Tuesday, May 2, 2006

Internet Neutrality Tim Berners-Lee: "Twenty-seven years ago, the inventors of the Internet designed an architecture which was simple and general. Any computer could send a packet to any other computer. The network did not look inside packets. It is the cleanness of that design, and the strict independence of the layers, which allowed the Internet to grow and be useful. It allowed the hardware and transmission technology supporting the Internet to evolve through a thousandfold increase in speed, yet still run the same applications. It allowed new Internet applications to be introduced and to evolve independently. "When, seventeen years ago, I designed the Web, I did not have to ask anyone's permission. The new application rolled out over the existing Internet without modifying it. I tried then, and many people still work very hard still, to make the Web technology, in turn, a universal, neutral, platform. It must not discriminate against particular hardware, software, underlying network, language, culture, disability, or against particular types of data. "Anyone can build a new application on the Web, without asking me, or Vint Cerf, or their ISP, or their cable company, or their operating system provider, or their government, or their hardware vendor. "It is of the utmost importance that, if I connect to the Internet, and you connect to the Internet, that we can then run any Internet application we want, without discrimination as to who we are or what we are doing. We pay for connection to the Net as though it were a cloud which magically delivers our packets. We may pay for a higher or a lower quality of service. We may pay for a service which has the characteristics of being good for video, or quality audio. But we each pay to connect to the Net, but no one can pay for exclusive access to me." Category: 2008 Presidential Election 7:51:21 PM

Never go windsurfing when your war record is under attack The News Sentinel: "The Democrats presumably learned many lessons from the 2004 presidential election - for instance, never go windsurfing when your war record is under attack, as John Kerry did - but perhaps the ultimate lesson was this: Don't allow yourself to get decimated down in Dixie. Such was John Kerry's misfortune - and Al Gore's, too. There are 11 states in the Old Confederacy, and the last two Democratic nominees went 0 for 22, even though Gore is from Tennessee. It's tough for a candidate to capture the White House when he gets routed in the South, because it means he has to win 70 percent of the electoral votes everywhere else. Gore and Kerry couldn't clear that hurdle." Thanks to Oval Office 2008 for the link. Category: 2008 Presidential Election 7:43:01 PM

Ritter for governor? Bill Ritter (via The Cherry Creek News): "This is a time of great promise for Colorado. Our unique home-grown blend of wind, solar and agricultural energy supplies offer Colorado an unprecedented opportunity to create jobs, protect the environment and decrease our dependence on foreign oil. As Governor, I will establish Colorado's 21st century New Energy Economy through strong leadership, responsible investment and a clear vision for the future." Category: Denver November 2006 Election 7:07:08 AM

Giuliani for president? TalkLeft: "Former mayor Rudy Giuliani campaigned in Iowa today. He said if he thinks he can win, he will run for President in 2008. It's time to get his history out in the blogosphere. The man is not qualified. People think he is some sort of hero because he didn't fall apart during 9/11. He is not. He was a prosecutor who loved putting people in jail and a Mayor who trounced the downtrodden." Category: 2008 Presidential Election 7:02:04 AM

McCain for president? Captains Quarters: "After John McCain made a statement last week on the Don Imus Show that he would trade the First Amendment for 'clean government', one would have expected the industry enabled by that portion of the Bill of Rights to speak out against such talk. Oddly, not one major newspaper addressed the issue until today, when the Washington Examiner takes the Senator to task for his minimization of free political speech." Category: 2008 Presidential Election 6:57:11 AM

Clinton for president? The Moderate Voice: "John Podhoretz, writing in the Boston Herald, has a column almost pleading for the GOP to get someone to compete against Democratic Senator Hillary Clinton, whom he suggests will be the inevitable Democratic nominee. In a column titled 'Republicans be warned: Someone must stop Hillary,' it's clear that when he looks around the field he doesn't like what he sees..." Category: 2008 Presidential Election 6:52:55 AM

Immigration Mike Littwin (via the Rocky Mountain News): "The truth is that Congress can control the borders if it really wants to make the effort. You know it can go after employers and make certain they hire only people here legally if it wants to make that effort. "But it can't deal with this issue without dealing with the 12 million immigrants here illegally, who have entered into an implicit deal: You do the hard jobs; we won't arrest you if you've made it across the desert. "It was Tancredo, of course, who has made the rallies possible - and even necessary. "It was the Tancredo-inspired House bill that called for the Tancredo Wall between Mexico and the United States. For that to work, you'd have to build a wall between the U.S. and Canada and then mine the harbors. "More to the point, it was the Tancredo-inspired House bill that would turn illegal immigrants, and those who offer them shelter or sustenance, into felons. "Tancredo has tried to weasel out of the felony issue, blaming it on Democrats, even though Republicans first proposed it. It's complicated, but, trust me, the Democrats helped keep it in the House bill just to make the Republicans look bad - as if they needed help. "The immigrants who came here to clean the toilets and roof the houses and landscape the gardens were shocked to learn that they were now to be criminals. (And by the way, being here illegally is a civil infraction, not a crime.) "And so, they marched. What choice did they have? It was march in a rally or march off to prison. They carry American flags, having learned that lesson. In Los Angeles, they sang the national anthem, in English. Another lesson. They found a voice. You've heard the sound by now." Category: 2008 Presidential Election 6:47:11 AM

