School Website Blocker

[Dragonbreathp9d]

has blocked many liberal/democratic websites. algore.org, liberaloasis, amung many other democrat websites have been blocked using the Lightspeed program. However, no republican sites that I have tried have been blocked thus far. I am a high school senior at Billy C. Ryan High School, a part of the Denton Independent School District in North Texas. www.dentonisd.org is the web address.

[expatriot]

1. Very interesting. What is the name of the software that is blocking it?

It usually says the name of the filter/blocker when you go onto a blocked page. Is there a place on the block page to write to the network admin to unblock certain pages or to ask why certain sites are blocked?

On edit: Have you made anyone of "authority" (i.e. teacher, librarian, administrator) aware of this yet?

[Tempest]

2. File a grievance with the school district

If nothing else, they'll start blocking the rightwing web sites.

[LittleOne]

3. Have you asked them why these sites are blocked?

I would think if you had to do a report that was focussed on the goverment you should have access to both Rep and Dem sites.

BTW: Why aren't you at school today? :)

[expatriot]

5. They are on Winter Break. on edit: no they are not.

http://www.dentonisd.org/dentonisd/icalSW/calendar.asp?cal=em


on edit: they were on winter break 1/1-1/2. the kid must be either at school (DU not blocked? can't be THAT bad.) or home schooling himself.

[zbdent]

4. Notify the ACLU

on it . . .

And start calling in Air America, Michael Moore, etc. . . .

[havocmom]

6. Big Welcome to DU, Dragonbreathp9d! Gonna look forward to your posts

As to the inconsistencies in filter application you noted, keep working on it. Get your data and consider going public with the information you gather. Anyway to get printable evidence of what is blocked and what is not?

Get an adviser you trust (not necessarily from the school staff, consider local press if there is anyone there not drinking Kool Aide) and explore how to expose this blatant bias.

Keep in touch with us all here about your progress.

Dandy fine catch you made there! :thumbsup: Looking forward to all the good things you are likely to bring to our little community here at DU!

[Dragonbreathp9d]

7. Strangely enough

DU is not blocked, yet. I was in my BCIS class (a blow off tech credit). The name of the software is Lightspeed. I will try to get evidence, and I'll talk to my favorite teacher (she's a liberal in charge of Amnesty International there), I have brought up things with teachers before, but as far as communication between students and administrators.... pretty much unless you're in trouble or a parent you don't get the time of day.... plus I am kinda already on their blacklist for sending an email with grievances against our principle (they actually had me followed in school to see who I associated with for a few months!). But anyways, I figured you guys would find this as interesting as I have, I guess I wouldn't have a problem with them blocking liberal sites as long as the righties' sites were blocked as well. If anyone has any ideas of how to show that this is happening (say here or elsewhere on the net) I'm all ears. Thanks for your concern and support!

p.s. www.lightspeedsystems.com/Contentfiltering.asp is the software's web address

[elizm]

8. I'm on a public school server....

...Seems very odd that DU isn't blocked, as message boards was one of the first things they blocked on ours.

[displacedtexan]

9. Well, it's Denton.

Don't you still have to drive across the county line to buy a damned beer?

I knew kids at the university, and I always had to bring beer from Ft. Worth.
They would ice it down in their dorm bathtubs.

[Dragonbreathp9d]

10. No

you just have to exit the city, there is a liquor store near me.

[FreedomAngel82]

11. Ugh

Disgusting. So I'm sure someone there could go to FR and post hate speech but not come to DU and post. :eyes: That's fair and balanced.

[Dragonbreathp9d]

12. UPDATE: Al Gore's site now accessable

although it wasn't last week. Continuing to look, votetoimpeach.com is blocked.

Access to the site votetoimpeach.org is being denied because it is currently listed in the -spam- category which is being blocked according to local network access policies.

However moveon.org has been unblocked.

liberaloasis is still blocked

while other sites have become unblocked

I'll keep you updated