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Newsflash: FCC Shows Interest In....Factual Broadband Data
Agency promises 'enlightened, data-driven decision-making...'
In what's a bit of refreshing news for an agency that's been, well, scientifically and factually challenged in recent years -- new FCC boss Julius Genachowski says the agency will be employing the help of Harvard's Berkman Center to help verify the accuracy of broadband coverage data. According to Genachowski, the move will "help lay the foundation for enlightened, data-driven decision-making" at the agency. For an FCC that's spent a decade pretending coverage and competitive issues didn't exist in order to placate incumbent ISP lobbyists, admitting they have a problem is a positive first step for the agency.
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FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

2 edits

FFH5

Premium Member

Berkman Center report due before BB location data ready

»hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_ ··· 86A1.pdf
The Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University will
conduct an independent expert review of existing literature and studies about broadband
deployment and usage
throughout the world. This project will help inform the FCC’s efforts in
developing the National Broadband Plan.
The Berkman Center isn't going to gather broadband penetration data. All they are going to do is process what data is given to them and create a report for the FCC to help with their broadband plan. It is very likely the report will be complete long before all the broadband location data is even available.

P.S.>> Also, the FCC named an ex-MS bigshot to run their shop as managing director.
»hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_ ··· 73A1.pdf
Managing Director, Steven VanRoekel: Mr. VanRoekel has over 18 years of Information
Technology and management experience and was most recently a top executive in the Windows
Server and Tools division at Microsoft Corporation. Mr. VanRoekel held various positions in his
15 years at Microsoft, including managing Microsoft’s cross-industry Web Services team and
serving as Speech and Strategy Assistant to Bill Gates. Mr. VanRoekel also assisted Mr. Gates
in his transition from CEO of Microsoft to Chief Software Architect and advised the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation on its shift in giving philosophy from a focus on technology to a
focus on world health.
This is the guy who will be running the FCC and also who is supposed to fix up the mess of the FCC web pages.

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3

Premium Member

Change

Wow, is this the "Change" we've all been waiting for? I am shocked that the current administration's appointees who are just now starting to take office are trying to change how things are done. I didn't vote for this.

In all seriousness, I especially like this part and it should satisfy folks who were clamoring for openness:

Results of the Harvard review will be made public, said Genachowski, in keeping with his pledge of openness and transparency.
Expand your moderator at work

S_engineer
Premium Member
join:2007-05-16
Chicago, IL

1 recommendation

S_engineer to Matt3

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to Matt3

Re: Change

Well we have yet to see this "change" occur. A cynical viewpoint, yes; but we've been down this road before.
Does this mean that the Berkman center will be working with Connected Nation?

It would be nice to have this data before any national broadband plan could take place, but I guess they could use that for the plan thats introduced in stimulas version 30.2

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3

Premium Member

Re: Change

As has been said numerous times, this isn't the official broadband stimulus. This is a tiny portion of the economic stimulus that will be dispersed for broadband deployment.

S_engineer
Premium Member
join:2007-05-16
Chicago, IL

S_engineer

Premium Member

Re: Change

I know Matt, but factual data should accompany any monies spent by our gov't for the purpose of legislating a plan. Outsourcing this to Harvard, or Connected Nation will only facilitate more questions since, the FCC should already have this data in the first place!

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3

Premium Member

Re: Change

said by S_engineer:

I know Matt, but factual data should accompany any monies spent by our gov't for the purpose of legislating a plan. Outsourcing this to Harvard, or Connected Nation will only facilitate more questions since, the FCC should already have this data in the first place!
I don't think you can satisfy everyone. If the government did it themselves, you'd have accusations of waste and incompetence, now that they're getting Harvard to do it, we see allegations of it not being open enough.

I am just glad they are finally mapping it!

DaveDude
No Fear
join:1999-09-01
New Jersey

DaveDude

Member

If the facts dont fit...

I have never seen such grandstanding before in my life, with this administration. Suddenly because they said, its factual. How about lowering taxes, and free market healthcare ?
papi4baby
join:2008-01-19
Callaway, MD

papi4baby

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by DaveDude:

I have never seen such grandstanding before in my life, with this administration. Suddenly because they said, its factual. How about lowering taxes, and free market healthcare ?
I agree, please so this and you should have alot of haters turn very happy.
rdmiller
join:2005-09-23
Richmond, VA

rdmiller to DaveDude

Member

to DaveDude
Better still! NO taxes and FREE healthcare!
sonicmerlin
join:2009-05-24
Cleveland, OH

sonicmerlin

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

rd, your biting yet subtle sarcasm brought a smile to my face.

