Technology

Anti-Americanism - Anti-Semitism - Censorship - Islam - Islamofascism - Israel - Jews - Judaism - Media - Media Bias - Palestinians - Religion - Terrorism - UN - Warner Todd Huston - Western Civilization - YouTube

Terrorists Rejoice: YouTube Pulls Pro-Israeli Video

June 13, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

In the week following the Israeli boarding of boats piloted by Turkish “peace activists” off the coast of Gaza Caroline Glick and the good folks at the Hebrew language Israeli news site Latma created a parody video skewering the violent actions perpetrated by those “peace activists” against members of the Israeli authorities attempting to enforce the Gaza blockade. The video went up on YouTube and garnered three million views within a matter of days.

Created as a parody of the 1980s activist song “We are the World,” the Latma song was named “We Con the World” and humorously depicted an array of Palestinian supporters singing about how they’d fooled the world into thinking that it was the Israelis that were the bad guys in the Gaza blockade incident.

The video was very clever and hit just the right notes of humor being not too mean spirited yet easily hitting home with its message. The humor of the video was wholly in keeping with western humor and not over-the-top or unduly offensive at all. Naturally, YouTube pulled it anyway.

On her website, Glick reports that the video’s creators were told by YouTube that the use of the original song, “We are the World,” was a copyright violation. But Glick disputes this claim.
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Terrorists Rejoice: YouTube Pulls Pro-Israeli Video”

Business - Capitalism - Computers - Economy/Finances - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

Google’s ‘Total Information Awareness’ Power

June 12, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

A one-page graphic of all the information Google has…

To help you picture both the enormity and unprecedented power of what Google knows about you and the world’s information—public, private and proprietary—I have organized all the world’s information types that Google collects onto a one-page chart/PDF: “Google’s ‘Total Information Awareness’ Power.”

For those who really want to understand Google and its impact on most everyone and most everything, please read and study this one-page chart/PDF, because much valuable work and insight has gone into it.

While the chart is visually packed with information that many may find difficult to unpack or digest, the chart itself is an apt metaphor for both how much information Google has, and also how difficult it is for all of us to get our head around all the information Google routinely collects and uses.

A short refresher on where the term “Total Information Awareness” came from and why it is aptly employed here.
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Google’s ‘Total Information Awareness’ Power”

Business - Capitalism - Computers - Economy/Finances - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

FCC Exceptionalism and Supremacy?

June 5, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

Often stepping back to gain perspective, and to try and see the forest for the trees can be highly instructive. However, if one steps back to see the big picture of how this FCC is attempting, unilaterally, to change U.S. Internet policy, the view is surreal.

Increasingly, this FCC is becoming an island. It is insisting on self-asserting its exceptionalism and its supremacy over the Internet and It is ignoring an overwhelming amount of important and contrary input, advice and evidence from Congress, the Courts, DOJ, FTC, past FCCs, industry and the public.

Simply, this FCC increasingly appears to view itself as exceptional and as the supreme authority on and over the Internet, unconstrained by Congress, the courts, law, economics, markets or the public.
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FCC Exceptionalism and Supremacy?”

1st Amendment - Blogging - Civil Rights - Computers - Constitution - Free Speech - Freedom - Government - Inernet - Journalism - Media - Media Bias - Michigan - Newspapers - Radio - Technology - Warner Todd Huston

Michigan To License Journalists?

May 29, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston


This is the face of tyranny. A Michigan State Senator has introduced an Orwellian bill that would provide for the licensing of journalists. There is no doubt that this thing is aimed squarely at delegitimizing the New Media, silencing bloggers, and creating a protected class of state approved “journalists.”

State Senator Bruce Patterson is the braintrust behind this flouting of the U.S. Constitution and outrageously enough, this Patterson fellow claims to be a “constitutional lawyer.” Pair him with the “constitutional scholar” we have as president and we have a matched set of revisionists out to steal as much power for themselves as one can find in any tinpot dictatorship! Even more ridiculously, this mustachioed villain is a Michigan Republican, proving that this sort of megalomania infests both sides of the aisle.

