Farber suggests the IAB:
Jay.
(when did he join the PFIR?)
At 3/18/02 10:34 PM, PFIR - People For Internet Responsibility wrote:
> Overcoming ICANN: Forging Better Paths for the Internet
>
>
> March 18, 2002
>
>
> PFIR - People For Internet Responsibility - http://www.pfir.org
>
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>
>
>
> David J. Farber
> Peter G. Neumann
> Lauren Weinstein
>
> March 18, 2002
>
> http://www.pfir.org/statements/icann
>
>
>Overcoming ICANN: Forging Better Paths for the Internet
>
>An Open Letter to the Global Internet Community
>
>
>Despite its best efforts, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and
>Numbers (ICANN) has proven overall to be a failed experiment in Internet
>policy development, implementation, and management. ICANN's lack of
>meaningful representation, and its continuing pattern of drastic and
>seemingly arbitrary structural and policy changes (among other
>shortcomings), have created an unstable and suspicion-ridden environment
>that is detrimental to the interests of the vast majority of Internet users
>around the world. The resulting overly politicized situation not only
>threatens the stability of the Internet itself, but also invites drastic and
>undesirable interventions by a variety of vested interests.
>
>We will not in this document detail the range of specific problems and
>issues, which have become widely recognized and known. Key aspects of the
>problems relating to the Internet and ICANN have been outlined in previous
>statements [1][2][3], along with a set of basic proposed Internet guiding
>principles [4]. The continuing rapid deterioration relating to ICANN and
>its impact on the Internet now forces us to recommend the following three
>actions.
>
>First, as an immediate temporary measure, all Internet policy, operational,
>and other Internet-related functions currently performed by ICANN should be
>transferred, as soon as practicable while maintaining continuity, to a
>different, already existing non-profit organization (or organizations) on a
>non-permanent, strictly stewardship basis. One potential candidate we would
>suggest considering for this role would be the Internet Architecture Board
>(IAB), although there are a range of other possibilities of course. The
>process to plan and begin a transfer of responsibilities from ICANN should
>be initiated immediately.
>
>Next, we recommend that an intensive, international study be started at
>once, with a mandate to propose detailed and meaningful paths for the
>Internet's development, operations, and management. The goal of this study
>would be to help guide the formation of purpose-built representative
>organizations and policies that would be beneficial both to established
>Internet stakeholders and to the wide variety of organizations and
>individuals who are effectively disenfranchised in the current Internet
>policy environment. This study should consider both short-term and
>long-term alternatives, and could potentially be conducted by the National
>Research Council (NRC) and related international organizations, among other
>possible frameworks.
>
>Our third recommended step would be for the results of this study to be
>carefully considered and, as deemed appropriate, to be implemented.
>Internet-related functions would be transferred from the temporary
>stewardship organization(s) to the entities developed from the study results.
>
>Time is definitely of the essence if a potential "meltdown" of Internet
>policies, functionalities, and operations in the near future is to be
>avoided. There is in particular an immediate need to begin the process of
>depoliticizing the situation and providing opportunities for
>consensus building regarding the range of Internet issues. Wide consensus
>has already been achieved on at least one key point -- even by ICANN's
>current president -- ICANN is seriously broken. We agree, and we
>additionally assert that ICANN's history, structure, and behaviors strongly
>indicate that the most productive course would be for ICANN's role in
>Internet affairs to be discontinued.
>
>This is not to cast aspersions on the efforts of any individuals involved
>with ICANN in the past or present. Rather, we feel that ICANN has failed as
>an organization, and that the amount of "bad blood" and institutional
>"baggage" it carries doom "reform" efforts within the organization itself to
>ineffectiveness at best. We come to this conclusion reluctantly, since in
>the past we have considered that there might be an appropriate continuing
>role of some sort for ICANN. Unfortunately, this is no longer possible.
>
>We do not have all of the answers regarding Internet issues -- nobody does.
>The proposals above are not presented as any kind of fait accompli, but
>rather as an attempt to stimulate recognition that the Internet is facing
>serious problems that are in need of serious solutions. The search for
>solutions will be difficult, and will be a continuing effort that far
>transcends matters relating to ICANN. But half-measures will no longer
>suffice, and the status quo (however it might be disguised or "spun") can no
>longer be tolerated.
>
>Some persons genuinely fear that alternatives to ICANN might lead to
>situations even worse than the current dysfunctional ICANN environment.
>That is indeed a non-zero probability, but the increasingly chaotic
>situation with ICANN makes degeneration a decided *likelihood* if ICANN
>remains involved with Internet matters.
>
>The day of reckoning is already upon us. Work should begin immediately to
>define and implement collaborative processes that can provide hope of
>assuring that the Internet will be the best possible resource for the
>population of the entire world. The risks in change are real, but the need
>for change and the possibilities for meaningful and beneficial progress are
>even greater. If we do not take these steps, we may well be dooming the
>Internet to a future of mediocrity at best, or of decay, fragmentation,
>greed, and even worse outrages.
>
> [1] PFIR Statement on Internet Policies, Regulations, and Control
> http://www.pfir.org/statements/policies
>
> [2] PFIR Proposal for a Representative Global Internet Policy Organization
> http://www.pfir.org/statements/proposal
>
> [3] URIICA Announcement
> http://www.uriica.org/announcement
>
> [4] PFIR Declaration of Principles
> http://www.pfir.org/principles
>
>Sincerely,
>
>David J. Farber
>[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>Tel: +1 (610) 304-9127
>Member of the Board of Trustees EFF - http://www.eff.org
>Member of the Advisory Board -- EPIC - http://www.epic.org
>Member of the Advisory Board -- CDT - http://www.cdt.org
>Member of Board of Directors -- PFIR - http://www.pfir.org
>Co-Founder, URIICA - Union for Representative International Internet
> Cooperation and Analysis - http://www.uriica.org
>Member of the Executive Committee USACM
>http://www.cis.upenn.edu/~farber
>
>Peter G. Neumann
>[EMAIL PROTECTED] or [EMAIL PROTECTED] or [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>Tel: +1 (650) 859-2375
>Co-Founder, PFIR - People For Internet Responsibility - http://www.pfir.org
>Co-Founder, Fact Squad - http://www.factsquad.org
>Co-Founder, URIICA - Union for Representative International Internet
> Cooperation and Analysis - http://www.uriica.org
>Moderator, RISKS Forum - http://risks.org
>Chairman, ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
>http://www.csl.sri.com/neumann
>
>Lauren Weinstein
>[EMAIL PROTECTED] or [EMAIL PROTECTED] or [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800
>Co-Founder, PFIR - People For Internet Responsibility - http://www.pfir.org
>Co-Founder, Fact Squad - http://www.factsquad.org
>Co-Founder, URIICA - Union for Representative International Internet
> Cooperation and Analysis - http://www.uriica.org
>Moderator, PRIVACY Forum - http://www.vortex.com
>Member, ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
>
>(Affiliations shown for identification only.)
+++
Jay Fenello, Internet Coaching
http://www.Fenello.com ... 678-585-9765
http://www.YourWebPartner.com ... Web Support
http://www.AligningWithPurpose.com ... for a Better World
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