IT Guy
Ow, My Balls
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join:2004-07-29
Las Cruces, NM
Cisco ASA 5505
Cisco Meraki MX64

IT Guy to DaveDude

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to DaveDude
This is off-topic, but an issue that bugs me all the same. Admittedly, I am no tax expert by any means. But I think it is extremely unrealistic to expect taxes to go down at all in the face of our extreme debt and economic woes.

Can someone explain to me how we can pay down our country's debt without raising taxes?

jester121
Premium Member
join:2003-08-09
Lake Zurich, IL

jester121

Premium Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

Tax rate cuts stimulate the economy every time they've been tried, the problem is that the crooks in Washington (and in nearly every state capital) won't curb their spending along with it to balance a budget and pay off debt.
nasadude
join:2001-10-05
Rockville, MD

nasadude

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by jester121:

Tax rate cuts stimulate the economy every time they've been tried, ....
right wing myth. all available data shows the stimulative effects of tax cuts are small, at best.

and tax cuts DO NOT pay for themselves.

from the WSJ: »blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2 ··· s-faded/
In a letter to Spratt released Friday, CBO director Peter Orszag said, “The short-term effects of EGTRRA and JGTRRA in stimulating aggregate demand in the economy have largely dissipated by now, and the supply-side effects of those policies are uncertain but are probably small.”

Congressional budget office fact sheet: »budget.senate.gov/democr ··· 2702.pdf

CBO Confirms that the Tax Cut is the Primary Cause for Deterioration of the Budget. These
new estimates confirm – despite continuing efforts by the White House to mislead the public about
this – that the President’s tax cut enacted last year is the single biggest cause of the deterioration in
the budget.

jester121
Premium Member
join:2003-08-09
Lake Zurich, IL

jester121

Premium Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by nasadude:

right wing myth. all available data shows the stimulative effects of tax cuts are small, at best.

and tax cuts DO NOT pay for themselves.

from the WSJ: »blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2 ··· s-faded/
In a letter to Spratt released Friday, CBO director Peter Orszag said, “The short-term effects of EGTRRA and JGTRRA in stimulating aggregate demand in the economy have largely dissipated by now, and the supply-side effects of those policies are uncertain but are probably small.”

Congressional budget office fact sheet: »budget.senate.gov/democr ··· 2702.pdf

CBO Confirms that the Tax Cut is the Primary Cause for Deterioration of the Budget. These
new estimates confirm – despite continuing efforts by the White House to mislead the public about
this – that the President’s tax cut enacted last year is the single biggest cause of the deterioration in
the budget.

Typical left wing knee jerk propaganda.

(Quoting a publication like the WSJ is nice, but when they're relying on the numbers from the partisan CBO it's kind of moot. And pay special attention to the URL in your second reference:
budget.senate.gov/democratic/pre···2702.pdf

For an equally partisan response:

»www.heritage.org/Press/N ··· 807a.cfm

Throwing around phrases like "all available data" doesn't help you make your point, it just makes you sound like you think you're smarter than everyone else.
nasadude
join:2001-10-05
Rockville, MD

1 edit

nasadude

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by jester121:

Typical left wing knee jerk propaganda.

....
I expected that response. The congressional budget office is widely accepted as non-partisan, with studies, analysis, etc. being requested and used by both republicans and democrats.

as for the heritage foundation, if they said the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, I would not believe it unless I had observed it myself.

forgot to mention: everyone knows facts have a liberal bias

huntml
join:2002-01-23
Mullica Hill, NJ

1 edit

huntml

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by nasadude:

I expected that response. The congressional budget office is widely accepted as non-partisan, with studies, analysis, etc. being requested and used by both republicans and democrats.

as for the heritage foundation, if they said the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, I would not believe it unless I had observed it myself.

forgot to mention: everyone knows facts have a liberal bias
I've never heard a sitting congressman or senator OF EITHER PARTY accuse the CBO of being biased.

In fact, I'm sure that if there were any such case to be made, it would be part of the standard set of talking points for whichever party was in the minority at any given time, and you'd have been hearing it every Sunday on the talking head shows for years now, regardless of which party was in control of Congress.
sonicmerlin
join:2009-05-24
Cleveland, OH

sonicmerlin to nasadude

Member

to nasadude
This is so true. It's like listening to conservative Christians call laws supporting the teaching of evolution in schools a "liberal bias".

