RE: [wg-review] 3.Constituencies - RTF Report

["Joanna Lane" <jo-uk@rcn.com>]

1/30/01 1:13:54 PM, Kent Crispin <kent@songbird.com> wrote:
>
> >Here you express one of the most pernicious misconceptions about ICANN.
> >ICANN is NOT A GOVERNMENT.  If you persist in trying to think of it in
> >those terms you are doomed to disappointment, and your comments are
> >meaningless.

Kent,
It must be very frustrating for you to have to repeat this same statement
constantly, but the problem is, interested persons are aware of the Public
Interest Group's letter to the DoC of Jan 16th, and it's becoming
increasingly  difficult to believe that ICANN has not overstepped the
boundary by its actions. These are very serious concerns and I have no doubt
you will agree the writers of this document are not so easily dismissed:-

<snip>
"By severely limiting the domain space and by making decisions based on
criteria which appear to go well beyond technical issues, it can be
reasonably argued that ICANN and/or the Department of Commerce is making
content and viewpoint based decisions regarding the value of new gTLDs.  In
its current form this decision making process would appear to violate basic
Constitutional precepts."
<snip>
"As to the ICANN Board's actual decision-making process, two things are
evident. First, this was not a standard-making process. At no time in its
deliberations did the ICANN Board ever consider any technical standards
issue. The sole questions were those of allocation: which social policies to
further by providing a gTLD, which applicants were worthy to manage those
gTLDs, which business plans impressed the Board as best-financed, and which
names struck the Board as most attractive. "

Sincerely,

Barry Steinhardt, Associate Director
Laura W. Murphy, Washington National Office Director
American Civil Liberties Union

Barbara Simons
Past-President
Association for Computing Machinery

Hans Klein
Chair
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility

Andrew Shen
Policy Analyst
Electronic Privacy Information Center

A. Michael Froomkin
Professor
University of Miami (Florida) School of Law

Cc: Secretary-Designate Donald Evans
Representative Billy Tauzin
Representative Fred Upton
 http://www.icannwatch.org/archives/quick/979766847.shtml


By the way, I don't have an up to date proposal from you regarding possible
reform of the DNSO, and in particular, the Constituencies. I'd be most
grateful if you would clarify your position on reform to post to the website
alongside others for review by this WG.

Regards,
Joanna


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