important point, though........ TSroapmap sucks.

*sigh* This really is a forest for the trees thing here for you isn't it. Whether or not it is a quality site, the point was that it is not a pornographic site. It isn't a dating site. It isn't a gambling site. It isn't a user generated forum. It is there for the sole purpose of providing information to MtF transsexuals, and the fact that that is considered something that should be censored is the problem.

And I do agree, Tsroadmap does kinda suck.

[PossiblyAnna]

Chill the hell out.

Or switch to Orange.

Orange? They get a major expletive, too, but for entirely different reasons... tried that.

How do I remove Content Lock?

If you're over 18, you can remove content lock in two minutes. All we need are your credit card details, or name and address so we can verify your age (it won't cost you anything).

You can confirm your age by:

- Trying to access a blocked site and entering your details

- Dialling 1818 from your T-Mobile phone and following the prompts

Nice in theory, but it didn't work. I had to go in to the store and deal with the idiots there. And I was all set to give them hell if they actually asked for ID; but they didn't. How disappointing.

So, yeah, I'm an American in Europe suddenly shocked to find censorship actually exists. There's no way in *hell* you could do that in the US -- we thrive on this kind of shit. That's why we have guns. (kidding...)

But from another perspective, I'm simply a pissed-off consumer. I didn't sign up for that! I want what I paid for, which is unfettered access to the Internet (or so I thought...) Maybe it was buried somewhere in super tiny fine print, but that doesn't excuse it.

Not to draw this into geek land, but I think this is also a way for them to save bandwidth. They have this other "feature" which re-compresses website images on-the-fly before sending them down the pipe to you (which makes them look like crap). They advertise this an an "accelerator" feature, but clearly, it's for their benefit.

Ok, there's probably no relationship between those things at all, but I discovered them on the same day, so dammit! They must be connected!


Regardless, I am pretty offended that trans-related sites are apparently off-limits. Yes, this is nothing we didn't know. The world hates us. We'll all encounter much worse forms of discrimination multiple times in our lives.

Still, I hate being slapped in the face with it.


Hrmph.



-anna

[Sam]

There's no way in *hell* you could do that in the US

Wait till this goes through.

There's quite some 'censorship' going on in the US. It's just advertised differently. Ever seen a domain seized by the feds?

[zoetrope]

Whether or not it is a quality site, the point was that it is not a pornographic site.

The piety! The piety!

Where, exactly, has anybody said that TSroadmap is pornographic. My point is that you're projecting.

Also, shock horror, consumer discovers that things sold to them are a piece of crap.

The world hates us. We'll all encounter much worse forms of discrimination multiple times in our lives.

Still, I hate being slapped in the face with it.

My god. Would you get this angsty if it was Facebook you couldn't get too? Even though, according to them, they could block facebook through the content lock.........

Nice in theory, but it didn't work. I had to go in to the store and deal with the idiots there. And I was all set to give them hell if they actually asked for ID; but they didn't. How disappointing.

So, what? Did you get the lock removed or not?

Plus, hi, this is not censorship. Get a grip.

[PossiblyAnna]

There's no way in *hell* you could do that in the US

Wait till this goes through.

There's quite some 'censorship' going on in the US. It's just advertised differently. Ever seen a domain seized by the feds?

The bill is supported by the Motion Picture Association of America, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Screen Actors Guild, Viacom, and the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States.

Doh! That's *my* frickin' union! I don't remember getting to vote on that!

As it relates to my rather weakly made point about things like that not happening in the US, this probably won't happen. Americans get extremely pissed off at *any* attempts to curtail our personal freedoms; we take it extremely personally. It's an attitude which is ingrained in our culture, and is exactly what makes us seem like assholes to the rest of the world. However, it's also what caused the American revolution in the first place, which is what created the need for democracy everywhere else in the world.

But anyway... I rant. Sorry.

So, what? Did you get the lock removed or not?

Plus, hi, this is not censorship. Get a grip.

Yes... it's removed.

Geez! I'm not *that* upset about it! This goes more into the slightly-annoying-but-entertaining-for-online-rants category, not the major serious issue category.


-anna

[lisagurl]

If you want Government protection they will give it to you with all the Government problems. It is better to be responsible yourself and forget the protections.

[cjs911217]

As it relates to my rather weakly made point about things like that not happening in the US, this probably won't happen. Americans get extremely pissed off at *any* attempts to curtail our personal freedoms; we take it extremely personally. It's an attitude which is ingrained in our culture, and is exactly what makes us seem like assholes to the rest of the world. However, it's also what caused the American revolution in the first place, which is what created the need for democracy everywhere else in the world.
-anna

Ummm....
I think the Patriot Act is up for renewal this week, and no one's really said much about it excepts for organizations like CREDO, LeftAction, and the Libertarian organizations. Americans are used to it, so I'm sure it'll get renewed.

It has been a long time since I've believed Americans actually care about freedom. We just like to rant and rave, and the figureheads of MSNBC and Fox give us something to rant and rave about-- we don't actually care that the government is listening to our phone calls. If we did, we would be in the streets this very instant protesting the renewal.

People in GB seem to be more indignant about the blacklists than we are about the PA renewal. It's kind of humorous, in a very dark way.

[lisagurl]

think the Patriot Act is up for renewal this week, and no one's really said much about it excepts for organizations like CREDO, LeftAction, and the Libertarian organizations. Americans are used to it, so I'm sure it'll get renewed.

"How Would a Patriot Act? Defending American Values from a President Run Amok "

[zoetrope]

I'm going to start this new forum game. It's called Lisa Fishing. The rules are, the first person to say something in a thread that gets a Typical Lisa Politics response wins 10 points. Double those points for really far out not even remotely related to politics threads, like those talking about tucking, packing, nail varnish, hair goop, and / or vanity.

Geez! I'm not *that* upset about it! This goes more into the slightly-annoying-but-entertaining-for-online-rants category, not the major serious issue category.

Heh.

My invective gag reflex is, nowadays, most attuned to slightly-annoying online rants

[LVTrish]

I'm going to start this new forum game. It's called Lisa Fishing. The rules are, the first person to say something in a thread that gets a Typical Lisa Politics response wins 10 points. Double those points for really far out not even remotely related to politics threads, like those talking about tucking, packing, nail varnish, hair goop, and / or vanity.

Oh this is gonna be fun lol

[WhothezarkamI]

Whether or not it is a quality site, the point was that it is not a pornographic site.

The piety! The piety!

Where, exactly, has anybody said that TSroadmap is pornographic. My point is that you're projecting.

Also, shock horror, consumer discovers that things sold to them are a piece of crap.

Okay, to spell this out even simpler for you, since you still are not getting this. (Either that or you are trolling.) Tsroadmap does not meet any of the categories of site that should be affected by the content lock. But it is affected by that lock. If you want to pretend that it isn't because the whole subject of transgender individuals is sexualized in the minds of the majority of western society, then have fun wherever it is you have your head hidden.

[Someone Else]

This sounds too much like congress debating something that is totally moot.
Use proxies. I used to use them all the time. I probably should be using proxies now since ATT hands over all personal information without a warrant.

I fear ATT, Google, farcebook, and yacktube more than I fear government censorship.
The govt is totally inept.

[cjs911217]

Cough...
So.
Remember how I said all that stuff about the Patriot Act?
Erm.... I stand corrected...

[cjs911217]

"How Would a Patriot Act? Defending American Values from a President Run Amok "

Are you a collection of quotes and idioms in real life, too?