Holtzman for governor? Marc Holtzman thinks an investigation into Dick Leggit's admission of lying is unnecessary, according to the Denver Post. From the article, "Republican gubernatorial hopeful Marc Holtzman said Monday he would look into his campaign manager's admission that he lied to the media but said an outside investigation was unnecessary. 'I want to know the facts,' Holtzman told The Associated Press. 'If what was reported is true, it raises serious concerns.' His top adviser, Dick Leggitt, testified under oath Friday that he made up poll results he gave to a Denver Post reporter last year. The paper referred to Leggitt and those numbers in an article last year. Leggitt has said he lied because he suspected the reporter was forwarding his e-mails to Holtzman's opponent, U.S. Rep. Bob Beauprez. Holtzman, who did not return multiple phone calls from the Post, is defending himself against claims that he broke campaign laws by using the If C Wins, You Lose committee as a shadow gubernatorial campaign. The administrative law hearing of that complaint continues today." Category: Denver November 2006 Election 6:32:39 AM

Healthcare Here's a roundup of healthcare issues from Al Lewis and the Denver Post. They write, "Pay the mortgage, buy the groceries, fill the tank with $3 gas, and keep up with those health-care premiums. Layla Barr of Denver is among an increasing number of middle-class Americans who just can't do it all. That's why Barr, her husband, Emmet, and 9-month-old daughter, Isabela, are among the 767,000 Coloradans with no health insurance. They're also part of another growing demographic: the uninsured middle class. According to a study by the Commonwealth Fund, a health-care foundation, 41 percent of middle-income Americans had no health insurance for part of 2005. That's up from 28 percent in 2001. Over the past few years, health-insurance companies have jacked their rates at a pace that vastly exceeds growth in wages or even the nation's economy. And today, just about everyone feels the pain. Lawyers, real-estate agents and small- business owners are increasingly showing up at Denver's Inner City Health Center, a medical clinic for the uninsured, said its executive director, Paul Dunne. One of the center's beneficiaries is a music professor who has no insurance because he works two part-time jobs at two colleges. His son is being treated for leukemia, Dunne said." Category: 2008 Presidential Election 6:27:54 AM

Immigration Denver Post: "Tens of thousands of immigrant- rights supporters chanting 'We are America' marched through downtown Monday, their energy level intensifying as they poured onto the Capitol lawn in a sea of white shirts and American flags. The crowd, estimated at 75,000 by Denver police, was part of a national day of action to draw attention to immigration rights. Wearing white to symbolize a peaceful protest, they carried signs saying 'We are not criminals" and "Liberty and justice for all...' "In Chicago, police estimated the crowd at 400,000. In Los Angeles, one official estimated the crowd at about 300,000. Tens of thousands more marched in New York, and 15,000 walked through Houston. Police departments in more than two dozen U.S. cities contacted by The Associated Press gave estimates that totaled about 1.1 million marchers... "Marchers were overwhelmingly Latino, but there were others. Bruce MacGregor, a Canadian who recently became an American citizen, said he came to protest the 'racism going on in this country toward Latin Americans and South Americans.'" More coverage from the Rocky Mountain News. Category: 2008 Presidential Election 6:24:07 AM

Arkansas Valley Conduit Representative Marilyn Musgrave announced yesterday that there is $675,000 in an appropriations bill for the Arkansas Valley Conduit, according to the Pueblo Chieftain. From the article, "The $300 million conduit is part of the original Fryingpan-Arkansas Project authorized in 1962, but was never built because cities east of Pueblo would have had to pay 100 percent of costs. A bill seeking to increase the federal share to 80 percent was introduced last year in the U.S. Senate, but has not moved. Musgrave and U.S. Rep. John Salazar, D-Colo., were able last year to secure authorization for $69 million under the Water Resource and Development Act. That bill also has stalled in the Senate... "[Bill Long, Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District president] said most of the money from the grant would probably help fund the preliminary design phase, but some of the funds could be used to help some smaller water districts deal with clean water issues prior to construction of the conduit. Smaller water districts are facing issues, particularly with naturally occurring uranium in well water supplies... "Another issue the committee will take up in the next few months is how the operation of the conduit will be structured. At issue is whether it will operate as an enterprise of the Southeastern District or as a separate authority, Long said." Category: Colorado Water 6:09:04 AM

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