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U.S. senator: It's time to ban Wikipedia in schools, libraries
computerworld.com — Here's the newest from Sen. Ted Stevens, the man who described the Internet as a series of tubes: It's time for the federal government to ban access to Wikipedia, MySpace, and social networking sites from schools and libraries.
prestongralla- 3363 diggs
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- acdcfanbill, on 11/13/2007, -14/+787Perhaps its time to ban Ted Stevens from Capitol Hill...
- AkatsukiNoTobi, on 11/13/2007, -12/+342Ted Stevens is just worried about schools having their tubes clogged up. No one wants their tubes clogged up.
- gldfshnpcklejar, on 10/12/2007, -71/+10Didn't ted stevens and all of congress get banned from wiki already?
So like I guess since they got banned from wiki, he's going to try and ban america from using it? - anotherjeff, on 10/12/2007, -13/+164You can't ban wikipedia. Where else could i find a list of female porn stars and sex positions?
- Zafras, on 10/12/2007, -40/+16I think WE should ban HIM from the eintarweb. But you know, in a way I do feel kind of sorry for him. Does he even know he's being ridiculed by millions?
- mrwiggles123, on 10/12/2007, -43/+11Where will i find a list of big breasted women if not for wiki?
Ted Stevens invented the intertubes people, take notes
ITS NOT A ***** DUMPTRUCK - knightblade2oo4, on 10/12/2007, -8/+243has this guy ever used the internet?
honestly; he's got the most retarded views I've ever heard.
on another note, don't look up 'anus' in wikipedia and don't view the 3rd photo down. - kylelibra, on 10/12/2007, -27/+4"Perhaps its time to ban Ted Stevens from Capitol Hill..." ....QFT
- ggarenn, on 10/12/2007, -11/+64***** this guy. his stupid ass mentality pisses me off.
- Tiak, on 10/12/2007, -15/+3That time came quite a while ago.
- livestradamus, on 10/12/2007, -5/+116knightblade2oo "on another note, don't look up 'anus' in wikipedia and don't view the 3rd photo down."
That's either a photo of Ted Stevens or at least where he talks out of - SIRBERUS, on 10/12/2007, -3/+48Yes. Let's have children go back to their books, circa 1932.
- Grumps, on 10/12/2007, -17/+8There is some serious problem with this guy isnt it? Was he piss that his wife (Cat. Steven) got pulled off the plane? Since he dislike the Internet this much (with all the bill he proposed), I guess we should ban him from the Internet.
- Azerael, on 10/12/2007, -11/+53I completely agree with Ted. They might become corrupted by an article on Evolution during a lesson on Intelligent Design, and that would be a terrible thing to happen.
- elroy, on 10/12/2007, -18/+27Is the whole "tubes" thing really that funny? I don't think I've ever heard the concept of bandwidth explained to a novice without analogies to plumbing being made.
- Dumbledorito, on 10/12/2007, -2/+63@elroy: Even so, where the hell does he get the "it's not a big truck" part from?
As Jon Stewart said, “You don’t know **** about the Internet, you’re just the guy in charge of regulating it.” - Ramtech, on 10/12/2007, -7/+22seems he stupid ....
very...
an Alaskan representative...with Alaska having a population of 626,932 (2000)... not that many people for a state... and not enough to hold enough seats in the senate... they definitely need another guy... one who's more... how do you say... "intellectual"?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Stevens - dandonia, on 10/12/2007, -33/+2whats with the uproar there is porn on myspace and wikipedia. do we really want kids looking at that *****. Also wiki is written and edited by anyone so the info isnt always accurate and its for that same reasons uni's dont allow students to reference wiki in their assignments. Anyone who thinks porn should be allowed in school speak now by digging me down. You set of goits
- JonForTheWin, on 10/12/2007, -7/+33As far as American can be concerned ted stevens is now officially an anti-American liberty-gutting Freedom-hating terrorist who needs to be tried convicted and beheaded in public for high treason.
- CandidateZero, on 10/12/2007, -2/+36Beheaded? I'd settle for him just leaving. He's a known telecom shill and is opposed to all things internet. I... just want him to leave, now.
- TheReport, on 10/12/2007, -1/+42Stevens is just worried that everyone will see his profile on Wikipedia and realize how much of a Moron he is.
