Cambodia bans 3G phones for fear of porn
Note to self: don't send MMS porn to heads of state or their spouses. Not ever. Unfortunately for tech-savvy Cambodians, someone already ruined their fun when Prime Minister Hun Sen's wife and her friends complained that their phones were suddenly rife with the XXX stuff. Never one to put technology before morality, the Southeast Asian nation swiftly banned its freshly-launched 3G network, because "We can wait 10 more years until we have managed to improve morality in society," so sez the boss. Yikes! If being forced into 1xRTT and EDGE purgatory for the next 10 years isn't a good reason to overthrow the government, we don't know what is.
Filed under: Culture
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
MacroEQ @ May 26th 2006 1:29PM
If they don't want porn on their phones then why not filter the content instead of banning the technology.
It seems to me that porn was an excuse to get the technology banned. It's their loss.
Brian @ May 26th 2006 1:58PM
Or it's an excuse to get rid of porn. In some ways I applaud them. I know it's a foreign idea in America, but perhaps unbridled freedom doesn't quite lead where we thought it would (how many men are addicted to pr0n in the US... Fun Fact: porn is as addicting or more than cocaine.).
Technology isn't morally neutral, my friends. Though, it does seem that a filter would do the trick and not lead to blackmarket cell phones.
Jason @ May 26th 2006 3:05PM
Cambodia - taking the "3" out of third world.
JohnX @ May 26th 2006 3:59PM
#2 Brian,
"Fun Fact: porn is as addicting or more than cocaine"
Would you care to cite an independent, peer reviewed source?
"Technology isn't morally neutral, my friends."
I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean by that. Do you mean that technology reflects the morality of those who create it? Or do you mean that technology in and of itself has morals? At least in my mind technology is a tool, like a hammer: You can use a hammer to hit someone in the head or pound nails into wood. The hammer, being morally neutral, doesn't have a say about its use.
I'm honestly not trying to start a flame here. I'm interested in hearing your response.
-JohnX
Hurricane @ May 26th 2006 4:43PM
#2, I've done both and am not addicted to either. :-)
Am I still a mercenary if I fight only for porn?
Razib Ahmed @ May 26th 2006 6:50PM
It is nice to see that at last some Asian news is covered in this blog. Well, the definition of morality is different in many Asian countries and here porn is not so free like the west. You may like it or not like it but that is how Asia is for the time being.
On the other hand, major companies like Nokia, LG and samsung are trying to make India as a mobile phone manufacturing hub (http://www.southasiabiz.com/2006/05/made_in_india_phone_sets_to_wi.html) alongwith CHina. I think that many workers in Europe and USA will get worried about the future of their jobs by this news.
Kei @ May 26th 2006 7:55PM
I support it what they did.
Some will argue that it's unfair, those are the ones that want porn :P
Until there is technology that can decipher male or female genitalia and delete the video automatically from the phone, bluetooth and mms porn will only increase.
Brian @ May 26th 2006 8:10PM
#5, JohnX
-It's nice to see there are still non-"flamers" out there. Thanks for the respect
Porn = Cocaine
I just got done searching for about 2 hours for an article and came up empty. Looks like this will have to move from the Fun Fact to Analogy department. However, this analogy has been made my many professors/PhD's/sex therapists. Actually, WebMD has a pretty unbiased aticle on porn addiction (http://www.webmd.com/content/Article/110/109826.htm?pagenumber=1). I have no doubt about the validity of this analogy. Pornography is very addictive. I know from my own experiences and from others that I've talked to, as well as knowing something of the psychology of addictions, especially such basilar functions as sex & food. But sorry, no peer-reviewed journal article (not that truth requires an article write-up, but still...)
Technology = Morality
My natural inclination (from a western/american point of view) is to believe what you believe: a hammer doesn't choose what it does, we do; thus we are moral, not the hammer. However, I've listened to & read articles from those who have gone to parts of the world where our view on life isn't operational (e.g. most of Africa). How we view technology is fundamentally different than how others do. Quick example: some "underdeveloped" nations refuse to stop using oxen-drawn plowers in exchange for tractors because of tradition, because their fathers did it this way. They see our (note that I said 'our') technology as contradictory to their way of life. We see a problem, and want to fix it. It's objective to us. This isn't always the case with other cultures/beliefs. (...I just realized that this is getting long :) sorry about that). Short of it is: we see the world differently, and because of that the technology that we develop is reflective not only of the nature of science but of who we are as a people as well.
-Brian
xVJ @ May 27th 2006 5:04AM
The original article doesn't say, but I'm not really following the link between pornographic images and 3G data services, unless Cambodia's 2G network doesn't have GPRS or EDGE capabilities. However, and in any-case, the 3G part is still a bit of a red herring, since it's the data capabilities that are at issue. Also, it wouldn't surprise me to find out that the entire porn aspect was a ruse to eliminate a very class-centric service, as #2 said. Though, I don't think it's really so much of a loss.
Eh, Brian, sorry bud, you're wrong. Porn =/= Cocaine. Just because other "experts" have championed the point of view that those two are equal doesn't make the argument hold water any better. And yes, technology is morality neutral, regardless of whatever cultural biases it may hold.
#7, I think your warning is about 5 years too late... *smile*
Brian @ May 27th 2006 10:38AM
#10 xVJ - Putting quotations around the word 'expert' doesn't make your view any more valid. By your own standards, your view doesn't "hold water" either. But this isn't about the research, double-blide studies, p-values, etc. Our moms gave us good advice without doing any research. Porn is wildly addicting, just as food is to some. We don't need research to see that porn CAN BE horribly destructive (the EXTENT of destruction would require research).
And concerning the 'technology = morality', you're still thinking like a westerner. I'm not going to argue because we have lives and I have an exam on Monday :) And besides, I still agree with you; I think in the same manner. But just because we think that we're right, doesn't mean we are.
Countries like Cambodia aren't going to lose much in such a ban, like you said. I'm sure they have other issues to deal with that are more urgent (clean water, consistent electricity, etc.). I was just impressed that a country was on record saying they want to "improve morality in society."
Julia @ May 28th 2006 4:41PM
> Unfortunately for tech-savvy Cambodians, someone already
> ruined their fun when Prime Minister Hun Sen's wife and
> her friends complained that their phones were suddenly
> rife with the XXX stuff.
Heck, none of my friends ever sent porn to _my_ cell phone.
If they feel offended, they should not hang out with "friends" sending porn to other people's cell phones.
Are we talking about the legitimation of double moral standards for some chinless wonder upper-class drama queens because they get laid by politicians?
The real disgusting thing is that these people just have some of their slaves order some more slaves when they want their (porn) entertainment. But nobody is supposed to take them their money away because it would stop them from doing crap, right?
Mark @ May 29th 2006 10:06AM
Brian, please provide me a complete list of everything that's addictive and destructive. I will do my best to propose that we enact laws to ban all of them.