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Is 4chan the perfect Pirate Bay poster child to justify wider UK site-blocking?

(torrentfreak.com)
361 points gloxkiqcza | 3 comments | 24 Aug 25 16:30 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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numpy-thagoras ◴[25 Aug 25 16:57 UTC] No.45015974[source]▶
This is the first time in a long time on Hacker News that I've not seen universal disapproval to this measure. People are actually arguing for it, even as a devil's advocate? What the UK has been doing is wrong, it is disenfranchising and disempowering people.

The UK is not a democratic or even liberty-focused state anymore. It's always been ruled by a crowd of people who went to privately-funded schools that cost a fortune. Half the government's politicians and staffers can trace their relations back to the same historical personage.

They aren't afraid for their kids with these laws. They're afraid that this ossified, stunted system of power that's been built over 800 years will break, and they will be out of a job with pitchfork-wielding crowds chasing them out of London.

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1. ang_cire ◴[25 Aug 25 18:23 UTC] No.45017113[source]▶
Clearly showcasing that the UK chose their target wisely. Use a disliked entity as the way in the door, and people will argue for it without realizing it's a trojan horse.
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2. account42 ◴[26 Aug 25 08:22 UTC] No.45023777[source]▶
But "think about the children" has always been one of the tactics used to push this kind of legislation, along with "terrorism" and variants of the two. That doesn't explain why HN is now more willing to believe the ruse.
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3. ang_cire ◴[26 Aug 25 08:51 UTC] No.45023998[source]▶
Because this isn't just a "think of the children" narrative, it's also a "don't you know 4chan has lots of bad people who you personally dislike" narrative.

I would surmise that while 90%+ of guys are porn users, a nearly negligible percent are current or former channers, and most only associate chan sites with fringe groups that took them over.