[At-Large] "Business" users (was Re: FW: Our choice for the ICANN Board)

Carlton Samuels carlton.samuels at gmail.com
Sat Nov 27 22:46:16 UTC 2010


....here again, another reason why I reflexively distrust orthodoxy and all
those that claim to be keepers of the seal!

FWIW, your road to salvation matters little to me, just the salvation. It is
for good reason then why I will always accord anyone his/her right to
believe his/her own set of myths. So long as you would not demand that I
value yours above that of the other fella.

Apropos, I teach at the university, I provide consulting services to
commercial clients, governments and multilateral institutions for fee.  I do
voluntary work as a member in good standing of ICT4D Jamaica and several
NGOs concerned with education and technology use in education. I serve on
the boards of two institutions concerned with education and training.

I'm from an academic institution that has 53K students spread over lots of
rocks, big and small, in 3M square miles of sea.  I double dare anyone to
tell me I do not and cannot represent "user" interests.

Carlton

==============================
Carlton A Samuels
Mobile: 876-818-1799
Strategy, Planning, Governance, Assessment & Turnaround
=============================


On Sat, Nov 27, 2010 at 5:11 PM, Evan Leibovitch <evan at telly.org> wrote:

> Hi again,
>
> On 27 November 2010 12:37, Sivasubramanian M <isolatedn at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > >
> > > *As more and more at Large leadership positions are filled by people
> from
> > > > > the business constituency, It is becoming very important for ALAC
> and
> > at
> > > > > Large to preserve at Large as a user's constituency to TRULY
> balance
> > the
> > > > > business stakeholder group. Any leadership position within ALAC and
> > at
> > > > > Large should be occupied by persons with ample concern for the end
> > user.*
> >
> > > I must say that I'm perplexed by the nature of this question, and I
> take
> > it
> > > personally even though I am not a candidate for Director.
> >
> > Please don't.
> >
>
> I've changed the subject because my response no longer has anything to do
> with the election of Director. I explain this in the hope of changing some
> attitudes -- not about Director, but on larger issues surrounding the very
> nature of At-Large.
>
> Here is why I take this statement very personally.
>
> I work for a University, but I also own my own consulting firm and I am a
> partner in a startup venture. On travel visa applications my occupation is
> just listed as "businessman" or "consultant".
>
>  My name has also been put forward to become one of the coming year's ALAC
> Officers, which certainly qualifies as an "At-Large leadership position".
>
> So I ask... Am I one of these "people from the Business Constituency" who
> needs to be balanced by others from a "user's constituency"? What views
> have
> I expressed in any policy work that would lead anyone to believe that I
> don't advocate from a user's perspective by virtue of my being a
> businessman? To what extent do my views need to be balanced ... and by
> what?
>
> I am simply making the point here is that drawing such lines in At-Large
> between "business" and "non-business" is needlessly divisive and impedes
> our
> ability to make progress. While Chair of NARALO I made sure that there were
> Conflict of Interest guidelines and that all individual users have to
> submit
> Statements of Interest. Employees, owners and agents of contracted parties
> may not serve any NARALO leadership position. I don't know what other
> regions did but that was our approach. As far as I am concerned, a business
> association (not primarily involved with Internet infrastructure business)
> has as much right to be an ALS as a non-governmental agency or ISOC
> chapter,
> and deserves as much respect for its views. That is what At-Large is all
> about. End-users take many forms and it it dangerous to spend too much
> effort segmenting them. The only business users that concerns At-Large are
> those that have contractual relationships with ICANN, those who want to
> have
> such relationships, and their resellers and agents.
>
> IMO we need to acknowledge that At-Large means essentially everyone who is
> *not* a contracted party. We're all end-users and our voices all count.The
> president of Citibank has to use his computer just like you or me, and is
> affected by spam and phishing as much as us. IMO segmenting end-users, and
> going as far as saying the views of some users must be "balanced" by
> others,
> is what I find bothersome. Please reconsider this approach ... not just
> with
> regard to the Board member, but towards At-Large in general.
>
> - Evan
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