National Broadband Network and Me

One of the biggest things that Australian’s have been talking about for the past several years is the concept of the Nation Broadband Network. The NBN is a government initiative and both Labor and Liberal governments have plans regarding the establishment of the NBN.

However no one really cares about why LNP’s NBN plan is better than ALP because deep down they are much the same. The big question everyone has been asking is ‘when will we get it?’ Many households are already ready to go when the NBN becomes into action, however plenty more areas still need construction before the plan even rolls out. My home for example is ‘coming to my place; however construction hasn’t commenced in [my] area as yet (NBN, 2013). This all being said the NBN won’t go live until the 30^th of June 2015 according to the NBN website.

The major asset about the NBN for both business and personal use is the speeds. The NBN Co website claims that download speeds can be up to 100Mbps and an upload speed of 40Mbps, which is fast for us Australians. However we have to take into account that everyone on a street will be attached to the same fibre cable as you so these speeds may not be any better than current ADSL speeds come the day of rollout. But time will tell…

Once again friends, until next time….

References 

Nbnco.com.au. 2013. NBN Co - National Broadband Network - Australia | NBN for home. [online] Available at: http://www.nbnco.com.au/nbn-for-home.html [Accessed: 30 Aug 2013].

Liberal Party of Australia. 2012. Fast Broadband and an Affordable NBN. [online] Available at: http://www.liberal.org.au/fast-broadband-and-affordable-nbn?gclid=CLbt1K3cpLkCFYodpQodjnoA8w [Accessed: 30 Aug 2013].

 

Vasta for Bonner

Another task for this week is to find out more about my local member of parliament. Whilst it is safe to say most people my age don’t know whom their local MP is, or what electorate they actually belong to, I can say with pride I do. I live in the electorate of Bonner, and the current MP is Ross Vasta of the LNP. It may be somewhat ironic that I am usually either apathetic or cynical on most issues of today but politics is something that I seem to show some emotion towards. Mr Vasta is actually a Griffith University graduate (same university as myself). However I won’t bore you with the details of my local MP. The goal of my task was actually to find the last speech given by Mr Vasta in parliament. Mr Vasta gave a speech in parliament on the 30th of May 2013 in regards to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). Another part of this week’s task was to contact said MP and give them my thoughts on the speech. Using Facebook I wrote a message to his official Facebook page. The message contained the following. “Mr Vasta, This message may appear dated but it is in regards to the speech you delivered in parliament in May regarding the NDIS. The speech given was executed brilliantly and was also quite informative not to mention influential. Best of luck with the rest of your campaign. Regards, Tom” It may seem like I am a little bias in the message, I cannot deny that. In my opinion Mr Vasta has done great for the Bonner electorate and if re-elected will only continue to do so. Until next time friends. References Rossvasta.com.au. 1999. National Disability Insurance Scheme Speech in Parliament-Video > Ross Vasta MP, Federal Member for Bonner. [online] Available at: http://www.rossvasta.com.au/Media/Speeches/SpeechesinParliament/tabid/64/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/214/National-Disability-Insurance-Scheme-Speech-in-Parliament-Video.aspx [Accessed: 30 Aug 2013].

Australian's, eatin' clean

For those unaware, Australia has introduced what they are calling the ‘clean feed’. This clean feed is essentially a censorship of the web. The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) can restrict what we, the Australian public, can actually view. The entire goal of the clean feed was to filter out all the no no’s of the web (i.e child pornography, sexual violence, and all the other REALLY naughty things).

However this is quite the political issue. And you can’t have a political issue without someone hating the idea. Many feel that this is a breach in civil rights. Whilst the government aim is to prevent children seeing all of the bad stuff out there on the web, this initiative will be mandatory in all homes regardless of children. Many also feel that this initiative is a breach of privacy due to the constant monitoring and tracking of internet users. These people whom are against the clean feed feel that adults have the right to choose what they read and what they don’t read, that as citizens of Australia, they are entitled to the right of information.

A question put forward to me today was what place does censorship have in democracy? The answer to this question may vary depending on who you ask, however in my opinion censorship contradicts the idea of democracy. Democracy is a concept that the public are in charge, that we choose our government. The idea of censorship is one that infringes on many of the civil rights that democracy is big on such as freedom of speech, freedom of information and freedom of choice.

There are many concerns for both sides of the argument. I for one am not overly concerned. I mean yes, we are the only democratic country to have such restrictions in place, but as I am not scouring the web for government secrets, sexual violence, and all the other bad things I feel that this is a fair deal. That being said I do believe the public have a right to information. So once again my apathy leaves me on the fence on the issue. But before I sign off I will say this: having the public being able to access any information on anything they want is not necessarily a good thing… as it could lead to total anarchy…

References
Efa.org.au. 2003. EFA Comments on the Australia Institute's Mandatory Filtering Proposal. [online] Available at: https://www.efa.org.au/Publish/ispblocking.html [Accessed: 30 Aug 2013]

Nocleanfeed.com. 2009. Learn - No Clean Feed - Stop Internet Censorship in Australia. [online] Available at: http://nocleanfeed.com/learn.html [Accessed: 30 Aug 2013].

What's Barry O-B up to today?

Another task for this week was to see what Barack Obama was up to (I kid you not).

I can tell you, that according to his twitter he is enjoying watching whatever NBA game was playing on the 29^th of Aug in the US. I was also to send the president a message asking for his views on internet freedom… obviously I couldn’t do this in person, but with the help of SOCIAL MEDIA I was able to send him a tweet.

 

@BarackObama what's your view on freedom on the internet? Do you feel it's important?

— Tom (@TomH_JBaus) August 30, 2013

E-Petition!

The end is nigh... the final tasks...

One of the many tasks for this weeks class is to sign an e-petition. As I'm apathetic on most issues today it was tough to find an issue that I felt strongly enough to give my good name to.... However fear not, I still found something. You'll find the link to the e-petition and description below...



TO: The Honourable the Speaker and Members of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland

Queensland citizens draws to the attention of the House to the unnecessary releasing of helium balloons in Queensland. Balloons are a common source of litter found in waterways.  The balloons can cause serious harm to marine and wildlife, which is why they are banned in New South Wales.

Your petitioners, therefore, request the House to ban the release of helium balloons in Queensland, with an appropriate penalty for deliberately doing so.

http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/work-of-assembly/petitions/e-petitions

References 

Parliament.qld.gov.au. 2013. Current e-petitions - Queensland Parliament. [online] Available at: http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/work-of-assembly/petitions/e-petitions [Accessed: 30 Aug 2013]

You VS Social Media

I’m a bit late for my usual weekly wit and charm, and for that I apologize. This week is quick and simple one, and best of all it involves you! Yes you reading this! Do you feel special? You should.

This week I have created a survey regarding my most favourite thing in the world, social media. So please, have a looksy, take the survey, and I will post the overall results of the survey ASAP.

Until next time friends….

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NTN6PCF

^^ That's the survey, why not take it now while you're still here!

Have you heard about this new thing called 'the internet'?!