[ga] ICANN is dishonest and corrupt.

[Roeland Meyer <rmeyer@mhsc.com>]

Title:

|> From: Joanna Lane [mailto:jo-uk@rcn.com] Sent: Monday, November 26, 2001 3:14 AM

I've taken the liberty of reformatting, reformulating, and catagorizing your list;

False Claims:

1. claiming a "narrow technical mission" (avoids engagement in an argument one cannot win),
2. claiming "societal issues" must be given proper consideration in policy decisions (useful to advance "mission creep"),
3. claiming lack of adequate representation/ consensus building procedures (isolates and disarms opponents),
4. issuing a Press Release to claim wide community support for a new policy (avoids having to produce any supporting documentation),
5. claiming that ICANN is an evolving process (valid defense against material evidence of failed policies),
6. claiming that ICANN is not a legal enforcing organization (protects the interests of donors that are in breach of contract),

Procedural misconduct:

1. denying input from selected groups (useful to ensure constituencies recommend policies that fit with master plan),
2. withdrawing Secretariat services (good for sabotaging the tenure of potentially effective Chairs and Working Groups),
3. creating an intake committee (filtering device to eliminate unwanted agenda items),
4. making an announcement to run a particular course of action (useful to override a resolution that has been passed for an opposite course of action- only effective if the issue has been ignored for a while),
5. deciding that the views of 7 - 21 people represents community consensus (reduces the workload to substantiate desired results/ eliminates assembly input without the need to restructure)
6. bribing (useful to ensure the successful outcome of almost anything - including "elections")
7. revisionism (useful for making discreet amendments to published documents on community websites),
8. witholding information (in particular financial expenditure/ budgetary cuts that cannot be substantiated),
9. selective failure to enforce Registrar agreements (write "politically correct" clauses into contracts which both signatories know will not be enforced) .

When analyzed this way, one can draw many parallels between ICANN behavior and that of the most corrupt politcal machines, in the finest American tradition. The evidence is plentiful and covers a large span of time (2 years). This is basically the foot print of a corrupt and dishonest organization.

 

Many years ago, in my very first business classes, the admonition was placed to NEVER do business with dishonest people or organizations. I saw the seeds of this corruption and dishonesty when the ICANN was still called NewCo and before US DOC signed the MoU, all of us in the ORSC did. Stef withdrew the ORSC from the ICANN universe. MHSC chose not to follow them. However, MHSC also made a policy decision to not fund any part of ICANN, under any circumstances, as long as the corruption existed. Time and resources would be spent, but no cash would be provided. That policy decision is still in place. I am also sure, from behavior, that others have made similar decisions. This is the policy responsible for MHSC not participating in last years TLD lottery, even though we have extant TLDs in operation.

 

Had the ICANN excized its own corruption, then MHSC would have been close enough to the process to help the reformed organization. Failing that, MHSC would have adequate forewarning of possible problems wrt business strategy and will have helped surface a sufficient portion of the corruption that it becomes publically available knowlege. At this point in time, MHSC feels that this goal has been achieved. The corruption is visible in all of its inglorious splendor, for all the world to see, should they care to look. In addition, we had hoped to prevent the fragmentation of the DNS name space, which is now occuring (we've failed there).

 

It is MHSC opinion that;

1. The ICANN has now discredited itself sufficiently that it is no longer a significant factor,
2. It continues to cast a dark shadow on internet business, but the tumors are shrinking,
3. The ICANN is responsible for current and continuing DNS name space fragmentation and that it will continue to exacerbate the problem, with its corrupt policies and intransigent positions.
4. We have reached the point of diminishing returns wrt correcting the problem from within the ICANN.
5. We don't think that our worst fears will materialize in the present US Administration. The ICANN doesn't have much credibility there either.
6. Negotiating with a dishonest entity, isn't negotiating. However, it does serve to surface any latent dishonesty.

With these points in mind, MHSC will be winding down its ICANN-related activities between now and the end of the year. On 3Jan02, my 48th birthday present to myself is to unsubscribe from all the ICANN lists and remove that level of stress from my life. Business in a down economy is sufficiently exciting, that I don't need more excitement, generated by corrupt regimes and dishonest organizations, that have discredited themselves sufficiently such that, they no longer have any potential impact on my world. There is no longer any point to beating my head on the blockhouse door any longer then I have to.

 

I will also begin phasing in a new email address, between now and then. After 7 years, this one just collects too much spam.

 

Notes:

1. WRT False Claim(6) and Procedural misconduct(9); In the USA, the signatories of any contract are mutually bound to enforce that agreement. However, in normal cases, no one else is so bound, unless portions of said contract violate some criminal statute. Third-parties cannot enforce a contract that they are not signatory to. This also holds for the US Government, as a non-signatory party. Ergo, the only enforcement authority, for registrar agreements, is the ICANN. If ICANN chooses to not enforce a point of the contract then that point isn't worth the ink used to print it. (this is Business Law 101, and IANAL).
2. The difference between an honest politician and a corrupt one is that the honest politician stays bought. The ICANN isn't even that honest, as both the winners and the losers of the TLD lottery can atest.

--
IANAL = I Am Not A Lawyer. Before taking legal action based on anything I say or write, you are strongly encouraged to seek the advice of an attorney.

--
R O E L A N D  M J  M E Y E R
Managing Director
Morgan Hill Software Company
tel: +1 925 373 3954
cel: +1 925 352 3615
fax: +1 925 373 9781
http://www.mhsc.com