Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!mailrus!purdue!decwrl!labrea!sri-unix!garth!smryan
From: smryan@garth.UUCP (Steven Ryan)
Newsgroups: comp.society.futures
Subject: Re: Networks, who pays
Message-ID: <1958@garth.UUCP>
Date: 23 Nov 88 00:54:31 GMT
References: <8811171559.AA11040@multimax.encore.com> <2258@ficc.uu.net> <4778@leadsv.UUCP>
Reply-To: smryan@garth.UUCP (Steven Ryan)
Organization: INTERGRAPH (APD) -- Palo Alto, CA
Lines: 21

>now, as a stranger here, i ask, "does anyone have any serious
>proposals for funding a `public' network?" i mean serious, you know,
>like we should do A and then B and a little bit of C to accomplish D.
>or should the 'u' key be depressed? cause if comp.soc.futures is just
>alt.politics, i got better things to do.

Funding is always political. Anything which is government funded must be
essentially open and nondiscrimatory. Private ventures are free to exclude
that which they think is unprofitable.

A public voice communication network is considerred necessary in California
(Pa Bell must provide service to any potential customer). It is handled
by a publicly regulated private company.
-- 
                                                   -- s m ryan
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          _
Then Guthrun crossed the wasted lands
and combed her hair with sooty hands.
Alone she watched the oceans churning,
and sang of heroes, fame most yearning.