Left In Lowell

Unbelievable. Anyone who says George W. Bush is the Security President ought to have their head examined. Just more proof that it matters who you elect, folks.

(Again, tip o’ the hat to my husband.)

In case you missed some of the drama in the last couple weeks, both richardhowe.com and jackiedoherty.org, our two other worthy progressive Lowell blogs, were felled in connection with a bad server move.

Well, now they are back in one form or another, though you’ll note from their similar look that they have yet to restore their unique design templates.

Look guys, Left in Lowell might have been the only Lowell blog for a couple of years, but it’s much nicer to share the work load. Welcome back! Don’t ever do that to me again!

Since this topic, what is a blog, and what it means to be anonymous, and where do journalistic standards come in, has been getting some pixelspace lately on LiL, I found Ryan’s commentary over at Below Boston, “Some Serious Netroots Reform,” particularly apt and timely.

First, Ryan outlines a similar idea that I have:

But in Ritchie’s case, as I suggested in the diary, his only serious mistake was to confuse blogging with commenting. Unfortunately, it’s an all-too common situation.

As someone with some experience in local campaigns, I hear time and time again people talking about comments on WickedLocal and other community papers as “the blogs.” It’s a dangerous precedent that must be kept in check, immediately.

It’s easy to see where the confusion grows: most of the population’s never been to a blog; people just think any online commentary is simply ‘blogging.’ It would be nice if we could chalk this up to one big confusion, but by allowing this misunderstanding to take place, the reputation of blogs as useful tools is being sullied, all the while the real culprits are free from actually fixing the problem.

Follow me after the break, it’s a long post… (more…)

This weekend (June 7) is the Democratic State Convention, which is happening in Lowell. Exciting stuff, but even more exciting are the workshops after. Namely, a blogging workshop for delegates after the close of the convention that BlogLeft Mass and the DSC’s Communication Committee is jointly running!

Yup, us bloggers in pajamas get to meet the real world in a clash that is sure to be interesting. We have lots of bloggers and participants joining in to present, and it’s a two hour timeslot with the first hour being an overview, and the second hour going to breakout sessions for different interests and experience levels.

Here’s the basic outline of our training session:

Your Screename Please? - Navigating the Blogosphere

Presented by BlogLeft and the DSC’s Communication Subcommittee the team includes Lynne Lupien (Left in Lowell), Ryan Adams (Ryan’s Take), Kate Donaghue (DDemDispatch), John Bowes/Susan Haley (Below Boston), Steve Oewns (.08 Acres and a Donkey), Arthur Powell, Michael Forbes Wilcox and others. Through the magic of technology, BlueMassGroup’s Charley on the MTA will be part of the workshop.

From newspapers to local blogs, what was once a trend is now mainstream. From newbies to experts, this session has something for everyone. Topics include: geetting to know the culture of blogs - how can blogs be used to increase activism - strategies for campaigns - citizen journalism: covering events that the main stream media does not cover. The first part of the session will focus on blogging strategy and an overview of how blogs can be used by Democrats to pormote our shared values. Following the overview there will be three breakout sessions.

1. Netroots 101 - By the end of the workshop, you should be ready to log on and join the excitement.
2. Blogging: the “tech stuff” - Platforms, podcasting, video blogging, other netroot tools that can make your blog better and more.
3. Bloggers Round Table - Meet with experienced bloggers from around the Commonwealth. Share your experinces and learn from others.

So, if you’re a delegate at the convention this weekend, and you are interested in learning more about blogs, please join us! Bloggers and blogger participants out there, we would love to have you at our round table discussion. Training will begin at 3pm on June 7 or at the close of convention, whichever is later.

This could bring a whole new dimension to the wifi debate in Lowell:

Intel’s researchers have come up with a way to send Wi-Fi signals up to 60 miles (100km), while maintaining a usable throughput of up to 6.5Mbits/s.
[…]
The technology is innovative on a number of levels. It works using a point-to-point design, which automatically lowers cost to a quoted region of $500-$1,000 (£250-£500) for a single connection – way below rival systems such as cable broadband or satellite.

Once terminated at the remote location, the connectivity it provides could be distributed using off-the-shelf Wi-Fi hardware.

It is also low-power, using around five to six watts for a system with three radios in a link, making it possible to power it during the day from solar power or by battery during the night.

So, what say you, Bernie?

What, you don’t trust these guys with your open and fair internet? From Free Press:

Comcast Blocks Public Debate at FCC Hearing
WASHINGTON — Comcast has admitted hiring people to fill up the limited number of seats at yesterday’s Federal Communications Commission hearing at Harvard. More than 100 people were turned away when the event reached capacity. The public hearing was part of the federal agency’s ongoing investigation into allegations that the cable giant is blocking consumers’ access to legal Web traffic.