- TheReport, on 10/12/2007, -1/+37"He threatened to resign from the Senate if the federal earmark for the Alaskan bridges was sent to help repair Louisiana in the wake of Hurricane Katrina damage."
For ***** someone get that money to New Orleans STAT!!!!!! - spliffy, on 10/12/2007, -1/+33doesn't look like he even has email, but here is the rest of his contact information for anyone who might like to voice an opinion about this.
United States Senate
522 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
(202) 224-3004
(202) 224-2354 FAX - fofusion, on 10/12/2007, -1/+12I'm not even an american and he annoys me.
It really does make you laugh how truly stupid politicians come to technology - they should just leave it alone they'd probably do less damage that way. - Zippo, on 10/12/2007, -2/+14@spliffy
You're surprised he doesn't have an e-mail address? If that man even knows how to turn on a computer, I'd be surprised. - Doggpound, on 10/12/2007, -0/+24The government needs to be doing less in our live not more
- rationalist, on 10/12/2007, -3/+17"doesn't look like he even has email, but here is the rest of his contact information for anyone who might like to voice an opinion about this."
Make sure you engrave your opinion in cuneiform on a stone tablet - and send a trained chimp along to translate that into grunts for the Senator.
Here's that info again for the institution they have Stevens locked up in:
United States Senate
522 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
(202) 224-3004
(202) 224-2354 FAX - ricedog, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1the Internet isn't something you can just police by making laws.. how would they define what exact IP addresses, some sort of government Gray list server that schools have to check the requested DNS info against? If it's up to the school they could break the law by interpreting the definition of what a website is differently.
i look forward to hearing about the Ted Steven's porn-storm and how its not his fault that he showed Alaska HCPorn on national tv.. 40years senator? oh dear I don't think you have that long left!! - H3LLSL337, on 10/12/2007, -0/+23I think he has an email address, if you remember the discussion, it took a week for his internet to get from his office to another because someone was clogging the pipes.
"An Internet was sent by my staff at 10 o'clock in the morning on Friday, I got it yesterday. Why? Because it got tangled up with all these things going on the Internet commercially." - xtmno3, on 10/12/2007, -3/+19Well, who can expect a man to understand web 2.0 type sites when he can't get his head around web 1.0?
Someone should inform this man that he should stick to technologies like the telegraph and the "new fangled" microwave. - PJNowak1213, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0@knightblade2oo4
That should have been a picture of Sen. Ted Stevens. - viewtiful4ever, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8Wikipedia may not be the ultimate source of information, but thats how I got through my last year of high school. All of my projects were somehow related to wiki... that senator is a meat. [Source: Wikipedia]
- Pile, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10OMG!!!
We cannot let an information source exist that isn't controlled by corporate influence!!!!
DESTROY Wiki! No information shall get to the people that isn't first mandated by a small cadre of corporate CEOs!! - Pfhreak, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7RamTech,
Every state gets two Senators, regardless of population. It's the House of Representatives where the number is determined by population, although each state is guaranteed at least one (Alaska only has one Rep, and he's a lovely asshat, too)
The problem really is that Congressional committee assignments are done by seniority, meaning a clueless hick like Stevens gets put in charge of the committee that oversees the internet just because it's a powerful committee and he's been in Congress for a hojillion years. (He's not in charge of it anymore, since the Democrats are the majority party now, but if the Republicans ever re-take the Senate, he'll go back to being in charge of it.) - kualla, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7"Perhaps its time to ban Ted Stevens from Capitol Hill..."
That is exactly why I went to the comments on this story! Now someone that is knowledgeable about this subject, please provide an answer on how we can eliminate this old crack head of a senator! - peevegrider, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0C'mon think about it. With the invention of the "internets", kids are getting information that is way more unfiltered than what they get from textbooks that are mass-produced by huge corporations who won state contracts by giving the man a reacharound. They are afraid we're getting too smart. Same thing happened to all the militant minority groups (Black Panthers, etc) decades back. The CIA just started shipping in dope to make em all drugged and submissive. He's just out for gov't interests
- bigturns, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Wait, just a minute everyone... GOT HIM...
As soon as I snap my fingers I will be channeling none other than Ted Stevens...
...SNAPPING FINGERS...
Flibidy Flew!
Internets Schminternets!
