Re: <nettime> The role of government in the development of the Internet

[Terrence J Kosick <kosick@sprint.ca>]

Ronda Hauben wrote:

> Terrence J Kosick <kosick@sprint.ca> writes:
>
> >The government can play a role of keeping its own and not
> >allowing corporations and intrusive kinds of market forces
> >dictate the development of the net.
>
> I agree that government can play this role, but the real problem is
> that there is a need to determine what role govenment should play.

Terrence writes;

Ethical Net

Encouraging and Providing access through comprehensive non commercial search
engines that are geared to dissemination of various branches of the sciences.
Providing incentives within each branch by way of easy to locate interactive
gathering places maintained by government offices providing answers regarding
issues research programs grants and incentives for both researchers, funding
organizations benefactors and potential sponsors. Further branching can be made
through channels to investment funds where the public can get involved and can
play a role in shaping their futures. Futures that will be affected by
scientific advancement made possible by their donations and feedback. It's
called public spirit and not commercial culture.

>
>
> Instead we hear of "National Information Infrastructures" where the
> vision seems to be mainly commercial. (Perhaps more like National
> Commercenet Infrastructures.).
>
> How to return to the recognition of the need for the basis for
> the Internet to be scientific and educational research and
> development?
>
> That is part, I feel, of the challenge to the Internet community.
>
> To figure out how to scale the Internet, there is the need for
> even better leadership than in the past. There is the need to study
> the kind of leadership there was and learn how to build on it.
>
> I have tried to begin to do this with my recent draft papers on
> the development of ARPA and of the IPTO and the centers of excellence
> in US universities which made it possible to do the research that
> provided the seeds for the Internet's development.
>
> (See for example http://www.columbia.edu/~rh120/other/arpa_ipto.txt
> There are other sections of the same paper at that site including
> one on the centers of excellence that IPTO created.)
>
> >The industry, politics, legislators and copyright associations are
> >beginning to extend their monopolies to maintain control on the
> >internet inflicting their wills on the free use of this communication
> >space.
>
> That is certainly a part of the problem.
>
> But I see another part of the problem that there doesn't seem to
> be the kind of institutional form and support that is needed
> to continue the scientific and technical research that created
> this communication space in the first place.
>
> I am proposing that there is a need to continue this scientific
> work as well to determine how to protect and extend this communication
> space.

I am hoping to see greater public access. More than just plug and surf. Which is
how hardware manufacturers view the internet. People need to discover the
resources that have been laying dormant in the government sector. The government
needs to catch up as soon as possible to provide easy access to information that
is the public's property. They can do this through public information community
centers  That would be a good start.

Terrence Kosick
artnatural

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