IP: President Pumps up Next Generation Internet -- see it

[Dave Farber <farber () cis upenn edu>]

CyberWire Dispatch // Copyright (c) 1998 // January, 27th


Jacking in from the "Here, parse this!" Port:


Washington -- Netizens tuning in President Clinton's State of the Union 
speech will have to wait almost 50 minutes before they get their ears 
tickled.  Not until the end of the speech does Clinton get into cyberspace 
issues.  But when he does, he brings it home big.


According to a copy of the speech obtained by CyberWire Dispatch, the 
President says "We should enable all the world's people to explore the far 
reaches of cyberspace."  This is your clue to wake up because, in a few 
short paragraphs, cyberspace is gone and outer space starts, as the 
President talks about building a "permanent foothold in the heavens."


Clinton notes that the first time he gave a State of the Union speech, 
"only physicists used the World Wide Web..." well, okay, we can let him 
slide on the facts, he has, after all, had a few distractions lately.


"Now, in schools, libraries, homes and businesses, millions of Americans 
surf the Web every day," the President will say.


"The Internet is an exploding global marketplace of ideas as well as 
commerce," he will say, and then he does his "Show Me the Money!" 
impression:  "I ask Congress to step up support for the building of the 
Next Generation Internet, which will operate up to a thousand times faster 
than today."


Clinton also gives a head bob to censorware:  "We must give parents the 
tools they need to protect their children from inappropriate material on 
the Internet."  But he doesn't give details as to how these "tools" should 
be distributed, used or paid for.


And then is a few words about space and "God Bless you and God Bless 
America."  Tomorrow, it's back to the feeding frenzy of sexual scandal.


Meeks out...