Back in my day, if you wanted porn you'd bildfold yourself, strip naked, stand in front of a mirror and twist yourself around 30 times. Then, once you were facing the mirror again, you'll pull off your blindfold (real quick like). With your eyes all blurred from the spinning and your head a dizzy mess you'd swear you were staring at none other than Heddy LaMour....
Ah, what a sight to behold! - 6cyV7dpXUrZomP3, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1***** you, Ted Stevens! Suck a *****, blow me, jack me off, eat a dick, drink my cum, lick my *****, crap in my mouth, ***** in my ass, then you can ban Wikipedia!
- franksmith, on 10/12/2007, -72/+5Little kids should not be using the Wiki for there final opinion/gospel judgment advise anyway... the Wiki is wicked cool but there is plenty of screwing around with entries that goes on... sometimes by little kids... sometimes by (wannabe) adults. Unless you are an adult that can read it and smell the BS when it is there... then the government should not be offering it up as an information source for kiddies UNLESS there is a way of efficiently putting them on notice that it is open to editing from everyone and that accuracy CANNOT be promised, suggested or guaranteed.
- acdcfanbill, on 10/12/2007, -5/+48"Little kids should not be using the Wiki for there final opinion/gospel judgment advise anyway"
What about myriad of other sites that are just as inaccurate and cite no sources? If they are using the computers for research, then the teachers should show them good research techniques and tell them how to properly use their sources. And how often is accuracy guaranteed? According to the multiple editions of text books and revisions to materials I have, it's not. - mc7winkie, on 10/12/2007, -4/+46Easy. School admins apply to have Wikipedia block the IP from editing. Some ass at my school deleted the whole wikipedia on the PS3 once and it got us banned from editing.
- pogfreak, on 10/12/2007, -27/+1good points franksmith. I believe we need the federal government to mandate what websites our kids can use to learn.
- SultanTravi, on 10/12/2007, -2/+33There are problems with Wikipedia, but that doesn't mean it's better not to have it at all. It's an incredible reference.
Most errors and problems are fixed within minutes or hours because of vigilant users, especially on the most frequented pages. This isn't a case of the government offering it as a source of information, this is a case of them banning a good source of information.
It's the teacher's job to make sure students use the evidence links in the Wikipedia entries as their reference, not text from the Wikipedia entry itself. - oceanmoon, on 10/12/2007, -4/+27"Little kids should not be using the Wiki for there final opinion..."
But, maybe little kids at least conduct their rants with accurate grammar. - chinaman1472, on 10/12/2007, -1/+59Wikipedia is a WONDERFUL tool for research. It's constantly updated with new findings and is usually accurate. Instead of going the "easy" way and banning it from a school, why don't teachers teach their students how to properly identify useful information from junk? Wikipedia isn't the final end of all other sites and sources, but it's one hell of a place to start, probably better than just typing something in Google. If you're doing research, you should be utilizing many other sites, books, and other various sources anyway. If Wikipedia says one thing and 10 other sources say another, chances are Wikipedia might be wrong. No one is perfect.
Don't believe everything you hear. Make your own judgements.
But anyway, it's targeting mostly social networks and blogs it seems, it's just Wikipedia got thrown in there. - PhilBoswell, on 10/12/2007, -1/+21"the government should not be offering it up as an information source"
The government has nothing to do with Wikipedia, unless you count getting banned for trying to fiddle their information. - moxx, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11Wait...so we should make our final judgement based out of textbooks...which...aren't biased...oh...wait...hmm...?
- judsond, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Um, who cares, he's talking about banning it. Are you saying we should ban everything that isn't a primary source suitable for citation in research? By that logic you would block, what, 99% of the web?
- appleswitch, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2"why don't teachers teach their students how to properly identify useful information from junk?"
...and maybe edit wikipedia with the new accurate information? now THAT would be something... - Mattie, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Sometimes the BS is hard to smell:
http://digg.com/tech_news/FAKE_greek_philosopher_article_stayed_in_Wikipedia_for_5_months
- acdcfanbill, on 10/12/2007, -5/+48"Little kids should not be using the Wiki for there final opinion/gospel judgment advise anyway"
- magnusdopus, on 10/12/2007, -3/+67I thought this was a good story, but upon further review, it's poor journalism. Stevens never actually said ban Wikipedia. The op-ed writer is just inferring it. The article title deliberately tries to look like a quote.
