Sometimes the financial news is so much more important than publishing rumors, we have to read it. Check out this story at Fortune. The bottom line:
Lessig, a Stanford Law School professor who founded its Center for Internet and Society, said he came to this conclusion after a conversation with former federal counter-terrorism adviser Richard Clarke. Lessig said Clarke told him that the Justice Department had already written up much of the Patriot Act before the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, and that there is a similar proposal on the shelf in case of an Internet catastrophe. Advocates of Internet openness will not be thrilled about its contents, Lessig said. “Vint Cerf is not going to like it very much,” Lessig recalls Clark saying.
We posted an interview recently with Lessig. I find his work and his life to be endlessly fascinating. I’ll look more into this particular topic. I hadn’t known about the “in case of an Internet catastrophe” part.
We’ve been hearing about Internet 2, an expensive, government controlled network poised to replace the current one as early as 2010. ISPs will continue to slow down and provide undiserable service. Eventually, they won’t be maintained at all and users will welcome a new network. It’s only the tip of the iceberg.
People should read this.