[At-Large] ALAC Positions open for nominations 2007-2008

[Guru@ITfC]

Resending, since does not appear to have reached the list

(Izumi, I had sent the mail below on 3 oct, but has not reached the list
.... Is the list moderated? Would you know. Else can I request you to
forward this mail to the ALAC list pls)

Thanks
Guru 

-----Original Message-----
From: Guru at ITfC [mailto:guru at itforchange.net] 
Sent: Wednesday, October 03, 2007 9:59 PM
To: 'At-Large Worldwide'
Subject: RE: [At-Large] ALAC Positions open for nominations 2007-2008

Hi,

"ALAC is responsible for considering and providing advice on the activities
of ICANN, as they relate to the interests of individual Internet users". 

Would the interests of users all over the world be the same or even
necessarily similar? Take the .xxx gtld issue. For some the issue is of
censorship and how nobody should be prevented from applying and getting the
gtld they want, while for others, cultural sensitivities require the
prohibition of some phrases. Same logic for .abortion or .childpornography.
Historically, many of these debates have been settled within national or
sub-national boundaries while the internet is not so bound. Does ALAC also
provide / need to provide 'users diverse perspectives' to ICANN?

This thinking of some universal "expertise" or 'best person' transcending
all ethnicities/origins/cultures/regions seems to smell of ethnocentrism
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnocentrism). Is not negotiating diverse and
even conflicting interests of different groups (of users) essentially a
political process? One which even subsumes definitions of 'expertise'

Looking at the sets of ALAC representatives I do hope that collectively they
are reasonably conversant with the needs/issues of the different
constituencies comprising 'users'. That brings me to a second question - how
do we define an 'internet user' - only those who are logged in today? Or do
we have a broader definition? I am sure other members of this list will have
valuable responses to this question.

Guru 

-----Original Message-----
From: alac-bounces at atlarge-lists.icann.org
[mailto:alac-bounces at atlarge-lists.icann.org] On Behalf Of Evan Leibovitch
Sent: Monday, October 01, 2007 11:00 PM
To: Robert Guerra
Cc: At-Large Worldwide
Subject: Re: [At-Large] ALAC Positions open for nominations 2007-2008

Robert Guerra wrote:
> - It seems that the chair position is rotating from one region to 
> another. That's not a bad idea. Perhaps we should institutionalize 
> that ...?
Now more than ever, having the right person for the job must override
political showmanship. It's one thing to encourage and welcome diversity,
quite another to legislate it. And the last thing ALAC needs right now is a
new formal obstacle to recruiting the best candidates.

- Evan


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