Begin forwarded message:
From: "David P. Reed" <dpreed@reed.com>
Date: July 29, 2009 3:31:35 PM EDT
To: dave@farber.net
Cc: ip <ip@v2.listbox.com>
Subject: Re: [IP] Apple climbs on the cybergeddon bandwagon
This reminds me of the rationale put forward by AT&T in the Carterfone case. (I don't think the Hush-a-Phone case involved bringing the entire world to a crashing halt, but perhaps someone who was closer to that earlier case would know).
If this were actually true - that a single iPhone hack could bring down the world - then we are doomed already. Frankly, I would be happy to testify based on facts on the Carterfone side of this ridiculous argument. But more importantly, the "new AT&T" and its lawyers (and now Apple) would do well to see how well that argument prevented the catastrophe that hit AT&T due to Judge Green's breakup of the "old AT&T". (well, it was a catastrophe to the old AT&T, but served the world quite well, IMO).
Monopolies with huge bank accounts to buy Congress's attention will always try these ridiculous scaremongering arguments. It's the corporate version of scare the people. (remember that 802.11 was going to cause planes to crash, and even had some "experts" who claimed that planes *had* crashed, before we got the latest news that the corporate wifi provider market was locked up by a politically connected provider or two?)
If this were actually true - that a single iPhone hack could bring down the world - then we are doomed already. Frankly, I would be happy to testify based on facts on the Carterfone side of this ridiculous argument. But more importantly, the "new AT&T" and its lawyers (and now Apple) would do well to see how well that argument prevented the catastrophe that hit AT&T due to Judge Green's breakup of the "old AT&T". (well, it was a catastrophe to the old AT&T, but served the world quite well, IMO).
Monopolies with huge bank accounts to buy Congress's attention will always try these ridiculous scaremongering arguments. It's the corporate version of scare the people. (remember that 802.11 was going to cause planes to crash, and even had some "experts" who claimed that planes *had* crashed, before we got the latest news that the corporate wifi provider market was locked up by a politically connected provider or two?)