[10847] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Re: The FCC strikes the Internet (fwd)
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (James Love)
Sat Mar 12 10:53:20 1994
Date: Sat, 12 Mar 1994 08:28:05 -0500 (EST)
From: James Love <love@essential.org>
To: com-priv@psi.com
Gordon Cook has posted David Farber's comments on two amendments to HR
3636 to this list. This was my reply (with a few typos corrected) to
David. He has since replied again, suggesting that a conference might be
a better forum for some of these issues. In any event, here was my reaction.
-jamie
David, the language that you posted to Interesting-people really deals
with two separate issues. 1). the FCC would be required to accept
comments from the public on the future of democratic discourse via the
internet, and comment specifically on whether or not telephone companies
should be required at provide some type of flat rate access to the
net, not as a monopoly provider, but as one of many ways that people get
access to this network. I don't think it will be the end of the world if
this issue is debated openly, and we confront the future of the net with
a privatized NSF backbone. If you are so confident that FCC involvement
isn't a good thing, you will probably carry the day by a huge margin, and
perhaps I will agree with you. Asking of an inquiry is just asking
that this be dealt with in an open and democratic forum.
2). The second part of the amendement referred to any entirely separate
issue of how consumers are represented before the FCC. Again, it is just
a study to look at different models.
Maybe I'm missing something, but why shouldn't there be some debate and
analysis of these issues?
By the way, a number of persons were responsible for the legislative
language that you quoted, and there is no need to worry about who gets
the credit or blame, as the case may be.
- jamie
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James Love, Taxpayer Assets Project; internet: love@essential.org
P.O. Box 19367, Washington, DC 20036; v. 202/387-8030; f. 202/234-5176
12 Church Road, Ardmore, PA 19003; v. 215/658-0880; f. 215/649-4066
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