Fwd: AT&T's Dirty Politics

Bryan,

I received the message below pertaining to AT&T's position on IANA-
and ICANN-compatible DNS services, a flag or more detailed information
for which we have been discussing in relation to statistics which web
device and API users might reasonably want to have available in their
System Information when making connection activation decisions (e.g.
selecting an activeConnection) in multi-homing and similar situations.

I would like you to have the opportunity to respond. I hope you will
be able to join those of us who expect conformance to DNS RFCs.  If
you are unable to do so because of the position your corporation has
taken, please inform the group.  You know that I consider such
affronts against professional standards of service quality a very
serious matter, and that I have a pending complaint against you for
attempting a baseless claim that these issues are out of scope.

Thank you for your consideration of these matters.

Sincerely,
James Salsman


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Timothy Karr, FreePress.net <info@freepress.net>
Date: Thu, Jul 1, 2010 at 10:57 AM
Subject: AT&T's Dirty Politics
To: jsalsman@gmail.com

Spread the Word. Expose the Corporate Takeover of the Internet

Dear James,

Did you read the New York Times yesterday?

In a prominent editorial, the paper exposes AT&T, Verizon and Comcast
for flooding Congress with cash to kill Net Neutrality.

These companies have funneled millions of dollars in campaign
contributions to elected officials. ... and now they expect a return
on their investment.

But campaign contributions are only the tip of the iceberg. The phone
and cable industry is quietly spending hundreds of millions more — all
part of a massive effort to take control of the Internet away from the
people who use it.

To shed light on this dirty game, Free Press is launching "Corruption
Road: How Corporate Money and Astroturf Pollute Media Policy." Check
it out:

http://corruptionroad.freepress.net

Corruption Road looks beyond the money mentioned in the Times to
illustrate how phone and cable companies are major players in
Washington's economy of influence:

AT&T, Verizon and Comcast have spent tens of millions on an army of
lobbyists, lawyers and PR specialists to attack efforts to protect
consumers;
They've secretly funded dozens of astroturf groups to parrot industry
talking points and fabricate grassroots opposition to an open
Internet;
They've strong-armed members of Congress to paint Net Neutrality as a
"government takeover of the Internet" and sign letters opposing
oversight of the industry.

This gigantic corporate spending spree serves one goal: Prevent the
FCC from preserving the open Internet, protecting consumers' rights
and fostering universal access to broadband. If these companies
succeed, Net Neutrality will be in serious danger.

We're giving you a first look at Corruption Road because we need you
to do two things to help stop this takeover:

1. Take a drive down Corruption Road to learn more about the shady
influence-peddling.
2. Help spread the word about Corruption Road via e-mail, Twitter and Facebook.

What's going on is outrageous. But we can stop it by bringing this
corruption to light, shaming corporate sellouts in Congress, and
convincing more people to stand in support of Net Neutrality.

Thank you for taking action,

Timothy Karr
Campaign Director
Free Press
www.freepress.net
www.SavetheInternet.com

P.S. Read yesterday's New York Times editorial: "The Price of
Broadband Politics"

Want to learn more? Join us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

If you haven't already, you can also join our E-Activist list.

Received on Friday, 2 July 2010 20:52:39 UTC