all - below is becca's request that i forward information relative to a paper that she and david morris from the institute for local self- reliance, have written. it's an interesting perspective on things and as you can see, she would be welcome to your input off or on-list. becca - as an aside, and i'm not caught up on my local mnforum.org mail given the largely poor SNR, but you might find parties interested in your paper there as well. further, a minor nit but, i hesitate to use the word "report" in referring to this document given that it opens with a clear position on the matter and posits the need for government involvement in relatively short order. i typically expect reports to at least provide a veneer of objectivity. for folks that are interested in this topic i would also encourage a thorough read of thomas bleha's paper in the last issue of foreign affairs magazine. which is actually available online[1]. it provides an interesting comparison of where the U.S. sits relative to other countries in the adoption and deployment of broadband to the home. Begin forwarded message: > From: Becca Vargo Daggett <becca at ilsr.org> > Date: July 6, 2005 4:51:41 PM CDT > To: sulrich at botwerks.org > Subject: [tcwug-list] request for posting > X-Mailer: Apple Mail (2.622) > > > Hello Steve - > I wonder if you would be willing to post this to TCWUG. > > The Institute for Local Self-Reliance recently published a report > "Who will own Minnesota's information highways?" A dated metaphor, > yes, but it gets at our concern, which is the privatization of what > should be public infrastructure. Proposals for Minneapolis' > citywide network are due on July 18, and Saint Paul continues to > move ahead on its plan, so now is the chance to encourage city > leaders to build publicly owned networks that are not controlled by > national providers. > Anyone interested in the report can find it at http://www.newrules.org > > I would like to know what TCWUG listers think about Minneapolis' > choice to go with a privately owned network, and the prospect that > all of the city's broadband networks could be owned by large > national companies. Anyone interested in the matter can feel free > to contact me on- or off-list. > > Thanks, Becca Vargo Daggett > Institute for Local Self-Reliance, New Rules Project references ---------- [1] - http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20050501faessay84311/thomas-bleha/ down-to-the-wire.html -- steve ulrich sulrich at botwerks.org PGP: 8D0B 0EE9 E700 A6CF ABA7 AE5F 4FD4 07C9 133B FAFC