I hate it when obviously biased conservatives claim "bias" when sites demonstrate *facts* that support liberal claims, and then point to far more deceitful sources of right-wing information.
openbox9
Premium Member
join:2004-01-26
71144

openbox9 to IT Guy

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to IT Guy
said by IT Guy:

Can someone explain to me how we can pay down our country's debt without raising taxes?
Cut spending. It's no different than balancing your checkbook. Basic principle, don't spend more than you earn.

huntml
join:2002-01-23
Mullica Hill, NJ

3 edits

huntml

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

According to figures I've seen, only about 19% of US govt spending is both discretionary and unrelated to defense/'war on terror'/etc.

And non-discretionary things like Medicare and Social Security are growing at rates that are multiples of everything else.

This being the case, you could cut ALL of the discretionary spending not related to defense and security -- all transportation spending, all non-legal and non-defense regulatory spending on things like FDA, OSHA, FTC, FCC, EPA, welfare, etc. -- and we'd still be in a huge hole, budget-wise.
openbox9
Premium Member
join:2004-01-26
71144

openbox9

Premium Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

Make no mistake, drastic debts require drastic measures to pay for them. There's a lot of fat wrapped up in various pieces of government. Tightening the belt isn't palatable for some, but there are a lot of programs that can be downsized or cut altogether. Federal jobs would most likely need to be cut along with several social and other government programs. None of which will be tolerated by special interests in Washington, so I predict continued growth in our debt.

huntml
join:2002-01-23
Mullica Hill, NJ

huntml

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by openbox9:

Make no mistake, drastic debts require drastic measures to pay for them. There's a lot of fat wrapped up in various pieces of government. Tightening the belt isn't palatable for some, but there are a lot of programs that can be downsized or cut altogether. Federal jobs would most likely need to be cut along with several social and other government programs. None of which will be tolerated by special interests in Washington, so I predict continued growth in our debt.
Yes, but even if all the discretionary parts of the budget were comprised of 50% waste, you'd only be able to shave about 10% of the bottom line. That might get us just about to the black now, or slightly above the line, but at the rate entitlements are growing we'd be in the same position in a few years.
openbox9
Premium Member
join:2004-01-26
71144

openbox9

Premium Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

I'm talking more than just shaving discretionary spending That's also why I said it won't be tolerated by special interests groups.

huntml
join:2002-01-23
Mullica Hill, NJ

1 edit

huntml

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by openbox9:

I'm talking more than just shaving discretionary spending That's also why I said it won't be tolerated by special interests groups.
You are right. The obvious places where there is money to be shaved from the federal budget -- social security, Medicare, and defense -- are the ones with the widest, best organized lobbies, and the ones for whom people who'd go after them would be most susceptible to demagoguery by their defenders.

I really don't see a solution. I think the entire country is going to have to go through a California-style fiscal meltdown before anything is done to get the budget in order. Cutting spending is politically untenable, as is raising taxes, the baby boomer retirement wave is just at its beginning, so things are just going to keep getting worse until the dollar and the market for US securities collapse, and we wake up one day in late-80's Argentina with hyperinflation and a government whose finances have completely collapsed.

I personally am glad that my family still has a large tract of rural land, and I still remember how to farm from my boyhood days. I think they are going to come in handy some day pretty soon.
sonicmerlin
join:2009-05-24
Cleveland, OH

sonicmerlin

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

I could cite data demonstrating the absolute idiocy of your doom and gloom predictions but I really feel like I'd be wasting my time talking into a wall.

As for openbox, I'm sure you'd love to cut socialistic programs. That would help the rich a great deal wouldn't it?
openbox9
Premium Member
join:2004-01-26
71144

openbox9

Premium Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by sonicmerlin:

As for openbox, I'm sure you'd love to cut socialistic programs. That would help the rich a great deal wouldn't it?
I'm not rich by any stretch, nor am I benefiting from any social programs, so it's not just the rich that benefit. While there are no doubt beneficial social programs funded by our fed government, more often than not the programs appear abused and wasteful.

huntml
join:2002-01-23
Mullica Hill, NJ

huntml to sonicmerlin

Member

to sonicmerlin
said by sonicmerlin:

I could cite data demonstrating the absolute idiocy of your doom and gloom predictions but I really feel like I'd be wasting my time talking into a wall.
Given that we have had no interaction whatsoever of which I am aware, I don't believe you have a basis upon which to assess my willingness to listen to any data you might cite.

Further, based on this, your first and only message to me of which I am aware, you seem to me to be a person prone to making snap judgments and forming unwarranted opinions based on insufficient data.