- takeda, on 10/12/2007, -2/+19I looked at the comments and it shows how many people didn't even read the article...
The title of the article is misleading. He never mentioned word "Wikipedia". All this article is saying is that proposed bill *MIGHT* ban wikipedia, because the definition they used for sites that supposed to be blocked is too vague.
Marked as inaccurate (because of the title) - Kerjo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7Guys, you're missing the real story here! The real story is in the comments below the article, where some guy believes he's still on digg.
Sure, bury for inaccuracy, but resubmit for hilarity! - noamsml, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5The wording of the real bill is even more disturbing.
- takeda, on 10/12/2007, -2/+19I looked at the comments and it shows how many people didn't even read the article...
- N0CTURN3, on 11/13/2007, -7/+80I am indignant that anyone would name wikipedia and myspace in the same breath.
- spookyttws, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3Yeah, I read the summery and thought, "What the hell does Wikipedia have to do with Myspace?"
- dtfinch, on 10/12/2007, -4/+27He didn't really mention Wikipedia
- sarah23, on 10/12/2007, -5/+4My school already banned everything... Believe me it's HORRIBLE.
- asif5th, on 10/12/2007, -4/+13Wait, who elected this man? Please don't tell me it was the voters? :|? Yeah...and Senators work for the people...right..just like they did in Rome.
- noamsml, on 10/12/2007, -9/+6The USA *is* Rome circa 2007. And like Rome, it will fall. One can only hope that when it does fall, its fall will not be marked as a time of intellectual decline but instead as one of intellectual flourishing.
- easy4lif, on 10/12/2007, -4/+4Wiki is not a good place to do all your research from but, its a good place to start in order to find info on any subject (big or small) that you way want to eventually write about.
- alternateheaven, on 10/12/2007, -4/+4... and nobody should be taking anything this man says seriously, his lack of comprehension of the internet is obvious.
- Tiak, on 10/12/2007, -6/+3Most appropriate thing ever - I'm seeing an apple iPhone add reffering to tubes.
- alexlinebrink, on 10/12/2007, -4/+5OH NO!!! Some kid might actually learn something!!! CURSE YOU DREADED TUBES!!!
- noamsml, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4But if he gets too informed, he might not vote for Ted Stevens! The horror!
- burke, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3"It's easy to characterize Stevens as little more than a buffoon."
It's funny because it's so true... - vanscott, on 10/12/2007, -3/+16How is this different than burning books?
- ADDHITMAN, on 10/12/2007, -4/+4dont worry we will realise the wrongs of what we are doing, about 300 years into the future when we are the stupid ancients in history books...
- MioTheGreat, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2Are the tubes made of a flammable material?
- FoxFaction, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7Okay, studies have been done and Wikipedia is on average more accurate than encyclopedia Britannica. He obviously doesn't know/care about these studies. I hate it when people speak of things they know nothing about.
for instance: http://news.com.com/Study+Wikipedia+as+accurate+as+Britannica/2100-1038_3-5997332.html - alexlinebrink, on 10/12/2007, -4/+5NEWSFLASH: "Senator Ted Stevens attempts to have the internet banned in public schools for fear that TUBES will one day replace under-educated middle class Americans as the primary source for K-12 education...."
- johnry07, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5The article says wikipedia MAY be banned, so it's not definite. Regardless though, wikipedia should be promoted and advertised to youth, not hidden away and blocked. It has consistantly shown how it is on par (and in a lot of cases, exceeds) other text based encyclopedias. It is a great learning tool, and free too.
I love wikipedia; i can spend hours reading articles on things i never knew about and its great because it's all objective and (mostly) unbiased. For instance, today i learned about the colossal squid. wtf? did anyone else know there were squid bigger than the giant squid?? They attack sperm whales! Amazing. Wikipedia is awesome.
here's the wiki article for those interested - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colossal_squid- dmitriyvoz, on 10/11/2007, -0/+0The author has mentioned very much a vital topic today. It seems to me that the problematics of this clause enables to reflect and draw conclusions. You can as to look sites in Russian which mention this theme: http://www.rolid.org http://www.se-ua.com
- xnacoder, on 10/12/2007, -1/+15First of all, the article title is misleading; the Senator certainly wasn't targeting Wikipedia exclusively, and it's only a possibility that Wikipedia would be included in the ban.
