TED Community » Tiago Luz

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• A reply on Conversation: Can Internet censorship of any particular content be justified under certain circumstances? Explain.

  Aug 5 2011: I agrre completely, Anthony.
  
  What I find disgusting is that not even the superiors are responsible for their wrong doings. At least, not in a world where classified material is the rule, with public "sensible" information being the exception.
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  A reply on Conversation: Can Internet censorship of any particular content be justified under certain circumstances? Explain.

  Aug 5 2011: Debi, what if governments started referring to other nations in internal "classified" material with the same protocol they do when discussing directly with another nation? I think there wouldn't be any need to have classified material if such happened.
  
  I think classified material is just something that shouts "We lie!" "We" being the government, and the receivers of such lies being their own people and other nations.
  
  It's nothing more than saying lies and deceit are part of the political game, and we not only allow it, we enforce it.
  
  I prefer to believe in a world of true and seriousness.

• A comment on Conversation: Can Internet censorship of any particular content be justified under certain circumstances? Explain.

  Aug 5 2011: I think something needs to be brought in this discussion: I've always admired the internet for its capacity to "self-regulate".
  
  Again, the example of child pornography fits here. Of course it can be found online, and it will always be able to find it. But in my opinion, child pornographers stay in the "shadowy alleys" of the internet not only because of the fear for "real life" punishment, but also because the internet community doesn't see it as an acceptable practice.
  
  So is there really any point in putting a lot of effort to stop the spread of child pornography online? What I mean is I don't think it has any real effect. A child abuser or a child pornography appreciator will search for their sexual needs (and will probably find it) with or without the censorship.

• A reply on Conversation: Can Internet censorship of any particular content be justified under certain circumstances? Explain.

  Aug 5 2011: Certainly, Walid, any censorship that serves a political agenda is wrong.
  
  As I said earlier, governments should work for the people, and trying to stop the spreading of ideas amongst the population (the very political censorship you bring to debate) should be treated as a crime against humanity, in my humble opinion.

• A reply on Conversation: Can Internet censorship of any particular content be justified under certain circumstances? Explain.

  Aug 5 2011: That's an interesting description, indeed.
  
  To use the Wikileaks example, I don't really see hiding someone's name in order to preserve his/her health as censorship, although it could be seen as fitting White's concept.
  
  I think it should be considered as a distinct institution, which is much more similar to not making one's bank details available online. But I might be stretching too much qhat I call "minimum standards of privacyprotection" by thinking the same rule should apply to governmental documents.
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  A comment on Conversation: Can Internet censorship of any particular content be justified under certain circumstances? Explain.

  Aug 5 2011: I'm not sure what I think about it.
  
  I certainly don't think there is any politics-related content that should be censored, as, in my point of view, in a very simplified idea, governments should work for their people and not the other way around.
  
  What could probably be regarded as material that could be censored is related to things that would maybe be considered inappropriate globaly. But I'm not very sure there is such kind of material. Even pedophilia, which is one of the most hideous things a human being is able of doing, might be socially accepted in cultures that are different to mine.

• A reply on Conversation: Wandering Books

  Aug 2 2011: Deborah, I think this site has exactly what I had in mind!
  
  It seems to be available in a wide variety of languages as well, which was my main concern about the idea.
  
  I'll surely add this to my favorites and will give it a proper look when I have the time to do so.
  
  Thanks for the feedback!

• A reply on Conversation: Wandering Books

  Aug 2 2011: Thanks for the welcoming, Kate. I've been a long time lurker in TED, and finally decided I must use my free time to do something more productive than fooling around.
  
  My picture was taken in the day Natasha, my daughter, was born. She wasn't even an hour old then. :D
  
  Regarding the idea, this co-worker of mine and her friends do that: they exchange their books on a regular basis, which allows them to read more books spending less money. It is something very good for sharing books between regular readers, but it's not really my main concern here. I'm more interested in a way to provide people who are not readers the kick-off to the wonders of literacy.
  
  The part of writing your name and city on the book is also a good idea, but I think it doesn't give you an opportunity to see how far the book goes after you read it. It surely would be something fine to get my hands on a book and see that a lot of people with whom I have no contact (and probably never will) are actually linked to me somehow.
  
  Thanks again for the welcoming, Kate, as well as for your interest on the topic.

• A reply on Conversation: Wandering Books

  Aug 2 2011: Hello, Sharon.
  
  Here in Porto Alegre, some bus stops have been equipped with shelves symilar to that one pictured in your website. Sadly, though, I've never seen a book in one of them. I'm not sure if books aren't being placed there or if they are being picked up fastly...
  
  I think having some form of tracking the books that one has read is a valid incentive for people to participate. Something similar to the pictures which work as baits for kids to start reading, only it's something that appeals to adults.
  
  I haven't come across any of the books my co-worker and her friends have "freed", but I can surely make the writing in one of my own and release it somewhere. I'll do it as soon as possible, and promise to send you a picture of it.
  
  Thanks for your feedback, it's nice to know there are people as concerned as me about spreading the love for literacy.
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  A comment on Conversation: Is "word inflation" on praises and an excess of "great job" comments degrading to our society?

  Aug 2 2011: Your question reminded me of George Carlin. He defended exactly that this thing of not criticizing would ultimately lead to people being underachievers. Carlin commented on the fact that nowadays people don't lose in school competitions, they're the "last winners".
  
  To some extent, I agree with Carlin. Although worrying about children's self-esteem is a valid, noble concern, I think people should be prepared to know that we are not perfect, that we need to constantly seek for improvement in everything we do. We must be able to listen to negative feedback and recognize in it opportunities to enhance ourselves.
  
  Results do matter in the real life, it's not only about the effort you put into tasks.