So what is this licensing deal supposed to do for we, the stupid people not able to figure out what end is up with current events, anyway? According to Patterson we can’t get “good information” any more because of the proliferation of new sources of info. But not to worry, granny Patterson is here to save the day and he’ll selflessly take it upon himself to determine what news source is a “legitimate media source.” What could possibly go wrong, eh?
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Michigan To License Journalists?”

Business - Computers - Google - Inernet - John Armor - Net Neutrality - Technology - YouTube

The Electronic Conscience

May 21, 2010 by

-By John Armor

What is the impact of the current forms of gathering and transmitting information from person to person? Can people be affected by communications they don’t use, or even know how to use?

There were five of us around a table in church this morning. All of us used the internet at least somewhat. Most of us did not use Twitter, Facebook, or YouTube. Our uses of the photo and video capacities of this generation of cell phones, fell someplace in the middle. But with some thought, the answer was clear. Whether or not we use these means of communication, they do affect us,

I grew up in a small town, Salisbury, Maryland. The town was small enough, and everybody knew everybody else’s children enough, that when you did something wrong, folks would tell on you. Odds are your mother would know about it before you even got home to tell your side of the story.

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The Electronic Conscience”

Business - Capitalism - Computers - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Free Trade - Google - Government - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

FTC’s Google-AdMob Antitrust Checklist

May 17, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

Many are missing the forest for the trees in jumping to the conclusion that the two-week extension in the FTC’s review of Google-AdMob means the FTC is reconsidering the FTC’s staff recommendation to block Google-AdMob as anti-competitive.

Google is cleverly trying to misdirect the focus off Google being the actual #2 in-app mobile advertiser, which is buying the actual #1 AdMob market leader, by talking up the potential competitive advertising threat of a distant #3 player Quattro being bought by non-advertising company Apple.

To see the big picture and understand the likely outcome here that the FTC will block Google-AdMob, its helpful to run through the FTC’s likely Google-AdMob checklist decision process.
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FTC’s Google-AdMob Antitrust Checklist”

Business - Capitalism - Computers - Congress - Economy/Finances - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

FCC Understating Systemic Risks of “Third Way” — Why It’s a Disaster Waiting to Happen

May 11, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

The FCC is vastly understating the systemic risk involved in the FCC’s radical “third way” regulatory surgery to the Internet, the communications sector and the economy.

The FCC’s proposed “third way” is an elaborate public relations facade that disguises huge problems and fatal conceptual/practical flaws that will become painfully obvious over time.

The FCC’s proposal is long on politics and soothing rhetoric, but short on real world practicality or legitimacy; it predictably will ultimately collapse under its own weight, complexity and hubris — unfortunately leaving exceptional carnage in its wake.

Simply, this proposal is too inherently contradictory and mind-numbingly complex, and too big not to fail.
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FCC Understating Systemic Risks of “Third Way” — Why It’s a Disaster Waiting to Happen”

Computers - Congress - Google - Government - Inernet - Liberals - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

The Multi-Billion Dollar Impact of FCC Title II Broadband — for Google & Entire Internet Ecosystem

May 7, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

Investors understandably have focused first on whether or not the FCC will upend the broadband Internet sector by deeming broadband a Title II common carrier service for the first time, and second whether or not the FCC actually has the legal/constitutional authority to do so.

However, as a result of that political and legal focus, what has been almost completely ignored is the potential multi-billion dollar impact of such an FCC decision, which by definition, would make all currently unregulated and un-metered Internet traffic bits, regulated and metered “telecommunications” tele-bits for the first time.

Simply, deeming broadband Title II legally could compel bit metering and bit payments in the U.S. for the first time.
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The Multi-Billion Dollar Impact of FCC Title II Broadband — for Google & Entire Internet Ecosystem”

Barack Obama - Britain - Budget - Business - Communism - Congress - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Europe - Free Trade - Government - Health - Liberals - Medicine - President - Socialism - Taxes - Technology - Warner Todd Huston

Obamacare Will Kill Medical Technology

May 4, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

In 2008 Patrick Swayze was treated with an advanced medical tool called a “CyberKnife.” It helped add months to his life as he tried to beat the cancer that was consuming him. But, Swayze wasn’t the only American with the good fortune to have this highly advanced medical technology available to him. In fact, there are 100 such machines across the United States. From California, to Minnesota, to Illinois and Washington D.C. Americans currently have the luxury of these wonderful new devices.

