I rarely do these things – tell people to call governors to tell them to veto bills – but this one is really important. The Pennsylvania Senate passed House Bill 30 which prohibits municipalities from delivering telecommunications services for compensation if it competes with private enterprise. The bill is now awaiting signature by Governor Rendell but he has grave reservations about the proposed law and won’t sign it unless significant revisions are made, notably to the prohibition on municipalities offering telecoms services.

Tell the Gov you don’t want this bill to become law and tell him they’ve got to take that section banning munis from offering telecoms services. It’s not that I think munis should be offering these types of services, rather I believe they should have the option of doing so, especially where there is a duopoly (one cable and one DSL operator).

Telephone Governor Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania at (717) 787-2500.

Note: Although House Bill 30 has been in the works for a year, the most restrictive language was added in only last week. In essence it says that we, the people, through our duly elected representatives, have to ask Verizon (or any other private telecoms provider) for permission to set up an alternative network. Doesn’t anyone find this appalling? Once upon a time, it was the other way around – private companies had to ask our elected officials for permission to dig streets, set up electric poles, build roads, etc.

Muniwireless: Pennsylvania Senate Passes House Bill 30: Call the Governor: 11/20/2004

It was shortly after the election, and he wanted to let me know that he thought how I got involved was inspiring. I didn’t think it amounted to all that much. But I was happy to have contributed in someway.

More importantly, I’ve told him this before, I told him again that night, and I’ll say it again now – he’s the inspiring one.

There are two responses to adversity: You can point a finger at everyone else, screaming from a soapbox in your bedroom – or you choose to fight.

Put your name down. Make a donation. Volunteer someplace.

Damn straight Oliver! Great stuff. This is just what is needed – not a return to cynicism and defeatism that so many are apt to fall into. If all you do is point fingers and play Monday morning quarterback – you’re part of the problem. If you have ideas – lay your cards on the table. I’m eliminating from my reading list the obvious whiners who thrive off of negativity and do nothingness. Get involved.

Dear Karl,

I want to thank you personally for what you did in the election — you rewrote the book on grassroots politics, taking control of campaigns away from big donors. No campaign will ever be the same.

You moved voters, helped hold George Bush accountable, and countered the attacks from big news organizations such as Fox, Sinclair Broadcasting, and conservative talk radio.

And your efforts count now more than ever. Despite the words of cooperation and moderate sounding promises, this administration is planning a right wing assault on values and ideals we hold most deeply. Healthy debate and diverse opinion are being eliminated from the State Department and CIA, and the cabinet is being remade to rubber stamp policies that will undermine Social Security, balloon the deficit, avoid real reforms in health care and education, weaken homeland security, and walk away from critical allies around the world.

Regardless of the outcome of this election, once all the votes are counted — and they will be counted — we will continue to challenge this administration. This is not a time for Democrats to retreat and accommodate extremists on critical principles — it is a time to stand firm.

I will fight for a national standard for federal elections that has both transparency and accountability in our voting system. It’s unacceptable in the United States that people still don’t have full confidence in the integrity of the voting process.

I ask you to join me in this cause.

And we must fight not only against George Bush’s extreme policies — we must also uphold our own values. This is why on the first day Congress is in session next year, I will introduce a bill to provide every child in America with health insurance. And, with your help, that legislation will be accompanied by the support of hundreds of thousands of Americans.

There are more than eight million uninsured children in our nation.

That’s eight million reasons for us to stay together and fight for a new direction. It is a disgrace that in the wealthiest nation on earth, eight million children go without health insurance.

Normally, a member of the Senate will first approach other senators and ask them to co-sponsor a bill before it is introduced — instead, I am turning to you. Imagine the power of a bill co-sponsored by hundreds of thousands of Americans being presented on the floor of the United States Senate. You can make it happen. Sign our “Every Child Protected” pledge today and forward it to your family, friends, and neighbors:

http://johnkerry.com/EveryChild

This is the beginning of a second term effort to hold the Bush administration accountable and to stand up and fight for our principles and our values. They want you to disappear; they are counting on that. I’m confident you will prove them wrong, and you will rewrite history again.

Here is what I want you to know. I understand the strength, commitment, and passion that are at the core of what we built together — and I am determined to make our collective energy and organization a force to be reckoned with in the weeks and months ahead.

Let’s roll up our sleeves and get back to work for our country.

Thank you,
John Kerry

John Kerry email to supporters: 11/19/2004

Me and thousands of others got this email today. I gotta tell ya – I am very, very excited that Kerry isn’t going to let the enthusiasm of so many volunteers fall by the way side. It’s one very big email list of people that want to make a change for the better. Sign the petition folks. Sign your name and take a stand.

BTW – Even if the video is word for-word a reading of the email above, it’s great to see.

Happy Birthday to you.

…does the FCC have the legal status necessary to regulate digital TV or not? Susan Crawford has been following this, and posted the brief (PDF) that was filed by the FCC in response to this question, along with her thoughts on the implications of the FCC’s increased bravado:

The FCC’s brief, filed in response to PK’s challenge to FCC’s jurisdiction in the flag matter, is breathtaking. FCC’s position is that its Act gives it regulatory power over all instrumentalities, facilities, and apparatus “associated with the overall circuit of messages sent and received” via all interstate radio and wire communication. That’s quite a claim.

The scope of such a claim is immense, reaching people’s PCs and any other conceivable digital television consumption device. Unfortunately, it’s evident that much of the FCC’s latest legislation (and hubris) comes at the behest of the larger players in the content production industry, which doesn’t bode well for consumers. The trifecta of increasingly draconian copyright restriction, combined with the new ability (via the DMCA) of private entities to effectively set their own copyright rules outside scope of the law, and an FCC that thinks it controls as much as it does, create a harsh environment for smaller companies and consumers. Indeed, the FCC’s dismissal of 70 years of procedures reflects the potential problems we could face in near future

arstechnica: FCC clarifies that they do, in fact, control everything: 11/15/2004

I wonder when they will tell me my blog, mailing lists, or email is indecent?