Senate Telecom Overseer Not Plugged In to Web

[Rose Siding]

WASHINGTON — Sen. Ted Stevens picked a bad time to go tubular.

The Alaska Republican is being hammered by bloggers for describing the Internet as a "series of tubes" in a rambling speech last month in which he defended a telecommunications bill that could influence how information flows online.....

"Stevens has amplified for the country the extent to which he and his colleagues don't understand the fundamental issues that are at stake," said Josh Silver, executive director of Free Press, a nonpartisan media-reform organization. The group, along with many others and leading Internet companies, wants to prohibit the building of "toll lanes" on the World Wide Web. The issue is known as network neutrality.
...
Experts often describe the wires and fiber-optic strands that carry Internet data as pipes, pointed out a Stevens aide, who asked not to be named. But to many bloggers and others, Stevens' meandering monologue made him appear bewildered about the inner workings of the Net.

They called him "dazed and confused," "a backwoods hick" and "completely clueless." A search of "Stevens" and "series of tubes" produced 200,000 Web links, including a song with parts of Stevens' speech set to a thumping techno beat.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-tubes15jul15,0,2789265.story?coll=la-home-headlines

[Warpy]

1. Stevens is the dumbest empty suit in Congress

Cornyn is coming up fast, though.

[kittenpants]

2. Here's a link to the techno song with blurbs from his speech.

It's pretty good.
http://alternet.org/blogs/peek/38797/

[annabanana]

3. The Daily Show, Ted Stevens & the "internet"

In case you're wondering who's in charge here?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DClkE64nFDY

[Ian David]

4. See also:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=105&topic_id=5374907&mesg_id=5374907