Coyote Gulch

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

FCC Commissioner Michael Copps: Adopt enforceable rules that guarantee network neutrality
Multi-Channel News: "The Federal Communications Commission has authority under current law to ensure that broadband access providers, today mainly cable and phone companies, do not discriminate against Web-based providers of content, search services, and applications, FCC commissioner Michael Copps said last Tuesday.

"Speaking to reporters, Copps stressed that the agency needed to go beyond hortatory policy principles and adopt enforceable rules that guarantee network neutrality and shield Internet companies without wires into millions of homes from potential misconduct by companies that do." Coyote Gulch hopes that the telcos promise is not enough for the regulators.

Thanks to the Mac Daily News for the link.

Here's a different view of the issue from Bob Frankston.
"2008 pres"
9:15:05 PM

BlogHer

Lisa Stone: "Never forget why women are the power users of Web 2.0... It's because women also love to listen."

Coyote Gulch is going to insert a shameless plug here for BlogHer. Ms. Stone is one of the original movers behind the conference. Past Coyote Gulch coverage here.

9:05:43 PM

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: I believe that the German people today are also prisoners of the Holocaust
Captain's Quarters: "The German magazine Der Spiegel has published its interview with Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and it should disturb anyone who reads it fully. The interview reveals Ahmadinejad as a man obsessed with Jews, and one intent on provoking German resentment over its post-war humiliation to split the West on Israel."
"2008 pres"
7:06:04 AM

Internet Neutrality
Doc Searls: "We've been trying for 11+ years to explain what the Net is. And it hasn't worked. Yet. The carriers don't understand us, except to the degree that they perceive our views -- and our lobbying -- as threats. The 'consumers' don't understand either, generally. One woman I know says 'I don't like the Web because I don't like mass media in general.' Really. One man I know, when I tried to tell him the thinking behind Net Neutrality, said 'I don't see how it's any different for the phone company than it is for a country. If you don't like what's flying over your territory, you have the right to shoot it down.' Really. Try this (any of us): The next time you talk to a group of citizens not from our tech circle, ask 'What is the Internet?' You'll be amazed and discouraged by their answers. For that matter, try the same thing with techies. The answers will still be all over the map. But ask anybody to define any utility or public infrastructure -- road system, phone system, cable system, railroad system, electrical system, sewage system, water system, air traffic control system -- and you'll get pretty much the same answers from everybody. They can define those things, and not the Net, because the Net is not a system. It's ... something else."
Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got, 'til it's gone. - Joni Mitchell
"2008 pres"
7:02:29 AM

Critterthink

Coyote Gulch loves to read our referrer logs. While cruising through the log last week we came across Critterthink. The weblog description: "Our mission, simply put, is to save endangered species across Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. We play an 'urgent care' role for the imperiled plants and wildlife most at risk of extinction, buying some time to figure out the long term solutions. We also work hard to recover these species, restoring them and their habitats to health. And we blog because doing so give us a great way of keeping folks a little more plugged in to what's happening in the world of endangered species advocacy, offering some insight into what we do and how we do it, and fostering conversation among our supporters, our staff, and others."

It looks like they started up in April. Welcome to the blogosphere! Thanks for the link love. If any Critterthink'ers read this post, will you send me the URL for your RSS feed? (jworr at operamail.com)

6:15:22 AM

Privatization of water utilities

The lure to privatize government services such as water and sewer is predicated on efficiency and getting the best return on fees and taxes. Here's an article about privatization from the Los Angeles Times. They write, "In recent years, cities across the U.S. have turned over a vital public service - providing safe drinking water - to private enterprise. Driving the trend was the idea that for-profit companies, mainly European conglomerates, could operate water and sewer systems efficiently, keeping water quality high and costs low. In some places, private-sector management helped trim bureaucracies and replace decaying infrastructure, local officials say. But in Indianapolis, New Orleans, Atlanta and other cities, privatization has been accompanied by corruption scandals, environmental violations and a torrent of customer complaints."

Thanks to Politics in the Zeros for the link.
"colorado water"
5:37:57 AM

Religion and politics
Michelle Goldberg (via AlterNet): "Whenever I talk about the growing power of the evangelical right with friends, they always ask the same question: What can we do? Usually I reply with a joke: Keep a bag packed and your passport current.

"I don't really mean it, but my anxiety is genuine. It's one thing to have a government that shows contempt for civil liberties; America has survived such men before. It's quite another to have a mass movement -- the largest and most powerful mass movement in the nation -- rise up in opposition to the rights of its fellow citizens. The Constitution protects minorities, but that protection is not absolute; with a sufficiently sympathetic or apathetic majority, a tightly organized faction can get around it.

"The mass movement I've described aims to supplant Enlightenment rationalism with what it calls the 'Christian worldview.' The phrase is based on the conviction that true Christianity must govern every aspect of public and private life, and that all -- government, science, history and culture -- must be understood according to the dictates of scripture. There are biblically correct positions on every issue, from gay marriage to income tax rates, and only those with the right worldview can discern them. This is Christianity as a total ideology -- I call it Christian nationalism. It's an ideology adhered to by millions of Americans, some of whom are very powerful. It's what drives a great many of the fights over religion, science, sex and pluralism now dividing communities all over the country."
"2008 pres"
4:56:37 AM

Arkansas Valley Conduit

Here's an update on the Arkansas Valley Conduit from the Pueblo Chieftain. From the article, "While state funding for a drinking water conduit serving communities east of Pueblo looks promising, there are signs Congress may try to tie its progress to controversial water storage legislation. Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District President Bill Long, who has spearheaded efforts to advance the Arkansas Valley Conduit, returned from a trip to Washington, D.C., last week with mixed news. On the positive side, there is still good support for the conduit, Long said. In recent weeks, the U.S. House approved a $675,000 grant to help move the project to its preliminary design phase. U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., assured Long the conduit remains a top priority. 'On the negative side, we have at least a couple of congressmen who want to see the conduit tied to the Preferred Storage Options Plan legislation,' Long said. The PSOP bill recently stalled in a Southeastern District committee over several issues, including Lake County recreation issues and negotiations between Colorado Springs and the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District. U.S. Reps. Tom Tancredo and Joel Hefley, Republicans who represent Aurora and Colorado Springs, apparently are still insisting legislation for PSOP and the conduit move together, while Allard said it would be preferable, Long said...

"Conduit backers are seeking legislation that would provide 80 percent federal funding for the $300 million conduit, which was part of the original Fryingpan-Arkansas Project. A separate effort in Congress is seeking to authorize, but not appropriate, $69 million for Army Corps of Engineers work on the conduit. Meanwhile, the conduit has a good shot at gaining state loan for the local share of costs, said Harold Miskel, Arkansas Valley representative on the Colorado Water Conservation Board."
"colorado water"
4:34:23 AM

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