CDR: Re: [IFWP] Re: Ken Stubbs @ core deletes vote-auction.com

[Jim Dixon]

On Fri, 3 Nov 2000, !Dr. Joe Baptista wrote:

> our ol friend Ken is up to no good again.
> 
> On Fri, 3 Nov 2000, Tom Vogt wrote:
> 
> > it seems that core (i.e. the root servers) has deleted the entry for
> > vote-auction.com - while the whois still works and their primary
> > nameserver (in austria) still resolves, a regular lookup returns with
> > "host unknown".
> > 
> > rumour has it that core carved in to demand by most possibly the feds.
> > here in europe the sentiment today is that by doing so core has stopped
> > being (if it ever was) an independent and purely technical instance and
> > has entered the realm of politics. for example, no matter whether or not
> > vote-auction.com is or is not illegal in the US, what business has a US
> > court or lea in blocking the site for *me* (in germany) or, for that
> > matter, the rest of the planet?

Tom Vogt pointed out in a follow-up email that 'CORE' should be 
replaced with 'InterNIC'.  CORE as the registrar actually still had
the name listed.

Nevertheless, what has happened here demonstrates a basic flaw at the
heart of the domain name system.  ICANN and many essential Internet
resources remain subject to US jurisdiction.  ICANN itself is just a
California corporation, so it is subject to the passing whims of the
California legislature as well as those of Congress, the executive
branches, and various and sundry US state and federal courts.  

Some argue that ICANN should itself have authority over all of the
Internet domain name system and the IP address space and in fact 
things are creeping in this direction.  Given the now-crucial role 
that the Internet plays in the global economy, ICANN's hegemony 
gives, for example, representatives of small towns in California sitting
on the right committee in Sacramento remarkable and truly unique power
over the rest of the planet.

--
Jim Dixon                  VBCnet GB Ltd           http://www.vbc.net
tel +44 117 929 1316                             fax +44 117 927 2015