Sadly, Britons are not so lucky. There are two CyberKnife machines in the Britain, but they aren’t going to do anyone in the country’s socialist healthcare system any good because despite how successful these machines are British authorities won’t allow them to be used on patients.

Despite that the Mount Vernon cancer hospital in London is part of the National Health Services, despite that they spent £3m to purchase the machine, and quite despite the praise the machines receive in the U.S. and throughout the world, British NHS authorities won’t let NHS doctors use the machine on their patients.
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Obamacare Will Kill Medical Technology”

Business - Capitalism - Computers - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Free Trade - Google - Government - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

Chart: How Google-AdMob Creates a Bottleneck; How New DOJ/FTC Merger Guidelines Affect the Deal

May 4, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

Given the FTC is very likely to disapprove Google’s acquisition of AdMob soon, I have prepared a one-page chart that illustrates the core reason the deal is anti-competitive: it would create a substantial bottleneck for advertisers and publishers entering the in-application mobile advertising market.

To help people get up to speed on the deal and the likely FTC disapproval coming up, I have also pulled together a 30-page Google-AdMob backgrounder, which includes a one-page summary, charts, the top 10 reasons the deal is anti-competitive, why Google is a monopoly, how Google has abused its monopoly and why Google’s main antitrust defenses, like “competition is one click away,” are specious.

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Chart: How Google-AdMob Creates a Bottleneck; How New DOJ/FTC Merger Guidelines Affect the Deal”

Business - Capitalism - Computers - Economy/Finances - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

Google’s Liability Decade: Why Google’s Leadership Ducks Investors

April 30, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

The abrupt change, that Google’s CEO Eric Schmidt will no longer be accountable to shareholders on Google’s earnings calls, should prompt investors to ask why?

Google claimed that they wanted to put more focus on Google’s strong financials, but they did not disclose any more than Google’s usual barest minimum of information to investors. The most obvious reason for this abrupt change is the literal explosion of real franchise liabilities and risk overhangs to Google that reared their ugly heads this past quarter. Had CEO Schmidt been available to answer investor questions, Google’s exploding liabilities could have dominated the Q&A and the investment narrative coming out of the earnings call.

What has changed, and what Google has been not been open about, is the very serious ripening of three different types of going-forward franchise risks (antitrust, privacy/security and intellectual property) that cumulatively herald a de facto change in Google eras: from the roaring “Growth Decade” of 2000-2009, to the more unpredictable “Liability Decade” of 2010- 2019.
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Google’s Liability Decade: Why Google’s Leadership Ducks Investors”

Business - Capitalism - Computers - Economy/Finances - Free Trade - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

Why FCC’s broadband public option is a lose-lose gamble

April 27, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

The FCC would be making a longshot, bet-the-farm gamble, if it decided to mandate the broadband public option, i.e., deeming broadband to be a common-carrier-regulated service and regulating the Internet essentially for the first time.

It would be a classic lose-lose gamble because the FCC is very likely to lose in court — accomplishing nothing, but damaging the hard-built trust, cooperation and commitment necessary for public-private partnerships to be able to get broadband to all Americans fastest. Also everyone else would lose from the irreparable damage to private broadband investment, innovation, growth, jobs and America’s broadband ranking in the world.

I. Lose in Court:

It is a given that the FCC would be sued; and it is very likely that the Appeals Court and/or the Supreme Court would overturn any FCC unilateral assertion of authority to deem broadband a common carrier service. It is also likely that the court would stay such an FCC action from going into effect because of the likelihood of the petitioners winning on appeal and because of the easy case that it would cause irreparable harm.
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Why FCC’s broadband public option is a lose-lose gamble”

9/11 - Anti-Americanism - Anti-Semitism - Anti-War - Blogging - Budget - Chicago - Democrats/Leftists - Economy/Finances - Elections - GOP - Government - House of Representatives - Inernet - Liberals - New Media - President - Republicans - Senate - Socialism - Taxes - Tea Party - Technology - Warner Todd Huston

Sam Adams, Andrew Breitbart, and Me: The Third Annual Sammies Awards, a Report

April 17, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Warner Todd Huston

The Sam Adams Alliance, a free-market think tank that specializes in encouraging new media, held its third annual Sammies awards in beautiful downtown Chicago last Friday, April 16. This year the event hosted a visit by the Wall Street Journal’s John Fund and featured a keynote address by media maven Andrew Breitbart. And somewhere in the back of the room was little old me, your humble correspondent, there to report on the events of the night.

