Re: Re: We Have Ourselves a Deal

"allowing"
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And thanks for the update. Its a couple hours after HuffPo but better late than never.

Thank god for not tying the state's hands with this school construction business. Can they use it for abstinence only sex education? Or faith based programs? Or tax relief for the gilded members of the state? We will hope for the best, whatever that is.

BTW now the thing to watch for is the Omnibus Bill whereby you can expect a lot that was dropped from this bill inserted into that one.

Jay Newton-Small:
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Did the perpetual corporate harlot Diane Feinstein succeed in her last-minute attempts to get an extraneous Net Neutrality-killing provision (link to pdf) inserted into the package?

AMENDMENT intended to be proposed by Mrs. FEINSTEIN to the amendment (No. 98) proposed by Mr. INOUYE(for himself and Mr. BAUCUS)
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Viz:
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On page 56, between lines 23 and 24, insert the following: (11) In establishing obligations under paragraph (8), the Assistant Secretary shall allow for reasonable network management practices such as deterring unlawful activity, including child pornography and copyright infringement.

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Did Sen Feinstein succeed on behalf of her lobbyist contributors?
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Obama's stimulus bill sets aside between $6bn and $9bn for expanding American broadband into rural areas, and Senator Feinstein hopes to (PDF) augment this Broadband Technology Opportunities Program so that it "allows for reasonable network management practices such as deterring unlawful activity, including child pornography and copyright infringement."
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On one level, Obama's bill is an effort to boost the American economy. On another, it's an opportunity for lobbyists to make a mockery American government.
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According to Public Knowledge, the Motion Picture Association of America is behind Feinstein's language. The MPAA doesn't like copyright infringement. And you can bet the child pornography bit was tossed in for added effect.
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But the "network management" bit sounds like ISP speak.
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As Art Brodsky and his colleagues pointed out, network management is used to manage networks - not filter content. Content filters are used to filter content. But American ISPs - particularly cable ISPs - will take any excuse they can find to throttle certain traffic.
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And if they're using copyright infringement and child porn as excuses, they'll have to start sniffing packets. So, Feinstein's amendment would also destroy net privacy - if there's any out there

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Is that sort of thing what the smoke-filled room "conference" was really all about, Jay Newton-Small?

sz
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From what I understand there weren't any women in the conference. That doesn't mean she couldn't have gotten one of the men to do it but I am still waiting to see some confirmation that she wanted to do it in the first place. I don't particularly see that slipping through the cracks at this point.

sg:
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Waxman may have actually committed the crime, then...