>Hi Mark,
> Here's some more info that might provide more backgound:
>
>http://www.corpwatch.org/trac/feature/microsoft/chomsky.html

I have scanned some it for now, but I must say, he lost some credibility at the beginning by referring to MS as a parasite. That gives me the impression of personal bias against MS. I also have a BIG problem with the following

CW: What would it look like if it [internet] were under public control?

NC: It would look like it did before, except much more accessible because more people would have access to it. And with no constraints. People could just use it freely. That has been done, as long as it was in the public domain. It wasn't perfect, but it had more or less the right kind of structure. That's what Microsoft and others want to destroy.

One of his assertions that the internet was free to everyone and is not now. This is basically false. Free to any one with the right kind of computer [which ain't free]. The government [taxpayers] can not and should not pay for everything. Routers, servers, software, etc., cost money.

Once the internet opened up the the general masses, it opened the door for free enterprise which does not mean free access to private sites. Just as I have the right to start up my own web server, I am expending my own capital and have the right to charge for access. You, on the other hand, have the right to not patronize my site.

While some of what he says is true, I disagree his basic principals which are socialistic at best.