AT&T: Google Is The Enemy Of Nuns > This was in the comment section of WSJ piece

This was in the comment section of WSJ piece

I wonder if they had to pay him, or if he's just that inept.

I would imagine that Mr. Hahn and his homeowner's alliance is just one of hundreds of groups who parrot whatever they're told to in exchange for new AT&T-funded events centers or donations. The co-opting of pseudo-legitimate organizations to parrot policy positions is a booming business.

Absolutely. It's what companies like Amplify Public Affairs do for a living. You (a corporation) pays them, they in turn coordinate pseudo-grass roots campaign using everything from completely bogus consumer groups to co-opted pseudo-legitimate groups looking for money.

The result is this broad wash of artificial "consumer" support for a company policy that just wouldn't naturally exist.

AT&T and Verizon are masters of this stuff. So are Microsoft and Comcast, who use groups like the National Corn Grower's Association to also attack Google. For all their faults, I don't believe Google's gotten into co-opting legitimate groups for smear purposes yet, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time.

reply to caco
Two can play at the game that Mr. Hahn has started, though. How about this as a response?

AT&T should not make long distance and local telephone so expensive to rural areas. Today's rural residents tend to be older, and such expensive monopolistic pricing make it harder on their health, which in many cases requires more medication and more frequent doctor visits than years ago. In addition, most of these people are on a fixed income, and rely heavily upon minimal Social Security payments to get by. Having to choose between eating something other than dog food for dinner and affording a telephone line is not something that AT&T should force these elderly people to do.

AT&T needs to be concerned about the needs of these seniors, and their children. In many cases, the children have moved off the farm and out of town long ago. They need to maintain communications with their parents. Not being able to do this with an affordable telephone plan prevents them from being able to keep up the spirits of elderly rural residents, and denies these senior citizens access to an important tool their children use for monitoring their health.

AT&T and other baby bell companies should be allowed the flexibility to use reasonable pricing and quality management tools to provide access to those who desperately need it. Preventing phone access through high prices to our parents and grandparents who still live on the farm is over the line and should be prohibited by the FCC.

A concerned citizen
Resident, the United States
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Nobel peace prize for Obammer... Now he's got one more thing in common with Arafat besides hating America. And he's just as succesful as Jimmy "the failure" Carter.

reply to Karl Bode
I don't think Google will need to co-opt interests, however they probably have enough legitimate (non-bribed/non-co-opted) support.

Not being a Google follower I don't really keep up with its activities (only what I read here) but I'm wondering how long it will take for Google to really lay the smack down and crush an entity to make a point.
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They vilify us, the scoundrels do, when there is only this difference, they rob the poor under the cover of law, forsooth, and we plunder the rich under the protection of our own courage.

reply to Karl Bode
Can Google even do smearing?

Their company motto is "Do no evil."

Yes. The sad thing is that the way the game is played that if you don't get all crazy and hire a ton of lobbyist, your competitors will and next thing you know, your legislated into going out of business. Says more about our congresss than anything else.
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»www.seabee.navy.mil

its sad that taking the higher road is what gets you killed.

reply to caco
Google is neither an ISP nor a phone company, so what does network management and Net Neutrality have to do with anything Google does with it's software or services? You can't use Google Voice without some other telephone service, so if you don't like what Google does, then here's a thought....why don't you just make a normal phone call to your grandparents on the farm? Google has no problem with you doing that, and isn't at all blocking you from using your phone without Google Voice.

On a side note, if you don't like ANY of Google's software or services, just go use another. There's tons of them out there and you have plenty of choices, unlike the choices you have with ISPs and phone companies.

reply to NOVA_Guy

reply to caco
"Hook, line and sinker!".

Yeah, but you should say it like the German Guy in "Die Hard 3"

Houek, Leinn und Zinker!
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Petty people are disproportionably corrupted by petty power…

reply to FBGuy

reply to caco
ATT/Verizon should just stop sending calls to these ripoff telcos for a few days and claim it was a switch issue. see how the ripoff pumpers do with a few days of no free money.
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[65 Arcanist]Filan(High Elf) Zone: Broadband Reports

reply to caco
Well, if we simply removed money from the political system and forced politicians to use regulated governmental funds to campaign, a lot of this would go away and politicians would once more feel the yoke of the voters' will rather than corporations'.

Of course, that would require politicians to be honest and do what's best for the country and their constiutents. I'd expect that to happen about a month after cold fusion, peace in the Middle East and the discovery of the Fountain of Youth.
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Hexadecimal humor really turns me 0FF.

reply to Gbcue

reply to caco
let me see if i can put this into terms that Brucey boy can understand...

hey you freakin' moron! you have to actually have a wireless phone to put the google voice app on or get to the google voice web page! if you can't get to the phone number in the rural area using GV, just use your phone's default dialer. AMAZING CONCEPT!!!
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I've come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass and i'm all outta bubblegum.