Posted on 08/02/2002 6:48:21 AM PDT by rdb3
This is why JimRob's mug will appear on the Cyber-Conservative Mount Rushmore! Or is that Mount Binary-more?
Anyway, fuhgedaboudit. You know what I mean.
Very important article. Does somebody have a list of nationwide ISP's who are politically conservative, or, at least, apolitical?
Not just ISP's, but most 'Big Software' is run by flaming collectivists. Ellison, Jobs, Gates . . . all want total control of the software world, including the internet.
I blame the current laws of incorporation.
All major US "businesses" are collectively-owned, collectively-managed 'umbrella' organizations run by unaccountable people who are protected from prosecution of most illegal acts they might order. Being an old-fashioned 'sole proprietor' -- an entrepeneur -- puts you at a major disadvantage in modern America. We have laws that favor collectives.
These collectives already run things, as everyone knows. Is it too late? Have the collectivists won?
I think not. Guns gave individuals a power to defend themselves like never before, and the internet gives individuals the power to defend themselves and their freedom like never before.
Of course, if the DMCA/Palladium/etc manage to destroy the Internet as we know it, then all bets are off . . .
TXnMA (No Longer!!!)
My ISP is Earthlink (the 3rd? largest isp in the US), which is delivered on high speed television cable. I don't know what their politics are. Checked their executives' bios, but couldn't really get a feel for their politics. I like earthlink, because it is "real internet". No popup ads, no automatic kickoffs due to inactivity. Unfortunately, because of the future dominance of high-speed cable and dsl technologies, I think the days of the smaller mom & pop isp's are ending.
I have never used AOL, and I discourage its use to anyone who asks me about it. I used a free month of MSN back in the mid-90's, but dumped it when I found out that it wouldn't support remote X-window clients under Linux (and other things that "real" internet should support).
A note for the not-so-technical... AOL and MSN are not "real internet". They do provide a "portal" to the internet, but the connections are "proprietary". For example, you cannot use a generic email program or a generic web browser with AOL. (Always makes me wonder why they bought Netscape.) Why is this important? It is about control. These companies do not follow standards, because standards give the user choices. And, one of those choices may be to switch to a different internet provider. :-) They want to prevent this, and proprietary (nonstandard) extensions helps keep their client base attached.
I am sure that there are plenty of AOL and MSN users on FR, so I don't want to step on any toes here. But my humble opinion on internet access: Stick with a company which provides "real" internet. Although the number of companies offering this type of connection is shrinking because of consolidations, they follow standards. The mechanics of one is identical to that of another. And switching from one to another is rather painless. Also, get a permanent email address (which you can keep regardless of who your isp is). This general approach will support "user freedom", which is as conservative a concept as I can imagine.
Also, a note to JimRob if you're reading this thread: I couldn't help but think of the great work you have done while I was reading this article. Does anybody think that AOL or MSN could have (or would have) built such a community? I think not. Great job.
A. (ain't) O. (on) L (line)
I wonder how Steve case is doing now that his two puppies, WorldCon & AOL are being trashed? Oh, didn't you know Steve Case sits on the B.O.D's at WCOM? He sure does!
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