tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11887973.post115660261693456614..comments2023-11-02T04:58:34.355-04:00Comments on Libertarian Party of Allen County, Indiana: Verison DSL should be ashamed...Jeannette Jaquishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00226385515110623744noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11887973.post-1156794226664996302006-08-28T15:43:00.000-04:002006-08-28T15:43:00.000-04:00Robert,There is no doubt that publicly financed el...Robert,<BR/><BR/>There is no doubt that publicly financed elections will not end all the problems our government faces but to say it will do "nothing" is quite a stretch in my opinion...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11887973.post-1156769314905159422006-08-28T08:48:00.000-04:002006-08-28T08:48:00.000-04:00Jeff,There are other reasons why an elected offici...Jeff,<BR/>There are other reasons why an elected official might support corporate welfare:<BR/><BR/>1. Donations to a PAC that either endorses the candidate's issues or denounces his opponent.<BR/>2. A sincere (but mistaken) belief that government grants to a business are good for the economy.<BR/>3. If the business is located within or near the official's district, that official will vote to subsidize that business and brag to his constituents that he is bringing jobs to the community.Robert Endershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15592475828737641009noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11887973.post-1156720849370975012006-08-27T19:20:00.000-04:002006-08-27T19:20:00.000-04:00Mike,You say:"Do this and you will take away the i...Mike,<BR/><BR/>You say:<BR/><BR/>"Do this and you will take away the incentive for the massive lobbying for subsidies, protections."<BR/><BR/>but then you also say:<BR/><BR/>"Publicly financed elections will do *nothing* to eliminate the urge by corporations to lobby for subsidies."<BR/><BR/>These are completely contradictory statements. Do you not think that if politicians didn't have to rely on corporate "donations" to finance their campaign then the incentive for lobbying would diminish?<BR/><BR/>What is their current lobbying tool? It's not their good looks and charm - it's campaign contributions. It's bribery - plain and simple. And I think there can be NO DOUBT that publicly financed elections would help stem the corruption in congress.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11887973.post-1156686246959122432006-08-27T09:44:00.000-04:002006-08-27T09:44:00.000-04:00As ever, the solution is to get government power o...As ever, the solution is to get government power out of telecom. End the franchising. End the semi-monopolies. Do this and you will take away the incentive for the massive lobbying for subsidies, protections.<BR/><BR/>Publicly financed elections will do *nothing* to eliminate the urge by corporations to lobby for subsidies.Mike Kolehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17573721231319244630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11887973.post-1156609292745600392006-08-26T12:21:00.000-04:002006-08-26T12:21:00.000-04:00I HATE Verizon. I switched to cable internet, whic...I HATE Verizon. I switched to cable internet, which is slightly more expensive. But I offset the cost by using internet phone, which runs about $14 to $25 a month, and that includes long distance. The only drawbacks are that internet phone service will not work during a power outage and I cannot receive collect calls. Plus I have to buy some equipment but that is offset when I save money in the long run.Robert Endershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15592475828737641009noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11887973.post-1156608112059247612006-08-26T12:01:00.000-04:002006-08-26T12:01:00.000-04:00Mike,This is just the beginning. The Republican pa...Mike,<BR/><BR/>This is just the beginning. The Republican party is currently being lobbied VERY hard by the telecom giants - and for what? Well they want to update the 1996 Telecommunications Act - and the new bills in both the House and the Senate are about as anti-consumer as they get.<BR/><BR/>I don't even know where to begin to list all the bad things about these bills:<BR/><BR/>1)Universal Service (Slush) Fund increases on local/toll, wireless and VoIP calls. Keep in mind that this provides around $4 Billion dollars per year in direct subsidies back to telecom companies.<BR/><BR/>2)An additional 1% tax on cable companies that will passed directly to the consumer<BR/><BR/>3)The service standard would only be set at 200kbps - 500 times lower than current Asian standards of 100Mbps<BR/><BR/>4)Anti Net-Neutrality. I don't want to get started on this as I'll be steaming mad all afternoon if I do. Suffice to say that the telecom companies want to change the architecture of the internet so that it benefits them financially. The catch, it won't benefit consumers. Every single tech company and consumer advocacy group are against these bills. Yet the Republican party insists on shoving them down the American throat. <BR/><BR/>I think voters need to ask themselves "why is that?" This also highlights why we need to remove the legalized bribery system we currently have and replace it with publicly financed elections.<BR/><BR/>Oh, and of course Mark Souder voted FOR the House bill and AGAINST the net-neutrality amendment.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com