From gjw26@eng.cam.ac.uk Fri Jul 30 00:35:09 1999 Received: from mxu2.u.washington.edu (mxu2.u.washington.edu [140.142.32.9]) by lists.u.washington.edu (8.9.3+UW99.02/8.9.3+UW99.01) with ESMTP id AAA18424; Fri, 30 Jul 1999 00:35:07 -0700 Received: from spanner.eng.cam.ac.uk (root@spanner.eng.cam.ac.uk [129.169.8.9]) by mxu2.u.washington.edu (8.9.3+UW99.02/8.9.3+UW99.06) with ESMTP id AAA28165; Fri, 30 Jul 1999 00:35:02 -0700 Received: from cramp.eng.cam.ac.uk (via root@cramp.eng.cam.ac.uk [129.169.9.4]) by spanner.eng.cam.ac.uk with ESMTP id IAA02672; Fri, 30 Jul 1999 08:34:58 +0100 (BST) Received: from tw800.eng.cam.ac.uk (via gjw26@tw800.eng.cam.ac.uk [129.169.17.180]) by cramp.eng.cam.ac.uk with SMTP id IAA02571; Fri, 30 Jul 1999 08:34:51 +0100 (BST) Date: Fri, 30 Jul 1999 08:34:50 +0100 (BST) From: "G.J. Webster" To: "B. Anderson" cc: Rob Whitacre , UW Racing , Subject: Re: [Fwd: Fw: Fw: Postal Ripoff] In-Reply-To: Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII It is, in fact, bogus. I've seen it before. Bill 602P doesn't exist. Don't forward it to your friends because it's just clogging up the net. On Thu, 29 Jul 1999, B. Anderson wrote: > Ummm... I don't buy it. Even if it was real it would never pass. > > On Thu, 29 Jul 1999, Rob Whitacre wrote: > > > Check this out. > > > > >>> Date: Friday, May 21, 1999 9:28 AM > > >>> >> Subject: Postal Ripoff > > >>> >> > > >>> >> > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >Date: Tuesday, May 18, 1999 2:59 PM > > >>> >> >Subject: Postal ripoff > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >Have you all seen this!! > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >Read the following and PLEASE PASS IT ON to everyone you > > >>> >> >know: > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >Dear Internet Subscriber: > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >Please read the following carefully if you intend to stay online and > > >>> >> >continue using email: The last few months have revealed an alarming > > >>> >> >trend in the > > >>> >> >Government of the United States attempting to quietly push through > > >>> >> >legislation that will affect your use of the Internet. Under > > proposed > > >>> >> >legislation the U.S.Postal Service will be attempting to bilk email > > >>> >> >users > > >>> >> >out of "alternate postage fees". Bill 602P will permit the Federal > > >>> Govt > > >>> >> >to charge a 5 cent surcharge on every email delivered, by billing > > >>> >> >Internet Service Providers at source. The consumer would then be > > >>> billed > > >>> >> >in turn by the ISP. > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >Washington D.C. lawyer Richard Stepp is working without pay to > > >>> prevent > > >>> >> >this legislation from becoming law. The U.S. Postal Service is > > >>> claiming > > >>> >> >that > > >>> >> >lost revenue due to the proliferation of email is costing nearly > > >>> >> >$230,000,000 in revenue per year. You may have noticed their recent > > >>> ad > > >>> >> >campaign "There is > > >>> >> >nothing like a letter". Since the average citizen received about 10 > > >>> >> >pieces of email per day in 1998, the cost to the typical individual > > >>> >> >would be an additional 50 cents per day, or over $180 dollars per > > >>> year, > > >>> >> >above and beyond their regular Internet costs. Note that this would > > >>> be > > >>> >> >money paid directly to the U.S. Postal Service for a service they do > > >>> not > > >>> >> >even provide. > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >The whole point of the Internet is democracy and non-interference. > > If > > >>> >> >the federal government is permitted to tamper with our liberties by > > >>> >> >adding a surcharge to email, who knows where it will end. You are > > >>> >> >already paying an > > >>> >> >exorbitant price for snail mail because of bureacratic efficiency. > > It > > >>> >> >currently takes up to 6 days for a letter to be delivered from New > > >>> York > > >>> >> >to Buffalo. If the U.S. Postal Service is allowed to tinker with > > >>> email, > > >>> >> >it will mark the end of the "free" Internet in the United States. > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >One congressman, Tony Schnell (R) has even suggested a "twenty to > > >>> forty > > >>> >> >dollar per month surcharge on all Internet service" above and beyond > > >>> the > > >>> >> >government's proposed email charges. > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >Note that most of the major newspapers have ignored the story, the > > >>> only > > >>> >> >exception being the Washingtonian which called the idea of email > > >>> >> >surcharge "a useful concept who's time has come" March 6th 1999 > > >>> >> >Editorial). > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > Don't sit by and watch your freedoms erode away! > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >Send this email to all Americans on your list and tell your friends > > >>> and > > >>> >> >relatives to write to their congressman and say "No!" to Bill 602P. > > >>> Kate > > >>> >> >Turner Assistant to Richard Stepp, Berger, Stepp and Gorman > > Attorneys > > >>> at > > >>> >> >Law 216 Concorde Street, Vienna, Va. > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >It's the action, not the fruit of the action that's > > >>> >> >important. You have to do the right thing...You may never know what > > >>> >> >results come from your action. But if you do nothing, there will be > > >>> no > > >>> >> >result. (Gandhi) > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> >________________________________________________________________ > > >>> >> >Get secure free e-mail that you don't need Web access to use > > >>> >> >from Juno, the world's second largest online service. > > >>> >> >Download your free software at http://www.juno.com/getit.b.html. > > >>> >> > > > >>> >> > > >>> >> > > >>> > > > >>> > > >>> > > >> > > >> > > >> > > >Judi Wutzke > > >Immediate Past President, Pullman Kiwanis Club and > > >Lt. Governor Elect Designate, Division 56 > > > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gabe's email after Cambridge: gabeweb@u.washington.edu ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- .