The Sammies are given to outstanding bloggers, community activists and purveyors of traditional American freedoms all of whom come from humble beginnings. Whether a frustrated mom, a put-upon property owner, or a school teacher that started a blog that ended up holding governments to account, the Sammies awards are intended to encourage citizen journalism, citizen activism, and organizing to affect our governments.


The Chicago Cultural Center, formerly the Public Library

This year’s event was held in the Chicago Cultural Center, formerly the building that housed the Chicago Public Library. The diner was beautifully laid out right under the famous stained glass dome created for the building by Tiffany’s of New York in 1897. We gathered beneath this great glass dome that is the spectacular feature of the Preston Bradley Hall of the Cultural Center.
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Sam Adams, Andrew Breitbart, and Me: The Third Annual Sammies Awards, a Report”

Blogging - Illinois - Inernet - Sam Adams Alliance - Warner Todd Huston

Going to the Sam Adams Sammies Awards

April 16, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

The Sammies Awards are to be held in beautiful downtown Chicago, Illinois tonight. I’ll be attending and (hopefully) live blogging — if my wireless works down there, which it may not. And if they have a place to do it from… which they may not! But, regardless, I’ll have a full report on the event when I get back at the very least.

The 2010 Sammies Awards show in Chicago is tonight, April 16, 2010. Sam Adams Alliance will recognize six of the country’s finest free-market activists and government watchdogs, and feature Internet media entrepreneur Andrew Breitbart as their special guest at this year’s awards show. They are also fortunate to have John Fund, of the Wall Street Journal, joining us at this year’s dinner. Hope to see you there!
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Going to the Sam Adams Sammies Awards”

Business - Capitalism - Computers - Economy/Finances - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Taxes - Technology

FCC deeming broadband to be regulated opens Pandora’s Box

April 16, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

Proponents of the FCC asserting new “deeming authority,” to “deem” broadband to be a regulated phone service and thus subject to the FCC’s existing Title II telephone authority, have not even begun to answer the most fundamental questions of what such a foundational change would mean.

Premature characterizations that this nouvelle, regulatory “deeming” would somehow be easy, clean or containable, simply have not thought through the potential chaos, havoc and uncertainty that such a radical, foundational and over-reaching regulatory “deeming” would wreak on:

  • Legal/policy precedent, clarity and stability;
  • Business investment and innovation — assumptions, incentives, models and practices;
  • Economic growth, private investment and job creation;
  • Industry financial stability, contracts and debt covenants; and
  • Trust, cooperation and respect the FCC needs to fulfill its mission and its National Broadband Plan.

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FCC deeming broadband to be regulated opens Pandora’s Box”

Business - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

Harms of a Potential New FCC De-Competition Policy — Reply Comments to FCC Open Internet NPRM

April 11, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

The FCC’s proposed Open Internet Regulations and/or the oft-rumored potential re-classification of broadband as a Title II telephone service effectively would create a new FCC “de-competition policy.” (For the one-page PDF submitted to the FCC click here.)

A new FCC “de-competition policy” would:

  • Supplant market-based competition policy with outdated common carrier regulation policy;
  • Shift the FCC’s primary purpose from promoting competition to promoting openness;
  • Replace the core mechanism for advancing consumer welfare from a voluntary, bottom-up, market-based competition system to a coerced, top-down, centralized, FCC regulation system; and
  • Remove users from being in charge of the Internet to the FCC asserting control over the Internet.

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Harms of a Potential New FCC De-Competition Policy — Reply Comments to FCC Open Internet NPRM”

Anti-Americanism - Chicago - Congress - Constitution - Cook County - Democrats/Leftists - House of Representatives - Illinois - State Government - Warner Todd Huston - YouTube

Ill. Rep. Hare Buying Stock in Wool Industry

April 2, 2010 by

-By Warner Todd Huston

A few days ago Rep. Phil Hare told some of his constituents that he didn’t care about the U.S. Constitution and that he was going to help push through Congress Obama’s un-Constitutional take over of our healthcare anyway. Unfortunately for Hare he was being video taped as he said it.

