A recent report states that Australia’s government could begin a system of mandatory Internet filtering by 2013. Since at least 2005, the Australian government has tried to censor the Internet, all in the name of protecting society from such immoral and harmful things as pornography and online gambling. Sure, they often cite “child pornography” as an example, but the government is just using kiddie porn, something nobody would be opposed to censoring, as a means of getting their foot in the door.

From Liberal Senator Guy Barnett in 2005 to the current Labor Party, where Stephen Conroy is leading the Internet censorship offers, it has always been clear that online gambling and any sort of “adult” material – not just kiddie porn – is in the crosshairs. A close look at the films, TV shows, magazines and video games that have already been banned clearly shows that motive.

Now they are after the Internet, what most people consider the last remaining form of mass communication completely free of oversight and censorship – the last truly free form of mass communication. Previous attempts to require all Internet Service Providers (ISP) to filter and prohibit access to Refused Classification (i.e. banned) websites have been shot down, but they are still trying.

The government hopes to have a mandatory ISP blocking program in place in 2013, under the direction of the Department of Broadband. In the meantime, the government is giving $8 million in incentives to ISPs to encourage them to take part in the blocking of Refused Classification content on a voluntary basis.

Before passing a law making that content filtering mandatory, the government has asked the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General (SCAG) to review the proposed Internet filtering legislation. The review is expected to take at least 12 months, followed by a series of meetings with lawmakers on how best to implement the system. Recommendations would then be made in 2012, with a bill coming to Parliament by the middle of 2013.

All of this, of course, is in the name of protecting society from dangerous information on the Internet, just as they protect people from having to see Johnny Depp movies featuring “graphic” sex scenes or magazines with titles like DD Bra Busters. All of this morality seems odd coming from a country that was founded as a British penal colony.

Conroy, the Communications Minister, seems to think that people innocently surf the Web and are suddenly attacked by unwanted online casinos, pornography and more. The truth is, people only find those things if they are looking for them. While I find some pornography distasteful (really, who likes preggo midget porn?), I find censorship even more distasteful. The government wants to protect the people from the evils of the Internet, but it is more important to protect the people from the evils of the government.

It hurts the most when someone you care about disappoints you. This time it’s Israel. The Middle Eastern nation is blocking access to online gambling providers from overseas. It seems that online gambling is illegal in Israel and the country is protecting its citizens from themselves.

I would expect such a thing in Saudi Arabia, Iran or Syria. Israel, however, prides itself on being a bastion of freedom in the Middle East. They pride themselves on being a symbol of Western civilization, technological advances and liberty. For the most part, this is true. The people of Israel, regardless of race, religion and socioeconomic status, live mostly free from oppression and government control. Like the United States, though, the government has grown over time while spending more and more money, putting the nation in the red. Facing tough economic times, the country needs extra revenue now more than ever, so this would be a good time to legalize online gambling and tax it, but the country is going in the opposite direction.

Last month, Israeli police began visiting the internet service providers (ISPs) in the country, brandishing orders to block access to overseas online gambling websites. The police handed over a list of blacklisted websites, including their IP (Internet protocol) addresses. The ISPs are ordered to block those IP addresses to prevent Israeli citizens from being able to access online gambling sites.

There are several problems with this. First of all, though Israel has every right to enforce their own laws, I am against laws that ban online gambling in the name of protecting the people. Let the people protect themselves. Secondly, using an IP address to block websites is not very effective, since the online casino owners can simply start a new website with a different IP address. People smarter than me can also find ways of faking or cloning IP addresses. Some also say that the law the police are using applies only to brick and mortar casinos, not online casinos, and therefore the government is overstepping their authority. Since I’m not familiar with Israeli law, I don’t know if that’s the case.

In any case, most ISPs are cooperating fully with the orders, though some plan to contest the orders in court. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Israel isn’t the only Western or Western-influenced country to attempt to censor the Internet by blocking certain websites. Australia, France and Norway come to mind.