Recently I was keeping up on what my Congressman Adam Schiff was up to regarding legislation. I was intrigued to see a report that he had co-sponsored a bill 'against internet jamming'.

I could find anything online, so I called his office and asked. They said the bill was new and unpublished, but as soon as it was printed, they'd send me a copy. I got an email today with a link to the text of the bill.

You can look at the summary of the Global Internet Freedom Act aka House Resolution 2216 in a pdf version or plaintext.

After reading the bill (it's only 8 pages), I was blown away. Here was our stodgy Congress actually trying to look out for the free flow of information in the world. Here are a few quotes:

(2) All peoples have the right to communicate freely with others, and to have unrestricted access to news and information, including on the Internet.

(4) Unrestricted access to news and information on the Internet is a check on authoritarian rule by repressive foreign governments in countries around the world.

(10) The success of United States policy in support of freedom of speech, press, and association requires new initiatives to defeat totalitarian and authoritarian controls on news and information over the Internet.

Wowsa folks! I think that Thomas Jefferson might agree with this bill if he were around today.

The bill goes on to request FIFTY MILLION dollars in 2006 and 2007 to "deploy, at the earliest practicable date, technologies aimed at defeating state-sponsored and state-directed Internet jamming by repressive foreign governments and the intimidation and persecution by such governments of their citizens who use the Internet."

People, it's time to rally the blogosphere around this bill and convert it to law. Find your Representative and DEMAND they cosponsor the bill. How can they be against freedom?

Take five mintues to stop surfing the internet and call Congress to get them to support HR 2216 - Global Internet Freedom Act. Do it now, reading the next site can wait.

Posted by michael at June 06, 2005 08:34 PM