Today it has been revealed that Rep. Hare has invested heavily in the U.S. wool industry. To that end he’s made a nice little video for us where he addresses this whole Constitution thingie…

You are wondering about the “wool,” right? Well, obviously he’s invested heavily in wool because he’s trying to pull an awful lot of it over the people’s eyes with THIS little extravaganza of back peddling!

In his video Hare laments the “gotcha” form of politics that resulted in his first YouTube special. All I can say is they can’t have “gotcha” unless there was something to “got,” there Rep. Hare!

But ya gotta give the Hare credit. This was a quick like a bunny video posted to try and stem the tide of his plummeting reputation. And just before the Easter Bunny makes his rounds, Hare lays this egg on us!

Finally, I am thankful to Hare for his military service. But I am compelled to note that General Benedict Arnold served us well for several years, too.
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Ill. Rep. Hare Buying Stock in Wool Industry”

Blogging - Computers - Conservatives - Inernet - Warner Todd Huston

Publius Forum at 106 in DBKP Top Conservative Blogs

March 26, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Warner Todd Huston

Well, I was gratified and a bit shocked that Publius Forum almost made it into the DBKP Top 100 Conservative Blogs this year.

I have to confess that I don’t put as much time into advertising Publius Forum as I should and I don’t take any paid for advertising for the site, so we definitely are not a money-making venture here. So, the fact that we’ve gotten to #106 by sheer word of mouth and natural hits is quite an achievement, I think.
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Publius Forum at 106 in DBKP Top Conservative Blogs”

Budget - Business - Capitalism - Computers - Economy/Finances - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Taxes - Technology - YouTube

GBC: Google Broadcasting Co. — World Unicaster

March 24, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

First there was one-to-many broadcasting, then many-to-many Internet narrowcasting… now it appears we are moving next to a one-to-many GoogleNet unicasting future where every company and individual may simply become a subordinate channel on the Googleopoly advertising network, and where content largely would be found only via Google’s mono-search guide.

To better understand this troubling ongoing transformation, connect the dots below:

Google TV:

  • NYT: “Google and partners take aim at the TV;” “The move is an effort by Google and Intel to extend their dominance of computing into television, an arena where they have little sway.”
  • WSJ

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GBC: Google Broadcasting Co. — World Unicaster”

Atheism - Biology - Dr. Don Boys - Religion - Science - Technology

DNA in Your Body Would Reach to the Sun and Back–70 Times!

March 20, 2010 by

-By Don Boys, Ph.D.

Dr. James A. Shapiro, bacterial geneticist at the University of Chicago, and one of the leading researchers in his field said, “A cell under stress will splice its own DNA into over 100,000 pieces. Then a program senses hundreds of variables in its environment and then re-arranges those pieces to produce a new, better, evolved cell.” Please read that again. Absolutely astounding! Moreover, all that happened by accident; however, only a closed-minded fool or dedicated follower of the religion of evolution believes such balderdash.

All scientists admit that DNA is an informational code. It would have to be in order to accomplish what it does. However, creationists insist on knowing where the information came from. How does the DNA know to do the above? Professor Richard Dawkins did a television interview where he was asked about how information originated and he looked to his upper right then to his upper left, licked his lips, then looked at the camera, then to the interviewer and by this time even I was feeling sorry for his discomfort. Here was the number one atheist in the world without an answer for eleven loooong seconds. Finally, he told them to turn off the camera then after an unknown period of time, he came up with an irrelevant answer to give the impression to the stupid that he had given an answer to the question. If that had happened to me, I would be ashamed to show my face in public again. I sure would not go back on television. All he had to say was that God had placed all necessary information in our DNA. So pathetic.
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DNA in Your Body Would Reach to the Sun and Back–70 Times!”

