<nettime> More Homework

[mf@mediafilter.org (MediaFilter)]

There is a lot of noise out there about me and my intentions
and practices.  It is all coming from the uninformed and
judgmental reactionaries who's knees jerk faster than they
can shut up and do some research.

MediaFilter

Since 1995, I have at great personal expense, of time
energy and money, run the server known as MediaFilter.
If you have never been there, then take a look.  If you
have, most likely you would not know that it was attatched
to me in any way.

http://mediafilter.org

In the effort to sponsor the online presence of art and media
that I believe enough in to put my own talents and resources
without personal credit, I have produced and given network and
server resources to the following projects on a totally pro-bono
basis.

Take a look at some of the strong presences MediaFilter has
established on the web:

CovertAction Quarterly
http://caq.com (also http://mediafilter.org/caq)
http://caq.mag

Balkan Media and Policy Monitor
http://mediafilter.org./monitor

the SHADOW
http://mediafilter.org/shadow
http://shadow.press

GloboCopWatch
http://mediafilter.org/globocop
http://globo.cop.watch

Sarajevo Pipeline/ZaMir Chat
http://mediafilter.org/warzone
http://war.zone

Paul DeRienzo
Keeping an Eye on the New World Order
http://pdr.autono.net
http://letem.talk

and others....

Geert Lovink has, since the beginning of MediaFilter, been an
inspiration as well as a vital link to Eastern Europe.  His good
kharma brought together many talents like Ivo Skoric, the folks from
Arkzin, Balkan Monitor, (an excellent resource for independent news
from the Balkans in English) and my modest server resources.  It has
grown into a busy site and has twice been upgraded to a faster machine
and put on a faster connection to the net.  All at my own personal
expense...no grants or subsidies or Soros money...just from my own
earned income from exhibiting my art and producing video.

People log in to MediaFilter and get all this free content with
no advertising or hype. Of the 30-50,000 individual users every month,
less than 1% of them ever heard of Paul Garrin, and I am pleased with that.
Because it's not about me.  It's about what I care about and have the
time and energy to do amongst all of my other activities and responsibilities.

I don't need any extra attention.  I have had the "luxury" of too much
attention at times.  I don't need to promote myself.  I have a career in
the arts which is well known and highly acknowledged.  I don't need my
"15 minutes" again and again.  sometimes, I don't even have time for it.

This year, although I was awarded the Prix Ars Electronica, along with
my guru, David Rokeby, I will not appear in Linz nor will I show the
work.  The Antitrust Trial against Network Solutions has been scheduled
a month earlier than anticipated, in direct conflict with the event.
As a result, I will not appear at the Hybrid.Workspace at Dokumenta either.
Much to my deep regrets.

At a significant cost to me, financially, and in terms of my participation
with and contributions to my peers, I have chosen to engage in something
that most people don't even fathom, at great personal risk.

People who would judge me on their own prejuidices should first take some
time and familiarize yourselves with who I am and just what my work is all
about and what I have been doing for the past 10 years of my life.
The Name.Space project is totally in line with the work that I
have been engaged in through the process of my artworks and
the social research that they reflect.

There is a very modest c.v. of mine on the web
which is just a sketch of my career:

http://mediafilter.org/pg

I never asked anyone on nettime for any money, so whoever said that
is totally out to lunch.  I have in the past offered server access
and nameservice for free to nettime people who approach me with a
proposal.

People who think that my "promises" to support free art and media
are "vaporware" are totally ignorant to the fact that I have
already been doing this on a modest scale for over 2 years,
as much as I could afford to do in terms of time and money
and personal energy level.

Given the fact that selling content on the web is not a feasable
strategy, especially with non-commercial content that we tend
to generate, the economic potential of Name.Space became the
most viable strategy--as opposed to selling ads on nettime--
or worse...and a realistic one.  And it is realized. People like
it a lot and are using it.   It just now needs to be globally
recognized and more people will join as they see the new addresses
in use.

The infrastructure is in place now and is fully functional.
there are 13 nameservers running on 9 routes in 5 countries
with Poland, Sweden and Latvia to join in the next 6-8 weeks.

Name.Space has prevailed in gaining wide acceptance of a decentralized,
public domain (international) toplevel namespace.  The over 400 toplevel
categories carried on the name.space system were suggested by the public
via the form on the name.space website.

Name.Space has---

Established the fact that:

         any claim that expanding the toplevel namespace is technically
         not feasible is simply unfounded. The proponents of such claims
         seem to be guided by a desire to limit the potential market so
         as to create an artificial scarcity which translate into higher
         prices and profits.

        (full text of petition, which explains in plain language the paradigm
        that Name.Space has put in place as an internet directory service
        is at  http://petition.name.space/ns./com/petition.html)

   Created an open-architecture, secure protocol for sharing
   and synchronizing the root name database with the IDSD protocol.

   Set up a fully automated and functional name registry with
   personal address records under user control.  Names registered are
   ready and functional in minutes and instantly updated to all of our
   nameservers.

The plan put in place by Name.Space works without any Government
Regulation or Quasi-Governmental authorities.  It is totally self-
regulating. The Feds looked at this with great interest during their
visit to me.

It is certainly open for improvement, and some of the comments sent
in to the USDoC were promising for the chance to meet on common ground
and develop the best system in the public interest.

The other plans put forth so far were certainly not in the
public interest, including IAHC/edns and related others.
Those plans represent the greedy insiders "quid pro quo"
between industry land-grabbers inside the entrenched telecoms racket.

They seek to limit and privatize the namespace.
They represent encroachment of the corporate elites
on the internet and the marginalization of non-commercial content
(or even worse--ratings--censorship--route filtering--snooping--etc.).

[and Gordon Cook, an ally of the entrenched, cries over the demise of
IANA...tell Mr. Postel that we will accept his application for employment
at Name.Space if he loses his job at IANA].


Instead of trashing me, get the fuck out there and do something.
That has always been the fucking problem on this nettime list anyway.
A lot of armchair revolutionaries and monday morning quarterbacks
and no real action of any consequence.....

Wake up and get involved.  If you use the net it affects you.
Don't squander your privilege or responsibility to have your
say on this issue whether or not your specifically support name.space.

Read the details on name.space, and some of the other comments at the
USDoC, and then write your own.


And be sure and send it in by the deadline,
TODAY, AUGUST 18, 17.00 EDT.


enough said.

Paul Garrin


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