Month: February 2015

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FCC Broadband Debate: How We Got Here

FPB logoppcommissioners-nov-2013-web-2

President Obama and the FCC have weighed in on Net Neutrality, increased government regulation, and the debates over universal access, “fast lanes,” taxes and fees, and “general conduct rules” – including possible rules on content. Congress and the courts will have their turn.

In the meantime, where did this debate come from?

It is critically important to the Internet’s evolution that it became widespread and commercial during the 1990s. Netscape, Amazon.com, Yahoo!, Google, Wikipedia, and the Drudge Report changed and created industries during an era of free trade, free markets and deregulation….  

But if the Internet had become mainstream after the security crackdowns after September 11, 2001, or during the re-regulation era following the 2007–08 financial crisis, it might have developed very differently.

More at Foreign Policy Association’s blogs…

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Eroding Authority of Government?

combo6When a senior defense advisor referred to an “eroding authority of government,” it got me thinking about what impacts that might have on foreign policy making.

I mused about it for the Foreign Policy Association blogs.

If the people don’t trust government, or, to be more precise, if citizens don’t view their government as having the “authority,” expertise, judgment, disposition, or political competency to make foreign policy, how does that impact the process and outcomes?

The “authority of government” has long been acknowledged as essential in successful foreign policy making.  The Weinberger Doctrine and Powell Doctrine noted the importance of the support of public opinion, as did Philip Crowl, head of strategy for the Naval War College.  So did Raoul Castex,Clausewitz and Sun Tzu. …

The Pew Research Center shows that millennials are less likely to identify with a political party – and less likely to trust people in general – than previous generations.  A similar pattern is emerging inscience, with scientists and the public increasingly far apart on climate change, genetically-modified foods, and vaccinations. …

You can read the post here – thanks very much.