Budget - Business - Computers - Democrats/Leftists - Google - Government - Inernet - Liberals - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

FTC now very likely to oppose Google-AdMob

March 16, 2010 by 1 Comment

-By Scott Cleland

The FTC is now very likely to file an injunction in Federal Court to block Google’s proposed acquisition of AdMob, if Google does not walk away from the deal, given that Bloomberg reports that the FTC is “seeking sworn declarations from Google Inc. competitors and advertisers.”

Why such signed declarations are particularly indicative of the likely outcome is that the FTC has moved largely from an investigative phase to largely a prosecution phase.

Given reports of signed declarations, a preliminary decision has been made by the FTC investigative staff (with the assent of, or direction from, the FTC Chairman), that the deal would “substantially lessen competition.” In other words, the FTC staff believe the deal would be a violation of antitrust law.

Remember, neither the FTC nor competitors/advertisers take lightly the signing of legal declarations about what would be said under oath in a court of law under the penalty of perjury.
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FTC now very likely to oppose Google-AdMob”

Anti-Americanism - Barack Obama - Budget - Business - Computers - Democrats/Leftists - Free Trade - History - Inernet - John Armor - Liberals - Media - Media Bias - Net Neutrality - Taxes - Technology

Lies, Damned Lies, and Expert Testimony

March 11, 2010 by

-By John Armor

Before we get rolling, a pet peeve. Entirely too many reporters are too lazy to check their quotes. Time and again, they will say in their lede that “some wag referred to lies, damned lies, and statistics.” No, no, no. That was not “some wag;” that was the greatest of all American humorists, Mark Twain.

Twain’s Autobiography attributes the quote to the quick-witted British Prime Minister, Benjamin Disreali. But Disraeli’s biographers can find no trace of it. Apparently, Twain attributed it to someone else who was conveniently dead, to fend off attacks for using that shameful word, “damned,”

I’ve modified the Twain quote to apply to recent hearings before the Federal Communications Commission. I’ve testified before a handful of federal hearings. I’ve attended dozens of such hearings. And I’ve never heard more lying, by more people, not even from sitting through an entire day of traffic court and hearing the infinite reasons why each particular motorist was not guilty.
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Lies, Damned Lies, and Expert Testimony”

Budget - Business - Capitalism - Computers - Democrats/Leftists - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Liberals - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

Google-AdMob: An FTC Antitrust Enforcement Watershed — Lessons from Google-DoubleClick & EU

March 9, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

Will the FTC strictly enforce antitrust laws in its review of Google’s AdMob acquisition? Google-Admob is a watershed decision for the FTC given that Google recently blew off the DOJ’s serious antitrust objections to the pending Google Book Settlement; The EU opened a preliminary investigation of antitrust complaints against Google from companies in the UK, France and Germany; and The DOJ had to play backstop to the FTC and block the Google-Yahoo Ad Agreement, less than a year after the FTC incorrectly assumed in their 4-1 approval of the Google-DoubleClick deal that Yahoo and others would provide sufficient competition to Google and Google acquiring DoubleClick would not “substantially lessen competition” or tip Google to a monopoly.

A recent New York Post article: “FTC inclined to approve Google’s acquisition of AdMob” states the deal “may just squeak by federal regulators.”

It’s pretty obvious the article’s source came from the Google camp and not the FTC, given the political nature of the source’s views: the FTC “will likely not rule until Obama nominees” are confirmed by the Senate, strongly implying that the:

Administration’s close political ties with Google would trump any career staff law enforcement findings of fact or the law and the lone FTC vote against the 4-1 Google-DoubleClick deal approval, Commissioner Jones-Harbor, will no longer be at the FTC.

Why is this Google spin on the FTC’s inclination likely false?
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Google-AdMob: An FTC Antitrust Enforcement Watershed — Lessons from Google-DoubleClick & EU”

Budget - Capitalism - Computers - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Liberals - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

Foundem FCC Filing Documents Google Search Network Discrimination; Window into EU-Google Antitrust Case

March 2, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

Foundem, a UK vertical search competitor to Google, documents serial anticompetitive discrimination on Google’s search network, in a data-driven filing to the FCC in the FCC’s Open Internet regulation proceeding.

It is logical that the data-driven analysis in Foundem’s public FCC filing is an integral part of Foundem’s antitrust case against Google, which Foundem recently submitted to the EU, but which has not been released yet.

