November 16, 2011

A report in The New York Times suggests that the “Super Committee” in Congress—which has the power to fast-track it’s recommendations to reduce the deficit—is close to backing mandatory cuts to Social Security instead of tax increases for the richest one percent.

No way we can let this happen. This is a rotten deal that we have to stop.

Send a message that cuts to Social Security come with hell to pay from voters.  Click on this link

The Consumerist
November 10, 2011
By Chris Morran

Discarded plastic bottles account for around 30% of trash at the Grand Canyon, so in an effort to reduce the amount of waste left behind by the oodles of visitors, the park was all set to launch a ban on the sale of bottled water. But then, after the folks at Coca-Cola voiced their concerns, a top national park official decided to pull the plug on the program.    [FULL  STORY]

‘I had heard and seen battle injured soldiers before but this screaming raised the hair on my neck” – Dr. Phil Leveque, reference to using GOMCO clamp to circumcise infant boys. Read Tim King’s enlightening article >>>

Outrageous!

FCC Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker is leaving the FCC to become a lobbyist for Comcast – just four months after she voted to approve the Comcast-NBC merger.¹

This is just the latest – but perhaps most blatant — example of so-called “public servants” cashing in on companies they are supposed to be regulating. But Baker’s jump to Comcast is particularly egregious. As recently as March, the commissioner was giving speeches complaining that the Comcast-NBC deal “took too long.”

And you wonder why the American people are disgusted with Washington.

Stop the Revolving Door: Demand Congress Investigate Baker’s Conflict of Interest

Congress is already concerned about how the FCC conducts itself. Rep. Darrell Issa, chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, has been making a lot of noise recently about alleged ethical violations at the agency. By signing this letter to Congressman Issa, you’re urging him to launch an investigation of Commissioner Baker’s seemingly blatant conflict of interest.

Outside of Washington, people of every political stripe have expressed near unanimous contempt for a system of government that favors powerful corporations at the expense of the many. Sadly, the complete capture of government by industry barely raises an eyebrow inside the Beltway anymore. That’s why Congress needs to hear from you.

Urge Congress to Investigate this Conflict of Interest at the FCC

The revolving door at the FCC erodes any prospect for common-sense public policy — such as strong Net Neutrality rules or a rigorous review of mega-deals like AT&T’s proposed takeover of T-Mobile.

Unless we speak out now and demand an investigation, business as usual in Washington will undermine our media system and endanger our democracy.

Thank you for taking action,

Craig Aaron
President and CEO
Free Press Action Fund
www.freepress.net

Reuters
Feb 11, 2011
By Edmund Blair and Samia Nakhoul

CAIRO (Reuters) – Hosni Mubarak stepped down as Egypt’s president on Friday, handing over to the army and ending three decades of autocratic rule, bowing to escalating pressure from the military and protesters demanding that he go.

Vice President Omar Suleiman said a military council would run the affairs of the Arab world’s most populous nation. A free and fair presidential election has been promised for September.

A speaker made the announcement in Cairo’s Tahrir Square where hundreds of thousands broke down in tears, celebrated and hugged each other chanting: “The people have brought down the regime.” Others shouted: “Allahu Akbar (God is great). [FULL STORY]

In Egypt this week, the Mubarak regime shut down Internet and cell phone communications before launching a violent crackdown against political protesters (watch Free Press’ Timothy Karr discuss the use of technology in Egypt in the video to the right).

Now, Free Press has discovered that an American company — Boeing-owned Narus of Sunnyvale, CA — has sold Egypt “Deep Packet Inspection” (DPI) equipment that can be used to help the regime track, target and crush political dissent over the Internet and mobile phones.

The power to control the Internet and the resulting harm to democracy are so disturbing that the threshold for using DPI must be very high. That’s why, before DPI becomes more widely used around the world and at home, the U.S. government must establish clear and legitimate criteria for preventing the use of such surveillance and control technology.

IDG News
Jan 26, 2011
By Jennifer Baker

More and more European Union member states are delegating online policing to private companies and Internet service providers, according to a report released Wednesday.

