On Thu, 5 Feb 1998, Perry E. Metzger wrote:
> Jim Dixon writes:
> > The gTLD MOU has very serious, probably fatal, flaws.
>
> I do not agree.
>
> I think the MoU has powerful enemies, like NSI, and that no solution
> that makes sense to the consumer is ever going to be accepted by
> them. They want their monopoly, and they want it forever.
Your actions are the strongest argument that NSI has.
NSI wants their monopoly perpetuated. It will be unless there is
a credible alternative. At this point the gTLD MOU simply does
not represent a credible alternative, because it has so little
support.
> So far as I can tell (and I talk to a lot of people) the overwhelming
> majority of the people who give a damn support us. The complainers
> have difficulty complaining about what we propose to do, because it
> makes far too much sense, so they bitch about our structure, which is
> nearly irrelevant, but provides them with an excuse for attempting to
> destroy us so that they can substitute their cherished and profitable
> monopoly operations.
This is a deeply irrational argument. In this discussion I represent
ISPs, who have no monopoly and to whom domain name registrations
are a tiny fraction of their business. Claiming that all opposition
to the gTLD MOU rises from profit motives is a convenient way of
dealing with harsh truths.
I don't know of any ISPs that support the gTLD MOU. Most are like
me: they more or less support the principles involved, but have
little patience with the elaborate detail embedded in the MOU.
I talk to a lot of ISPs.
> Now, Jim, you've signed that MoU. That means you support it. If you do
> not support it, withdraw your signature, because it was a lie and made
> simply so you could join this mailing list, and go away and let us
> deal with the green paper business. If you *do* support it, start
> pitching in and helping, instead of acting like a bull in a china
> shop.
As I told Robert Shaw when I sent in the MOU, we have many serious
reservations about the gTLD MOU. I will send in a disclaimer to
be attached as soon as we settle on a common text.
I am afraid that "helping" in this case does not mean accepting the
quasi-religious sentiments behind the MOU.
The MOU has failed to build support. If you don't recognize this,
if this group cannot do the elementary arithmetic necessary, then
there is no hope for the gTLD MOU.
Real help for the gTLD MOU includes telling the truth.
-- Jim Dixon VBCnet GB Ltd http://www.vbc.net tel +44 117 929 1316 fax +44 117 927 2015
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