With that said, if the government passes a bill that bans Wikipedia in schools, it would be more than mere *****. I am in a very difficult college, and without Wikipedia, I would not have passed some of my courses. I don't know how to explain the significance of Wikipedia to my knowledge, but I'm sure many people on here understand; it has basically become part of me. If such a ban occurs, even though I am out of high school, I think I'll begin to use my "right to bear arms" :) - nubnub, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3So next we should ban text books?
- MioTheGreat, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2If and only if they underwent some kind of widespread social review. So, basically, if they are credible, absolutely. They have no place in our educational system.
- Exokil, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2Ugh, Stevens is such a damn moron. Hopefully Jon Stewart will impale him on a comedic spike for this dumb ass stunt, too.
- jtherrien, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9I don't think many of you read the article. The guy never even mentioned Wikipedia. Buried as inaccurate for the misleading headline.
- Gatesophile, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6MySpace I can understand being banned from schools. Wikipedia should NOT be banned from schools, or libraries, or anywhere. It's a valuable tool, and while no one should use it exclusively for their research (you shouldn't use one source for research in the first place), it is a good starting point.
Nothing should be blocked at libraries. Sometimes, libraries are the only places where people can access the internet at all, and it shouldn't be restricted in any form.- takeda, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Why do you even care? It's not like you go to library...
If you would use the library you would understand TFA and see that the bill was about blocking sites like My Space, but because it has too vague definition it MIGHT also apply to wikipedia. - Gatesophile, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I did RTFA but you see, I was just stating my opinion on what the submitter brought up.
Oh, and I love the library.
- takeda, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Why do you even care? It's not like you go to library...
- Landus, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4This guy needs to DIAF.
If Alaska re-elects him come election time, I think it's time to kick Alaska out of the U.S.- Gatesophile, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5We'd try to sell Alaska to Canada. :D
- Swanston, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3Yes, MySpace and social networking sites, need to be banned, those sites are so lame and pointless.
Wikipedia, is a whole other story, it should not be banned, however kids should be made aware some of the negatives of Wikipedia. - chubbybubba, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5Truth is Ted and others like him are motivated by fear... they fear the young... As technology continues to grow in massive leaps... it becomes the young that benefit... and the old are left behind. and this gap between the two will continue to widen. Where 20 years ago information and experience came hand in hand... (we were always taught that there was so much we could learn from our elders)... The continued advancement of social networking and combined repositories of knowledge (wikis) allow information to flow freely and it is the young that know how to grab it floating in the infosphere... The aged and those left behind by technology do have much to fear... their only recourse is in censorship and forced moral intrusion to slow their weakening foothold... in a world that is rapidly changing... where Information is free to take and free to give... welcome to our world Ted.
- hexydes, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I know you think that you have a unique idea about the older generation getting passed by and such, but keep in mind, our generation is certainly not the first to progress due to advances in society, and I'd be willing to bet a large amount of money that we will not be the last. Additionally, not all older folks are as inept as you seem to think they are. My wife's grandfather was talking to me about how he does not want to upgrade to Windows Vista, and is going to try installing Linux this weekend (he is 82 years old). Conversely, I talk to many people from my generation (20-30 years old) that are very clueless about technology, much more so than my wife's grandfather.
Sorry to pick at your point, but I don't like how the inheritors of the future always seem to think that they are in control of some brave new world that no generation but theirs is capable of handling. The world has been around for a long time, and a lot of stuff has happened over the course of history. You aren't so unique as you think you might be. - shellacked, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I certainly agree that many elderly don't understand technology, and people often fear that which they don't understand.
But to claim that can't learn from the wisdom of elders because of wikis, well, I'd chalk that comment up to the ignorance of youth.
Information != Wisdom
Some day you'll understand
- hexydes, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I know you think that you have a unique idea about the older generation getting passed by and such, but keep in mind, our generation is certainly not the first to progress due to advances in society, and I'd be willing to bet a large amount of money that we will not be the last. Additionally, not all older folks are as inept as you seem to think they are. My wife's grandfather was talking to me about how he does not want to upgrade to Windows Vista, and is going to try installing Linux this weekend (he is 82 years old). Conversely, I talk to many people from my generation (20-30 years old) that are very clueless about technology, much more so than my wife's grandfather.