Where law enforcement agencies would traditionally have tackled the problem of illegal online content, more powers are being given to ISPs in the name of industry self-regulation, according to a study by the organization European Digital Rights (EDRI). That trend is likely to become stronger with increasing “extra-judicial sanctions” against consumers, EDRI said.

Proposed legislation and “non-binding guidelines” have left intermediaries in a precarious position, unsure whether they are liable for the actions of consumers over their networks. So-called “three strikes” laws, under which alleged copyright infringers receive three warnings before their Internet connection is cut off, put the onus on Internet service providers to police customers. Such laws currently appear in some form in French, Irish and U.K. legislation, where they have met with anger from ISPs. In France, the law can impose a fine and a one-year Internet connection suspension. The U.K.’s Digital Economy Act, adopted last year, provoked concern from the country’s two largest ISPs, BT and TalkTalk.

International trade agreements such as the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), and bilateral trade agreements the E.U. has signed with India and South Korea, all leave the door open for intermediary liability.   [FULL  STORY]

The FCC just blessed the merger of Comcast, the nation’s largest cable and home Internet provider, with NBC Universal. The Justice Department approved the merger, too, leading to the unprecedented consolidation of media and Internet power in the hands of one company.

There’s no way to sugarcoat it. Wherever you live, the Comcast-NBC merger is a disaster.

Letting one company control the pipes and the content that flows over those pipes is a formula for abuse. Comcast-NBC could soon hike up rates, take away your favorite channels or even stop you from watching your favorite shows online. Comcast has already targeted Netflix and other companies that compete with its video and Internet offerings.

The merger lays waste to then-candidate Barack Obama’s 2008 promise, when he said, “I strongly favor diversity of ownership of outlets and protection against the excessive concentration of power in the hands of any one corporation, interest or small group. I strongly believe that all citizens should be able to receive information from the broadest range of sources.”

We at Free Press believe that, too. But unlike the president and his FCC chairman, we’re not caving to corporate pressure. Free Press is working with our allies and activists to fight for more open, democratic and diverse media.

Here’s how you can help:

1. First, let Washington know that there are consequences to blessing this bad deal. You can tell everyone that this merger is a disaster by Tweeting about it, spreading the word via Facebook, and sharing this e-mail with others.

2. Next, join our national network of local Comcast watchdogs. Sign this pledge to protect your community against future Comcast abuses, and we’ll connect you to a growing network of activists in your area and beyond.

3. Finally, support the Free Press Action Fund so we can mobilize a broad coalition to stem the tide of new media mergers sure to follow in the wake of Comcast-NBC.

Today’s deal, combined with the FCC’s recent loophole-ridden, fake “Net Neutrality” rule, sets the stage for Comcast to turn the Internet into something that looks like cable TV. This administration has a long list of weak compromises to corporate lobbyists during its first two years. But today’s merger is particularly alarming.

You might be saying, “I’m not a Comcast customer, so I’m not worried.” But Comcast will jack up the prices that other cable and online distributors pay for NBC content, and you’ll pay higher prices — we promise.

You might be saying, “I can just get a new Internet provider if I don’t like it.” But there’s almost no broadband competition. And as TV, radio, phone and other services increasingly become Internet-based, cable will be the only connection that’s fast enough to deliver high-quality media and services to most Americans.

You might be saying, “Why should I care about a business deal between two giant companies?” But this merger is certain to be the first domino to fall in a series of mega-media mergers. The FCC’s blessing of Comcast-NBC will embolden companies like AT&T or Verizon to try to gobble up content providers like Disney and CBS, creating a new era of media consolidation where even fewer companies control the content you watch and all the ways you watch it.

The Comcast-NBC merger is truly catastrophic for the public, and for the future of media, technology and democracy.

We can’t let a few corporate giants control the flow of information in America. It’s time to get mad, but it’s also time to get involved.

Thank you,

Josh Silver
President and CEO
Free Press
www.freepress.net