[governance] RE: Human rights and new gTLDs

[Milton L Mueller]

-----Original Message-----
From: Vittorio Bertola [mailto:vb at bertola.eu] 

>I am making the argument that it does not make any 
>practical difference for the freedom and accessibility 
>of the *content* whether it is located at the first or 
>at the second identifier. 

Michael Froomkin has addressed this. But to the extent that is true,
there will be few requests for new TLDs. Still no case for censorship of
them.

>(and yes, TLD requests are clearly provocative,

SLD requests would be just as provocative if we created centralized
power over them, and created politicized committees to decide who gets
them. That is exactly my point. Keep the core neutral. Don't even allow
ICANN to go there. 

>instead, you insist on a request that it is not 
>offensive for you, and is not offensive for me, 
>but is offensive to many; and since it does not 
>bring any perceivable advance to your freedom, 

Any concession to the principle that speech can be prohibited merely on
the basis of it being offensive to a few people, or even the majority of
people, is a huge blow to freedom. 

I don't mind if you disagree with that. I just don't understand why you
want to position yourself as a "rights" advocate. You're not a free
expression rights advocate. You're a compromiser seeking safety in
expedient repression.

>these people may even think that you are 
>purposedly trying to offend them and their 
>deep moral (religious, in some cases) convictions.

By this logic, Salman Rushdie's book should have been banned. Agree? I
don't see how you can escape that conclusion. And note how once we realy
get into the discussion the whole false distinction between names and
content disappears. People who think I am trying to offend their deep
moral convictions couldn't care less about wherher we are talking about
names, content, second level or third level. They want it banned.


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