[governance] FW: Internet Users Globally

Thu Nov 19 14:55:39 EST 2009

Hi Michael, I was in my post, above,  also delving for a minimalist
description of the different approaches to topic here;  so if you can
clarify or wish to, in response to my post (by choice of course, and no need
to explicitly use *thesis, antithesis, synthesis* if not seeming apt)  -
thanks.

(I wouldn't ask Eric's artistic and exciting style and content to change a
whit, or his wit to subside.  But all of you here can probably parse out the
points of view for initiates upon this request; would be quite welcome).

Best wishes, Linda.

On Thu, Nov 19, 2009 at 2:18 PM, Michael Gurstein <gurstein at gmail.com>wrote:

> Eric,
>
> I have no idea what this sentence could possibly mean from any
> perspective--development, social science, marketing, management--"Direct
> use
> and consumption of a good or service is not any kind of test as to it's
> viability or value to a society."
>
> Anyway, since we aren't talking about syringes or police academies (???)
> but
> rather about access to the major and fundamental infrastructure of modern
> society --
>
> The unavailability of access is a major impediment to participation and
> development... In my country, Canada, the fact that roughly 25% of the
> population is not accessing the Internet means that the range of public and
> private services that have and are migrating to the Net are inaccessible
> for
> use by those individuals leading either to the requirement for duplication
> of services (both manual and electronic) or to the denial of service (where
> the service is available only in electronic form...
>
> In the Cameroun (with which I'm not familiar) or in South Africa (with
> which
> I am familiar) lack of access to the Net means that the 97.1% (the
> Cameroun)
> or the 91.4% (South Africa) of the population not currently accessing/able
> to access the Net prevents them from having access to the knowledge,
> training, and support resources that are available to those with such
> access.  Perhaps most important this means that the huge bulk of the
> population is not sufficiently informatized as to make a direct
> contribution
> to those activities which will spur local and national economic and social
> development.  South Africa for example, has a significant net shortage of
> those with sufficient skills to occupy available technical positions
> necessary to maintain and extend the Information Society/Information
> Economy.  That individuals, communities, local institutions are unable to
> access the Net makes it all that much more difficult to bridge these gaps,
> fill these slots and so on and so on.
>
> All of which is to give me an opportunity to say once again BTW, how
> disappointed I am that there seems to have been little or no discussion at
> the IGF (although simply observing from afar I may have missed it) about
> issues of concern to the other 5.5 billion or so not currently accessing
> the
> Net.
>
> MBG
>
>
>
>  On Thu, Nov 19, 2009 at 11:08 AM, Eric Dierker
> <cogitoergosum at sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>
>
> This argument line is specious. Direct use and consumption of a good or
> service is not any kind of test as to it's viability or value to a society.
>
> Do we say that since only 2% of the population uses  syringe(s) to
> inoculate
> thousands that the regulation and governance of medical appliances is not
> relevant?  Do we say that because only the supplier uses a
> telecommunication
> device to supply food more efficiently and less expensive that the
> telecommunication device is not relevant to the eater?
> Are police academies not relevant to the safety of a small child?
>
> In fact the complete opposite is true. The need for intermediaries and
> those
> skilled is the only reason to allow all of us pontithicators to have any
> say
> in governance. The fact that the hunter and gatherer brings home the food
> from the forest does not obsolve or relinquish the right and duty of the
> homemaker to manage his forest and fields. And since facts and opinions
> without study and understanding are more dangerous than helpful, I tolerate
> all of you speaking for the consumer ;-) You all be careful that I do not
> come up with an instant vaccine against ignorance, lest and whilst you be
> out of a job.
>
>
> --- On Thu, 11/19/09, Nyangkwe Agien Aaron <nyangkweagien at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>
> From: Nyangkwe Agien Aaron <nyangkweagien at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [governance] FW: Internet Users Globally
> To: governance at lists.cpsr.org, "Michael Gurstein" <gurstein at gmail.com>
> Date: Thursday, November 19, 2009, 10:42 AM
>
>
>
> Many thanks Michael for the revelation.
> I can now understand that despite the availability of an optical fibre
> along the cost of my country Cameroun about 97.1% of my fellow country
> men and women do not use internet. Astonishing is the finding that
> only 86.56 Senegalese do not have access to Internet.
> And when you look at the per capita income of both countries!!!
>
> Internet bandwith capacity in my office is here in Douala is 256/64
>
> Aaon
>
> On 11/18/09, Michael Gurstein <gurstein at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >> For a very revealing application concerning Internet users by country go
> >> to  the
>  >>
> >> If you go to Google and put "Internet users in (your country of choice)"
> >> into the search bar you will get the information graphed by year!
> >>
> > I'm wondering how much of the discussion at this year's IGF was of
> relevance
> > to the 99.19% of Malians who are not currently Internet users (or
> similalry
> > for 99.16% of Chadians, 89.49% of Bolivians, 92.8% of Indians, 98.18% of
> > Papua New Guineans etc.etc.
> >
> >> MBG
> >
>
>
> --
> Aaron Agien Nyangkwe
> Journalist-OutCome Mapper
> Special Assistant The President
> ASAFE
> P.O.Box 5213
> Douala-Cameroon
>
> Tel. 237 3337 55 31, 3337 50 22
> Fax. 237 3342 29 70
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>
>
>
> --
> LDMF.
> > Dr. Linda D. Misek-Falkoff
> > 914 769 3652
> > law /  computing / humanities:
> > Founder/Director *Respectful Interfaces*;
> > Member, Board, Officer - Communications Coordination Committee for the
> > U.N.;
> > World Education Fellowship;
> > Member Committees on disability, aging, health, values, development;
> > National Disability Party (NDP); International Disability Caucus;
> > Persons with Pain Intl.;
> > ICT multiple decades;
> > Other affiliations on Request.
> >
> > n.b.:
>
> > -  You are welcome to join *Respectful Interfaces.* The *Respectful
> > Interfaces* Coda is: "Achieving Dialogue While Cherishing Diversity" (ask
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>
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>
>
> ____________________________________________________________
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>
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