This in turn causes me to have some doubt as to whether any data you might cite might actually demonstrate what you believe it does.

But please feel free. I am always willing to learn, even from people as uncivil as you seem to be from your first message to me.
wentlanc
You Can't Fix Dumb..
join:2003-07-30
Maineville, OH

wentlanc to IT Guy

Member

to IT Guy
Get corporations to pay their fair share, rather than having lots of loopholes to hide their money in!

Transmaster
Don't Blame Me I Voted For Bill and Opus
join:2001-06-20
Cheyenne, WY

Transmaster

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by wentlanc:

Get corporations to pay their fair share, rather than having lots of loopholes to hide their money in!
How long is it going to be before people realize corporations do not pay the taxes that are levied on them they just past it on to who ever it is that consumes what ever it is they make.

Rogue Wolf
An Easy Draw of a Sad Few
join:2003-08-12
Troy, NY

Rogue Wolf

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

Sadly, many people keep forgetting this. When faced with higher taxes, a corporation's executive staff will not say "Well, let's pay ourselves less to make up for it", they will say "Well, let's raise prices to make up for it" or "Well, let's cut back on service/employees/benefits to make up for it".

Let's make taxes fairer for everyone, sure, but let's also remember that corporations get their money from us.

huntml
join:2002-01-23
Mullica Hill, NJ

4 edits

huntml

Member

Re: If the facts dont fit...

said by Rogue Wolf:

Sadly, many people keep forgetting this. When faced with higher taxes, a corporation's executive staff will not say "Well, let's pay ourselves less to make up for it", they will say "Well, let's raise prices to make up for it" or "Well, let's cut back on service/employees/benefits to make up for it".

Let's make taxes fairer for everyone, sure, but let's also remember that corporations get their money from us.
I agree with you in principle, but the problem is that corporations DO NOT WANT TO PAY THEIR FAIR SHARE. It is the fiduciary responsibility of a corporation, after all, to maximize return on equity, and this necessarily involves attempting to minimize tax liabilities. Taxes are only applied to *profits*, after all, which makes them a direct hit on return to shareholders.

The Obama administration put forward a series of proposals intended to eliminate corporations' abilities to dodge taxes by shuffling their profits to offshore corporations. You know, the whole 'three thousand US corporate subsidiaries all headquartered in the same Cayman Islands office building' issue. It has been uniformly lobbied against the by most if not all of the corporate and CoC lobbying groups (even the ones that are more pro-Democrat and try to develop reputations for good corporate citizenship like the Business Software Alliance), and attacked by pro-business (mostly, but not all, Republican) legislators, and is having a hard time moving forward.
openbox9
Premium Member
join:2004-01-26
71144

openbox9 to wentlanc

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to wentlanc
Corporate tax rates are higher than individual tax rates

•••••••••••••••••

WiseOldBear
Laissez les bons temps rouler!
Premium Member
join:2001-11-25
Litchfield Park, AZ

1 edit

WiseOldBear

Premium Member

Life is Good

La vita va bene

powerhog
Stinkin' up the joint
Premium Member
join:2000-12-14
Owasso, OK

powerhog

Premium Member

what data?

The article states that the FCC has employed the Berkman Center to "review the data". One could assume that means they will VERIFY the data, but it's just as likely that they'll take the existing data and simply use it to develop a broadband plan.

We've had plenty of "data-driven" plans. The problem is that the data has always been flawed. We'll have to wait to see if this time is any different.

PapaMidnight
join:2009-01-13
Baltimore, MD

PapaMidnight

Member

Well then...

Well then, I think I can now quote an Aerosmith song...

"Dream On. Dream On. Dream On. Dream until your dreams come true".

fatness
subtle

join:2000-11-17
fishing

fatness

from the article

quote:
Levin has an ambitious timetable for the plan, including holding over 20 workshops in August and early September. The first "milestone" for that workshop comes up July 16, when the FCC plans to post the names of the coordinators for those workshops, which include business, healthcare, e-government, job training, energy, public safety and more.

Michael C
join:2009-06-26
Cedar Park, TX

Michael C

Member

Verify Data vs. verify data collection?

I don't think the point is to do an independent mapping to verify industry generated data, but rather to give an independent assessment of the data collection and mapping techniques used by the industry mapping. I sincerely hope that's what this is. We need some independent, consumer-focused (non-astroturfing) organization to hold the industry's feet to the fire, and make sure they don't just give us a map that's a big pink blob covering a county labeled "broadband access"