The juicy, overblown press coverage of the possible predators lurking in MySpace, Facebook and other social networking sites has had one clear consequence: The House of Representatives yesterday passed by a 410-15 vote a bill that is intended to restrict access to social networking sites in schools and libraries.
The Deleting Online Predators Act is part of a new Republican poll-driven legislative program, which aims to tap into suburban voters’ biggest concerns and then, well, pass legislation that panders to them.
As CNET’s Declan McCullagh points out, however, the overly broad language of the bill could sweep in all kinds of sites into the restrictions.
The zeal to capitalize on voter sentiment in this crucial mid-term election season is reflected in the apparent rush to get the bill to the floor. It was supposedly rewritten Wednesday night without the benefit of committee approval.
At least one Member calls it like it is
“So now we are on the floor with a piece of legislation poorly thought out, with an abundance of surprises, which carries with it that curious smell of partisanship and panic, but which is not going to address the problems,” said Rep. John Dingell, a Michigan Democrat. “This is a piece of legislation which is going to be notorious for its ineffectiveness and, of course, for its political benefits to some of the members hereabout.”
Cynthia Brumfield at 10:07 AM|Comments(0)
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