Passing the buck!

["Photography by Gus" <gus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Please consider mandating .xxx TLD for adult sites, amounts to passing the 
buck. Parents/guardians are 
responsible for the content their children access. No one else! Adult 
webmasters do not design or create 
sites to attract or cater to minors. Adult webmasters target paying citizens 
who can commit to a finnancial 
obligation spontaneously. It is not in their interest to target minors who lack 
the ability to spend money. 
Accordingly adult webmasters should not be penalized or burdened with 
extraordinary or costly methods 
claiming to safeguard minors and/or an audience they do not cater to.

Adult webmasters take precautions to warn visitors to their domain (cyberhome) 
that they choose to 
excercise their right to free speech via nudity and/or adult content. Anyone 
offended by the content are 
asked not to visit the domain. Adult webmasters are not requiring offended 
persons visit their domain. 
Furthermore they should not have to ask anyone offended not to visit their 
cyberhome/domain. Afterall you 
do not visit the neighnbor you can't stand? Of course not. 

If anything steps should be taken to govern webmasters that do target minors. 
How many times have you 
witnessed a child in the supermarket or another retail outlet repeatedly asking 
their parent/guardian for 
some item they have in their hand? How many times has it happened to you? This 
is largely due to media 
that was targeted to reach minors via TV/Internet. I'm sure no one can say they 
have seen a minor 
repeatedly asking their parent/guardian to get them a sex toy in a retail 
outlet? Primary reason being Adult 
shops do not allow minors. Well guess what Adult internet sites do not allow 
minors either! However if a 
minor sneaks into an adult retail store who's fault is that? The store clerk 
who throws the minor out or 
the parent/guardian who has no idea where thier child are? 

I propose sites that are safe for children be compelled to rate their sites as 
such using ICRA or some 
other content advisory system sanctioned by ICANN. This will allow citizens 
concerned with this issue to 
instruct their browser not to access any sites omitting said rating and those 
approved for the same.

Another option would be to compel all sites to submit to an ICANN sanctioned 
content advisory system. 
In this scenario it would be reasonable to charge a nominal ($0.10) fee for 
said rating at the time of 
domain registration/renewal. Again those sites omitting said rating would be 
subject to filtering by 
browsers requiring the same. 

Last but not least either of these proposals return responsibility of 
safeguarding minors to the rightful 
owner, parents/guardians! This requires all concerned persons to take 
responsibility for setting limits on 
browsers their children or children in their care access, not pass the 
responsibility off to strangers!




Peace, Unity, Respect, Love (PURL)!
Gus

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