Therefore, Foundem’s FCC filing may be the best publicly available window into what the EU investigation of Google’s anticompetitive practices entails.

In essence, the Foundem filing accuses Google of monopolistic self-dealing and bundling.
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Foundem FCC Filing Documents Google Search Network Discrimination; Window into EU-Google Antitrust Case”

Blogging - Computers - Illinois - Inernet - Sam Adams Alliance - State Government - Warner Todd Huston

Sam Adams Alliance: The Sammies April 16

February 22, 2010 by

Sam Adams Alliance is proud to announce that we will be hosting the Sammies April 16, 2010, at the Chicago Cultural Center with special guest Andrew Breitbart.

The last year has been one of the most active and visible for citizen leaders who support free markets and individual liberty. Join us for dinner, drinks, and conversation as we honor the very best at our third-annual awards show in downtown Chicago. Purchase your tickets today: http://thesammies.com/attend/.

WHAT: The Sammies
WHEN: Friday, April 16, 2010
WHERE: The Chicago Cultural Center / 78 E. Washington Street, Chicago, IL
WHO: Andrew Breitbart, and all of this year’s Sammies winners

PURCHASE TICKETS: http://bit.ly/csL0YQ

Budget - Business - Computers - Economy/Finances - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Taxes - Technology

How much should Google be subsidized?

February 22, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

Pending FCC policy proposals in the National Broadband Plan and the Open Internet regulation proceeding would vastly expand the implicit multi-billion dollar subsidies Google already enjoys, as by far the largest user of Internet bandwidth and the smallest contributor to the Internet’s cost relative to its use.

Interestingly, the FCC’s largely Google-driven policy proposals effectively would:

  • Promote Google’s gold-plated, 1 Gigabit broadband vision for the National Broadband Plan at a time of trillion dollar Federal budget deficits;
  • Recommend a substantial expansion of public subisidies for broadband that would commercially benefit Google most without requiring Google to contribute its fair share to universal broadband service; and
  • Regulate the Internet for the first time in a way that would result in heavily subsidizing Google’s out-of-control bandwidth usage.

I. Does Google need more subsidies?

Google is one of the most-profitable, fastest-growing, cash-rich companies in the world, with over $10b in annual free cash flow, 17% revenue growth and ~$25b in cash on hand.
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How much should Google be subsidized?”

Budget - Business - Computers - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

FCC: Forced Access Uneconomics & Selective Math?

February 19, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

The FCC just signaled it is considering requiring forced access and more special access as part of its soon to be released National Broadband Plan.

Colin Crowell, a top aide to FCC Chairman Genachowski told Bloomberg that mandating that competitors lease their facilities to other competitors “has a lot of appeal as part of a national strategy” in order to help small businesses grow and aid job creation.
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FCC: Forced Access Uneconomics & Selective Math?”

Budget - Computers - Democrats/Leftists - Free Trade - Google - Inernet - Net Neutrality - Scott Cleland - Technology

FCC Reclassification is Eminent Domain, but with No Just Compensation or Authority

February 7, 2010 by

-By Scott Cleland

At core the FCC’s contemplation of reclassifying, or effectively treating, unregulated broadband info services as regulated telecom services, would be tantamount to the FCC declaring “eminent domain” over private broadband providers, i.e. justifying a government takings of private property for public uses, but doing so “without just compensation” or any statutory authority.

The U.S. Constitution’s Fifth Amendment requires: “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”

A gaping missing element in all the FCC’s discussions of all the new “public uses” it envisions for broadband in its pending National Broadband Plan and its proposed preemptive Open Internet regulations is any consideration at all of the potential hundreds of billions of dollars of un-budgeted liability to the U.S. Treasury that could result from the takings of private network property without just compensation — at a time of skyrocketing trillion dollar Federal budget deficits and rapidly mounting public debt.

The FCC appears to be operating under the sweeping and heroic presumption that any prospective FCC regulatory action it may take here is essentially cost-free to the U.S. taxpayer and will be completely shouldered by broadband shareholders; in other words, the Fifth Amendment appears to be irrelevant to FCC decisionmaking.
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FCC Reclassification is Eminent Domain, but with No Just Compensation or Authority”