- spyd3rweb, on 10/12/2007, -5/+3unconstitutional... period, end of discussion, move along.
- broomett, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Please exaplin how it is unconstitutional.
Before you attempt to, it is not. - xnacoder, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Censorship of press is the first thing that comes into mind... but since it is in schools only that it is being banned, it is very unclear. The Supreme Court has struck down far more unimportant things as unconstitutional.
- hexydes, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I'm pretty sure this would not be unconstitutional. Misguided and unnecessary are a few terms that might be applicable depending on how the situation plays out, but certainly not unconstitutional.
- broomett, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Please exaplin how it is unconstitutional.
- hagridore, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2I wish Alaska would just break off and float away. How the hell can they keep reelecting this ass?
- tybris, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2Because it's inhabited by the same conservative, christian idiots as all the other states?
- Cyphase, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2First of all, it's against the First Amendment for the government to ban any website. Second, it's just plain wrong. And third, let's get rid of government schools and libraries, and this won't be a problem.
- dgolding, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3This would never pass constitutional muster. That being said, wikipedia is a horrible research tool and a college recently banned it from being used in citations. I am so tempted to do the same in my classes. Its great for general knowledge stuff, but once into anything specialized, it is incredibly easy to manipulate. Oh yeah, Ted Stevens is an idiot.
- xnacoder, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4As a computer scientist/engineer, I don't use it for research papers, I use it for actual facts that I use to write programs/solve problems. Hell, I used it yesterday to answer some questions I had about debugging assembly code for a class assignment.
I think people are just afraid of it; since I'm not restricted by that whole "not only do your references have to be cited, but they also have to not be from the internet" thing, it is INCREDIBLY useful to me. I use it near daily, along with Mathworld, as a resource for Matrix algebra which I use in game programming, and Bayesian math, which I use in my robotics course.
I feel sorry for people who are still taking English classes and have resources like Wikipedia, that they will no doubt use extensively once they are in "real life," banned from use.
- xnacoder, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4As a computer scientist/engineer, I don't use it for research papers, I use it for actual facts that I use to write programs/solve problems. Hell, I used it yesterday to answer some questions I had about debugging assembly code for a class assignment.
- dohidied, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6I admit that Wikipedia shouldn't be used as a source in papers, but it's a great resource if you need to check something quickly. It's no less accurate than the internet as a whole, and it's nice to have all of the information in one spot.
- jcm267, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3I can see an argument that Wikipedia isn't to be considered a credible source. Even though there have been articles pointing out that Wikipedia had less errors in certain subjects, it is easy to pull something from there that is 100% false. Having said that, what is this idiot smoking? I can see restricting use as a DEFINITIVE SOURCE (and how is that a federal matter?) in schools, but access in schools and libraries must be available. I find wikipedia to be among the best things the Internet has brought to us..
- broomett, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I don't care about Wikipedia,but he is absolutely RIGHT about social networking sites. People are not paying taxs so kids can spend their time at school on thiese sites.
And anyone who thinks they SHOULD be allowed to view things like that better NEVER blame the parents for whenever a kid gets into trouble while on MySpace. Too many ***** idiits on Digg say "Good parents would watch what their kids do" as if a parent could do that 24/7. Well, if they are available in school, a parent CAN'T monitor. so you can't blame them. And no, a teacher can't be everywhere either. - catchphrase, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Wikipedia is not a completely reliable source for any information. It may be a good place to start research but it shouldn't be accepted without question. Anyone can put erroneous information on Wikipedia and make it sound true. Wikipedia is a not a reliable source for the truth.
Catch- Travelsonic, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1You can get false information in there, but I believe there are certain guards, that by all means should be extended and maximized in use, to revert in case of vandalizm and false information. The statement is partly true, but the rest IMO is the same FUD that is causing the controversy in the first place.
- thewes, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Turning in a paper that uses wikipedia as a source is a good way to get laughed at by a professor. Although, I highly suggest it for casual reading
- pebble170, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4In my sixth form (UK), we an hand in projects that site Wikipedia as long as we site other sources that back up this knowledge too. I don't see the problem with that. A lot of what is on Wikipedia can be backed up by books and even other websites; it's just an easier way to get the information you need.