Timothy Karr, campaign director of SavetheInternet.com, issued the following statement:

“First, Comcast was caught blocking the Internet. Now it has been caught blocking the public from the debate. The only people cheering Comcast are those paid to do so. Clearly, Comcast will resort to just about any underhanded tactic to stack the decks in its favor. And yet Comcast still expects us to trust them with the future of the Internet?”

Read Portfolio’s story.

Read the SavetheInternet.com blog.

On today’s WBUR news, I heard a snippet of important reporting from yesterday’s Cambridge FCC public hearing on net neutrality. It sounds like the Chair, who is a Republican Bush appointee, is quoted as being against allowing the ISPs (internet providers) to pick and choose what traffic they can stifle. That’s good news for the future of free and fair use of the internet. You can listen or read the transcript of the report.

The Federal Communications Commission may have fired the first shot in what some are calling a fight over the future of the internet. Following a hearing in Cambridge yesterday, the head of the FCC said he’s ready to punish internet providers who purposefully slow down the transfer of massive files such as videos. WBUR’s Business and Technology Reporter Curt Nickisch has more.

[snip]

NICKISCH: After the hearing, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said he’s prepared to stop Internet providers from hobbling traffic. That’s a key statement from a Republican who generally favors the market sorting things out on its own. Martin and the rest of the panel may get some help from Massachusetts Congressman Edward Markey. He introduced a bill last week that would give the FCC more authority on the issue.

Amateur alert! So, once again, the Lowell Sun’s website appears to have encountered a major redesign (no doubt an initiative of its parent company). Two seconds into perusing it, I already note two stupid things.

First, if you have Firefox, try hovering over the Job/Cars/Homes/Classifies menu. On my computer, the dropdown menus disappear behind the advertisement below. Come on people, test your damn websites on all the common browsers before going live. (Edit: I think it depends on the ad below. Perhaps it’s doing it to Flash ads only…some refreshes and I can see the menu.) (Edit II: It’s either from a specific ad, or else the first time you load the page…happened in IE6 as well.)

Second, I was looking for the Contact page, with all the info about how to contact people at the Sun, and it (the link to it) appears to be missing, or at least hiding real good.

OK, make it three stupid things. The site still loads slower than molasses in January. I suspect you could really speed things up if you got rid of that totally ridiculous Flash peel-and-puke advertising. Usually, there’s no one even advertising in it (this time, I actually see one, from UMass Lowell Hockey). Ug. Totally lame.

This is very very important, folks! From an email I just got from SaveTheInternet.com:

Comcast, AT&T and Verzion have given us a glimpse of a world without Net Neutrality, and it’s a chilling sight.

In recent months, these cable and phone companies have repeatedly been caught blocking, filtering and spying on your Internet activities. If we let them get away with this, these powerful companies will continue to roll back our freedoms whenever we go online.

Now the Federal Communications Commission is coming to Boston to investigate. Will you attend this important event?

WHAT: A Public Hearing on the Future of the Internet
WHEN: Monday, Feb 25, 2008
TIME: 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
WHERE: Harvard Law School, Ames Courtroom, Austin Hall
1515 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138
Directions: http://www.law.harvard.edu/about/contact/directions.php/

More information: www.savetheinternet.com/=boston

The question before us is simple: Will we have a closed Internet controlled by a small handful of giant corporations, or an open Internet controlled by the people who use it?

With so much at stake, it’s encouraging that the FCC’s first move is to come to Boston for public feedback about the importance of a free-flowing Internet. Let’s hope this important hearing in Massachusetts is just the beginning of a national conversation that spreads to every town and city across the country.

My husband sent me this item, an illustration of why we do NOT want service providers to be able to decide what to deliver through their internets. Focus on this one (bold mine):

EXHIBIT B: During the taping of a talk show produced by AT&T, the control room shut down production moments after a guest criticized AT&T’s plans to filter Web content. Fortunately that guest, Joel Johnson of the blog Boing Boing, had a friend secretly videotape the segment from the audience.

You can view that clip here or play it below.

Yup, I trust AT&T with making those decisions. Not. They can’t even allow you, the viewer, to even hear a criticism of their policy on one of their shows. So what makes you think that they can handle making decisions about what bits of the internet they will and will not allow, especially if money (charging a “premium” for fast delivery) is at stake?

This needs wide distribution, pronto. Corporations are gaining too much power over our discourse, and we need to stop them.