(A little late for that, no? --Declan) ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > >http://dailynews.yahoo.com/htx/nm/20020122/wr/pope_internet_dc_1.html >Tuesday January 22 10:36 AM ET >Pope Says Internet 'Wonderful' but Needs Regulating > >By Crispian Balmer > >VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Internet caters to the best and worst of >human nature and needs regulation to stop depravity flooding cyberspace, >Pope John Paul said Tuesday. > >The 81-year old Pontiff, who last year sent his first message over the >Internet, praised it as a ``wonderful instrument'' that should be used to >spread the word of God and encourage global peace. > >However, he warned that while it offered access to immense knowledge, the >Internet did not necessarily provide wisdom and could easily be perverted >to demean human dignity. > >``Despite its enormous potential for good, some of the degrading and >damaging ways the Internet can be used are already obvious to all,'' the >Pope said in a message prepared for World Communications Day. > >``Public authorities surely have a responsibility to guarantee that this >marvelous instrument serves the common good and does not become a source >of harm,'' he added. >Although the Pope does not have an e-mail address, the Vatican has an >active Web site (www.vatican.va) and the Church is reportedly searching >for a patron saint of Internet users. ><snip> >``The Internet offers extensive knowledge, but it does not teach values >and when values are disregarded, our very humanity is demeaned,'' he said, >adding that the system focused people's attention on an ``almost unending >flood of information.'' (...) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Events: Congreso Nacional de Periodismo Digital in Huesca, Spain from Jan. 17-18 (http://www.congresoperiodismo.com) and the Second International Conference on Web-Management in Diplomacy in Malta from Feb. 1-3. (http://www.diplomacy.edu/Web/conference2/) -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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