Franken shaping up as friend of freedom for the internet economy

As one of those crazy kids with the internets and the blogs I was very proud that Minnesota’s new senator Al Franken chose to spend his first moment in the white hot spotlights of the Supreme Court confirmation hearings to discuss net neutrality.

The expansion of availability and education of how to use high speed internet is crucial to Minnesota’s economy. I continue to argue that it is the only non-obvious solution to the economic woes of rural and northern Minnesota. Net neutrality — the concept that the internet should remain essentially in the public domain, not controlled by large private companies — is central to these ideas. I get the feeling that Sen. Franken is sincere in his pursuit of a technology-friendly solution to our economic problems. That’s no small thing because net neutrality benefits small time conservative bloggers as much as it does small time liberal ones like me. It’s probably the most important issue of constitutional law we face in the 21st century. Hey Al, good question!

Comments

  1. Definitely agree!

  2. Wow!!!

    What tough questioning from the Senators from MN!!!

    Franken: “…you mentioned “Perry Mason.” I was a big fan of “Perry Mason.” I watched “Perry Mason”… And we’d watch the clock… It was a great show. And it amazes me that you wanted to become a prosecutor based on that show because, in “Perry Mason,…
    you were watching “Perry Mason”
    I was watching “Perry Mason”
    (…blah blah blah blah blah….)

    KLOBUCHAR: Thank you. That was very well said….
    Did you have a chance to watch the All-Star game last night because most of American didn’t watch the replay of your hearing?
    ————————-

    Real tough questions!!!
    *blush*
    Minnesota could have and should have done a much better job of selecting Senators.

    And, as for Judge Sotomayor, don’t you think Obama could have done a much better job of nominating the best of the best, the cream of the crop?
    We are talking about the highest court in the land.
    Aaron, wouldn’t you agree that Obama should have done a much better job?

  3. And the republicans did much better?????? Asking the same question over and over????? Interesting that the commentators played a replay from one of the last confirmation hearings where the same senators criticized other senators for asking the same questions over and over. I guess they don’t listen to each other and to themselves! The whole thing was a farce, especially considering that some of the senators couldn’t even realize how demeaning some of their questions were. Regardless of my feelings about Sotomayor, I’d say, Kudos to her for sitting there and “taking” those comments without dumping back on those senators. Even my kids will say to me, “You’ve said that already!” in an angry tone.

  4. What? Ahhh, yes, go on the offensive against the Republicans.
    Please, a little intellectual honesty, is that too much to ask?

    The questioning wasn’t hard enough.

    We are talking about a life appointment to the highest court in the land!!!

    Flippantly dismissing the questions that were asked is not in the best interests of our country.

    Sotomayor tried to paint some of those questions as something like “oops maybe I could have used different words that time” except that she said pretty much the same thing on SEVEN occasions.

    Do you people really support the racist views of La Raza? (The Race)
    I disagree, PS/Aaron/et al, this nominee is far from the best of the best or the cream of the crop.

    Wouldn’t you agree that Obama should have done a much better job?

  5. Sotomayor doesn’t even believe you have a right to self defense.

    She picks and chooses which amendments apply to the states and which don’t.

    Hurry up and vote her in, quick, hurry, before the sheeple catch on?

  6. I actually thought that quite a number of the questions from both sides were unworthy of the occasion. When some of the commentary “news” shows ran clips of past confirmation hearings, it was easy to see that the general way these hearing work is for the “in” party to lob soft balls and for the “out” party to find things to criticize that are not the most important things that need to be discussed. And, apparently, the nominee is coached to say as little as possible.

    The senators could have used their questioning time more wisely, either with better questions, or by skipping some of the rounds so that they could work on issues that affect us all.

    From the commentaries I heard about present and past Justices, they often turn out to be much different from the expectation of the party that nominated them.

    When there was talk about bias and balance, I couldn’t help but think that having a new Justice who is city-raised isn’t exactly the diversity factor that those of us in rural areas might want. How can a NY city person really understand the vast spaces of the western part of the Midwest, for example. How can they understand agricultural issue?

    Each of the nominees, during the years when I’ve followed these things, had some major detractors. But I suppose any of us know people who don’t love us too.

  7. Anonymous says

    Right in line with Biden’s high tech thinking…

    “We’re going to go bankrupt as a nation,” Biden said.

    “Now, people when I say that look at me and say, ‘What are you talking about, Joe? You’re telling me we have to go spend money to keep from going bankrupt?’” Biden said. “The answer is yes, that’s what I’m telling you.”

    Wow…come on now folks, let’s apply a little Glenn Beck “Common Sense”!!

  8. For the most part I am staying out of this discussion. Very little of it is relevant to my point about high speed internet and net neutrality. But Glenn Beck? Really?

    Really?

    Really?

    If that is really your model for common sense there is no way there is any point in continuing this conversation.

  9. Anonymous says

    OK…then let’s use Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” thinking, or better yet, our own.

    But for heavens sake, the last person we should turn to for a “solution to our economic problems” is Alfranken’s. The guys a jokester…at best.

  10. thanks for this great link ,, thanks

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