- djtripp, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4If you can read through the legalese, it doesn't single out Wikipedia. In fact it doesn't single out any website. The headline is very misleading. But then again, that's what I would expect when it comes to politics on the internet.
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=s110-49 - Azselendor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6I agree the wikipedia shouldn't be used as a source, but you know, most articles have links to authoritative sources. However, creeps like Ted Stevens need to either step down for the sake of nation and progress or grow the hell up and leave the 1850's amish/quaker life behind.
I also, whole heartily agree with chubbybubba, Ted Stevens fears the youth of today -- regardless of political background. He sees us with access and the ability to rapidly manipulate and coordinate with others on a medium he can't comprehend. It's like a caveman trying to grasp the concept of indoor plumbing. - campstriker, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2what a bitch! I [heart] Wikipedia no matter where I am! I use it everywhere and everyday, so what it could get vandalized. There are always a bunch of nerds with articles on their watch lists keeping track of articles! This is outrages!
- broomett, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2Preston...seriously...tell me something...who do you think looks bad from this submission of your now that everyone knows you compeltely made the title and description up?
Ted Stevens does not look bad from this submission. YOU do.
Because of this, no one will ever take any submission you make seriously ever again. You destroyed your credibility.
Hope the front page was worth it. It will get buried soon enough. - unruled, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1to not allow projects to be handed in when in the appendix wiki sources are mentioned: OK, I assume thats the same everywhere
but thats no reason to ban wiki..... - Eleo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1The article states that depending on the interpretation, Wikipedia could be banned. The title of this submission and article is misleading.
- baxtermaddux, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2this asshat represents everything that is wrong with the world
- atbnet, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I think the Senate banned people with brains from being elected.
God damn these people are ***** stupid.
Old ass rich people trying run the ***** world they haven't been apart of their entire ***** lives. - dipdog21, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Could somebody please hijack his site and place a big dildo on the front page!
- acff, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5next on hit list:
books, pencils, paper - moshthepitt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2This guy is stupid.
- ylocav, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7`(II) protects against access to a commercial social networking website or chat room unless used for an educational purpose with adult supervision;
...
`(J) COMMERCIAL SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITES; CHAT ROOMS- Within 120 days after the date of enactment of the Deleting Online Predators Act of 2006, the Commission shall by rule define the terms `social networking website' and `chat room' for purposes of this subsection. In determining the definition of a social networking website, the Commission shall take into consideration the extent to which a website--
`(i) is offered by a commercial entity;
`(ii) permits registered users to create an on-line profile that includes detailed personal information;
`(iii) permits registered users to create an on-line journal and share such a journal with other users;
`(iv) elicits highly-personalized information from users; and
`(v) enables communication among users.'.
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=s110-49
You'd have to have a pretty wide view of any of this to include wikipedia, imo. Myspace, sure.
But I still think Ted Stevens is a moron. - viviwanu, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3What, Is the old geyser still alive?!! They should have his holes glued shut and tubes tied and lock him up in a retirement home for the good of humanity.
- ebola, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Anyone who uses wikipedia information as a credible information source about stuff other than the most generic stuff is nuts. This one time I tend to agree with the senator.
- Jugalator, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1OK, ignoring that he didn't mention Wikipedia, why should it be... banned? Then you won't even be able to find and use Wikipedia's sources that way. Just because using the site itself shouldn't be allowed, I can still see reasons to allow it on school. Many articles there serve as excellent guides for content besides jumbled Google searches.
- skizorz, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Our local school district tried to ban wiki, but they only banned www.wikipedia.com. They mananged to forget en.wikipedia.com or whatever the english thing is.
- deadhobo, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Ours actually blocked Wikipedia entirely; the only way around is to use http://www.answers.com to pull up your results.
The best part is that it's blocked for "Research". Nice failure IT guys...
- deadhobo, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Ours actually blocked Wikipedia entirely; the only way around is to use http://www.answers.com to pull up your results.
- pebble170, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2To be fair to the guy (stupid as he may be...), a lot of school have already banned sites like MySpace. My sixth form (in the UK) has, as well as other networking sites, because they are worried that students will waste their time on them...
Wikipedia on the other hand, whilst it may not always be reliable, can be useful. I don't really see the problem with that being accessed in school. - kilps, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I find this funny ... my school actually promotes using wikipedia - our vice principle even referenced it in a chapel sermon ...
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