Re: <nettime> US DoC/ICANN/NSI agreement fact sheet with comments

[ronda@umcc.ais.org (Ronda Hauben)]

Ted and others on nettime:

Ted byfield <tbyfield@panix.com> writes:

>the US Commerce Dept, ICANN, and NSI announced a 'new agreement' today[1]
>which supposedly will put to rest all that inconvenient squabbling. if you

The problem with ICANN is *not* inconvenient squabbling.  And though the
U.S. media has tried to present the problem with ICANN as only a factional
fight between ICANN and NSI, that is *not* the reality. 

The ICANN structure and conception are the result of serious misconceptons
about the nature of the Internet and how far certain business interests
can go to seize control of essential Internet functions, and still have
the Internet function in a way that will make it possible to continue as
an Internet, rather being split apart. 

The Internet requires scientific and accountable administration. 

The U.S. government activity creating ICANN as a way to throw its support
to certain corporate entities to vie for control of essential functions of
the Internet is the opposite of what was needed. 

The essential functions of the Internet require protection from
governments and to be put in the hands of scientific administration and
developers. 

That is the process that made it possible for the Internet to develop.
That is the process that needs to be understood for the Internet to
continue. 

So called "private sector" control via a so called "nonprofit U.S. 
corporation" is *not* an entity that can be held accountable to protect
the essential functions of the Internet from being the continual target of
the fight of vested interests. 

ICANN is under the control of whom? Accountable to whom? 

And Ralph Nader's so called proposal to CPSR shows that he has no
understanding of the nature of the Internet nor the problem with ICANN.
His proposal is intended to prettify what has been exposed to the world as
a power grab by the U.S. government to give certain U.S. corporate
entities control over essential Internet functions. Having a multilateral
agreement of nations wouldn't change that as they have no way to have
scientific leadership and oversight over the essential Internet functions. 
This multilateral agreement would only be a rubber stamp for ICANN's dirty
deeds. 

There is *no* basis to give the essential functions of the Internet to a
private entity.

These essential functions have been in public hands and their
administration has functioned in a way that has had an obligation for
public accountability. This system needed to be strengthened, *not*
destroyed, as it has been by the creation of ICANN.  

> The proper form for the administration and ownership and control of the
functions essential for the Internet, of the root server system, the
protocols creation and decision process, the IP number allocation, etc. is
*not* a private form.

There is a need to understand what the form was that made it possible for
these functions to be protected from "vested" interests and how to
strengthen that form. That is *not* what ICANN represents. 

Those who care about the continued development of the Internet will
recognize the need to protect its essential functions from vested
interests. How that is to be done needs to be explored based on
understanding how that has been done in the development of the Internet. 

My proposal to the U.S. Dept of Commerce last year before they set up
ICANN gave a means for cooperative effort of computer scientists from
those countries interested in trying to be part of understand the problem
and then proposing a solution. 

My proposal gave a means for creating a prototype to make it possible for
those nations interested in providing the needed protection to work
together.

My proposal gave a means for creating an online form to help in the
process. 

My proposal is online at
http://www.columbia..edu/~rh120/other/dns_proposal.txt

ICANN does none of these. It hasn't identified what problem really needs
to be solved, and so is only setting a basis for vested interests to make
their power grabs for control of the Internet and all its users. 

So the ICANN/NSI agreement is only the basis for a much more serious
squabbling and a basis for ever greater instability for the Internet and
its users. 

Ronda
ronda@ais.org

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