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Who Owns the Net?

View Candace Suerstedt's profile
Filed under: Propositions, Congress, Other
March 17, 2008 @ 09:03 am
By Candace Suerstedt
If there is something that scares me more than Geraldine Ferraro’s dimness, it’s the thought of losing my free and open internet.

Unfortunately, there is a very real threat that this could, in fact, happen.    

I just read an amazing book called Smart Mobs “The Next Social Revolution” by Howard Rheingold. Until two weeks ago, I would have described myself as “computer literate”. Now, after reading Rheingold, I feel as if I have been walking around with half a brain for the last two decades.

Rheingold describes the social, psychological, and philosophical transformations our culture is undergoing in this age of instant wireless access. Heck, I was just trying to stay current with my software and upgrade my computers as they became obsolete. 

Now it’s obvious that we are deep in this renaissance, and the prevailing question is: how do we, as human beings, experience it? It’s not enough just to realize that we have the technical capabilities; the most pressing concern is what we do with them, and what kind of society we will become.    

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Bright Line Rule

View Alma Sove's profile
Filed under: Presidential, Congress
February 17, 2008 @ 09:02 am
By Alma Sove

Last week, President Bush failed to extend temporary Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act laws through Congress.

The way Bush sees it, the FBI will not be able to effectively intercept vital information, meaning Islamo-facists will be free to plan jihad, which will inevitably lead to another tragedy on the homeland, terror alerts will oscillate through the color wheel, and more civil liberties will be downgraded and sent off into obscurity. He paints a bleak portrait in bold strokes.

When Bush puts it that way, it reminds me of my craving for absolutes during law school. Ah, for an absolute…no balancing factors to consider, no “reasonable person standard” to analyze, no facts to consider. It’s a bright line rule - plain and simple, like dry toast and black coffee for breakfast.

Some law students regard the phrase “bright line rule” as a beacon of light – true and definitive. This is so because of the myriad exceptions that almost overwhelms many rules themselves.

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