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DashArmy · #1 January 28, 2011, 05:38:19 PM

This information will blow your mind.

That being said, do you think it is possible to happen to other contries, say the U.S. and U.K? I would. The idea of a big, red button hidden behind tight security that could kill the entire internet with one dramatic press is moderately disturbing to most people. It seems easier with Egypt more then the U.S, comparing the number of internet providers. But who knows? It could be only a matter of time.

Discuss.

Holo-Chan · #2 January 28, 2011, 05:41:01 PM

I don't think it will happen in the US, but that does worry me slightly now.

The Tropius of Tropiuses · #3 January 28, 2011, 05:55:50 PM

I heard this in Tech, it's amazing.
But, here's something people keep forgetting about- it's literally IMPOSSIBLE to shut down the internet. My Tech teacher said that the Internet was orginally going to be used for keeping in contact with people if a tradgey or nuclear war happened. The internet was made NOT to be shut down, so it's really impossible.

FreezeWarp · #4 January 28, 2011, 06:38:51 PM

People read Yahoo news?

Eh, if you actually care about this sorta thing I strongly recommend this article: http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/n...e-internet.ars

Because U.S. traffic goes through many different cities, its almost impossible in the 'States. Most of Europe's traffic goes through the capital, hover, so it'd be much easier there.

Luxray13579 · #5 January 28, 2011, 09:02:23 PM

That's actually really scary if you think about it. If the Internet was totally shut down think of how many people would go into deep withdrawals and depression (yeah I'm talking about those Facebook/Farmville lovers).

Fubab_107 · #6 January 28, 2011, 09:37:49 PM

All I know is without the Internet... I'm screwed because I'd just be incredibly bored. As for how they cut it. I think it has to do with a switch somewhere in the govonment building.

The Spirit of Time · #7 January 28, 2011, 11:43:13 PM

That happened in Egypt due to political issues. I doubt it would be used in Europe or U.S. However, if for some reason the governments found the internet dangerous, then they would easily do it. But shutting down the whole net is miserable, and what happened in Egypt is scary since all mobile phones and telephones were shut down as well. They closed every method of communication! To me, that's crazy.

Shadow · #8 January 29, 2011, 05:06:26 AM

Due to the huge number of internet providers in the U.S, it is extremely difficult for the government to shut down the internet completely. However, that being said, it is the government we're talking about over here, so the idea is not entirely out of question. It does seem highly unlikely, though.

By the way, I agree with what The Tropius of Tropius said. Just today, I received an email which explains a way to 'unblock' the internet in Egypt. I don't know exactly if it works (although it does seem logical), but it just goes on to say that no matter what happens, people will still find methods to bypass what is imposed on them.

JC · #9 January 29, 2011, 06:09:53 AM

/going back onto the threads topic.

It's crazy that this is actually caused by a political war, really it isn't fair to the Egyptians that doesn't want to be involved.

FreezeWarp · #10 January 29, 2011, 09:08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shadow

Due to the huge number of internet providers in the U.S, it is extremely difficult for the government to shut down the internet completely. However, that being said, it is the government we're talking about over here, so the idea is not entirely out of question. It does seem highly unlikely, though.

Not quite - the Internet is a very complex, very hard thing to take down. Be it an urban legend or not, there was at least some intention for it to work post-Nuclear Holocaust. Within the United States, whose geographical footprint and shear number of users online makes it the #1 location of Internet traffic, no government agency could take it down within a day (though they could in theory get it down in under a month should they really want to).

Shadow · #11 January 30, 2011, 07:21:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreezeWarp

Not quite - the Internet is a very complex, very hard thing to take down. Be it an urban legend or not, there was at least some intention for it to work post-Nuclear Holocaust. Within the United States, whose geographical footprint and shear number of users online makes it the #1 location of Internet traffic, no government agency could take it down within a day (though they could in theory get it down in under a month should they really want to).

Exactly. If the government wants something to be done, then it will eventually happen. However, I still believe that banning the internet in the whole U.S is very unlikely to take place; Egypt is a much smaller country than the U.S, so a protest in the former is surely more unified. I mean, what are the chances of most citizens in the U.S expressing rebellion against the government? That might probably happen in a state or two, under which the government can easily influence the internet operators to shut the internet down (if it's a really tough case). Otherwise, I agree with you; it will take a long time for the government to establish a unanimous blackout in almost every place in the U.S

LucarioMario · #12 February 4, 2011, 06:15:43 PM

That would scary thinking the fact that would be like having, I don't know, 60%-80% of everyone's lives taken away from them if the government could just pull the internet cord out like that, considering how widely the internet is used nowadays. 030 But, as everyone else pretty much said, the U.S. government would have to pull lots of cords for this to happen in the U.S.