Re: Winer: Democrats Should Pledge Open Internet

Hear hear! - I just blogged with links back to my posts from August  
2002 on this topic:

http://epeus.blogspot.com/ 
2003_11_01_epeus_archive.html#106915986397149904

Those older posts in full:

> Do you know why the RIAA call copying files without their permission  
> 'piracy'?
>
> Back in the 1960s, radio in the UK was completely run by the BBC, the  
> state-licensed monopoly broadcaster. The way round this was to  
> broadcast from outside the UK, after the fashion of Radio Luxembourg.
>
> Radio stations on boats, of which Radio Caroline was the most famous  
> and longest lasting, were called 'pirate radio' because they were  
> operating in international waters, beyond the reach of national laws.
>
> This history of Radio Caroline contains this interesting incident,  
> which may prove inspiring to those currently labelled pirates.
>
>> After an earlier incident where Prime Minister Harold Wilson had  
>> raged at [Radio Caroline owner] O'Rahilly telling him that he was  
>> 'finished', Ronan nursed a healthy hatred of the man. As The Mebo 2  
>> countered its jammed signal a General Election was looming that  
>> Labour and Wilson were expected to win easily. O'Rahilly convinced  
>> the Swiss that public sympathy for them would be greatly enhanced by  
>> renaming the station Radio Caroline and this done he set about  
>> blatant on air campaigning against Labour, targeting marginal seats  
>> where control could change if only a few hundred voters switched  
>> allegiance. Breaking every law in the book concerning politics and  
>> the representation of the people, Ronan likened Wilson to Chairman  
>> Mao while Caroline battle buses toured marginal wards and thousands  
>> of rapidly recruited supporters fly posted millions of posters  
>> suggesting that a vote for Labour was akin to voting for a Marxist  
>> state. He instigated a rolling phone call campaign where each  
>> supporter would recruit by phone, three more supporters and so forth.  
>> He arranged for the phone lines into Labour HQ to be jammed by hoax  
>> calls.
>>
>> The government had forgotten or failed to consider that this election  
>> was the first in which 18 to 21 year olds could vote and that these  
>> people had been impressionable teenagers when Caroline was at the  
>> peak of its influence. It was not difficult to motivate them to  
>> strike back at the politicians who had so arrogantly ruined their  
>> enjoyment.
>>
>> On the day after the election as the votes were counted, shell  
>> shocked Labour politicians found that against all predictions they  
>> had lost. For Ronan while the score was not settled, the loss of his  
>> station had been partially avenged. Soon after on a London street  
>> O'Rahilly was baulked by a careless pedestrian. The two men stared at  
>> each other, Ronan recognising Ted Short, a senior Labour politician.  
>> Short recognised Ronan and said simply 'It's you. Why did you do  
>> it?'. 'Listen baby' replied Ronan using his trademark opening phrase,  
>> 'if you hurt Caroline, I hurt you'.
>
> I believe there are a few elections coming up in the US.

And, on the 20th:

> Aux armes, citoyens!
>
> I wrote on Sunday about Radio Caroline (the origin of the music  
> industry's term piracy) and its owner's foray into politics in 1970,  
> where he is credited with helping turn the UK General Election.
>
> In the US, this is harder (all those checks and balances) but still  
> possible. In the next 3 months, all the representatives of the people  
> will be in their home districts, campaigning, holding public meetings,  
> trekking from one place to another to meet their constituents.
>
> What if there was a 'smart mob' waiting for them at each one?
> Local constituents concerned and informed about the CBDTPA,  
> Coble/Berman, the DMCA and the rest.
>
> Lets set up a tree of weblogs - a top-level campaign one, giving the  
> overview and highlights, then state and regional ones for each  
> election. Brainstorm and hone a set of questions to ask each  
> representative, and publish their responses, and an  
> endorsement/rejection. Get the meeting attendees to bring video  
> cameras and tape recorders and post the Q&A sessions in video and  
> audio too. Sign up flyposters and canvassers.  If there isn't an  
> endorsable candidate, come up with a write-in candidate instead.
>
> Instead of arguing about whether programmers or lawyers are doing  
> more, or the details of which licence you release your software under,  
> sign up to the broad principles we all can agree on - that the CBDTPA  
> and Coble-Berman bills are an attempt to overturn the constitution by  
> narrow interests.
>
> Are we likely to win any seats? Probably not. But at the end of it,  
> every representative will be aware of a big constituency who don't  
> want the entertainment industry to have veto rights over the  
> constitution. The DMCA was passed unanimously. Coble-Berman mustn't > be.
>
> So, why am I telling you to do this instead of doing it myself? I am a  
> resident alien, and not supposed to get involved in politics -  
> taxation without representation is my lot. You citizens need to do  
> this - they are YOUR representatives.
>
> Go out there and remind them.
>
> AOTC could be a starting point BlogTheVote2002USA