Message-ID: <01BED069.C47814A0@ip56.portland8.or.pub-ip.psi.net> Date: Sat, 17 Jul 1999 15:29:23 -0700 From: Kai Schraml <mailto:thekaiser@EARTHLINK.NET> Subject: Re: UNDP proposal on taxing Internet To: mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU
Dear Devel-L,I think we have a communication breakdown, or my point was missed altogether. It may in fact be the aspiring middle clas that is aspiring to far too great material wealth and resource utilization. And in fact, the whole point is that there re still so many without access to the bare necessities of clean water, secure food, personal security, basic health car , and proper shelter.
I have no desire to "furnish" any aspiring middle class with anything, except information on how to reduce their resourc utilization and why it is important to the sustainability of everyone's life. And also the opportunity to become active in the battle to promote some of the principles to others. Indeed the internet is an effective tool for this type of dis ussion, but our responsibility is to the poorest first, and then to others.
Kai Schraml
Kai Schraml
Work Info: PO Box 25 Colfax, WA 99111 509 981 3245 phone 509 332 4411 alt phone 509 332 5375 fax mailto:teams@targetearth.org
Home info 720 NE Thatuna Rd Pullman, WA 99163 509 332 7231 phone mailto:thekaiser@earthlink.net
-----Original Message----- From: Renewable News Network [SMTP:mailto:rnn@rnn.com] Sent: Saturday, July 17, 1999 9:10 AM To: Kai Schraml; mailto:thekaiser@earthlink.net; M. A. Hameed Cc: mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU Subject: Re: UNDP proposal on taxing Internet
Is there no aspiring middle class? Would you hazard to guess the growth or share figures on other electronic appliances, devices?
On Sat, 17 Jul 1999, M. A. Hameed wrote:
> Kai,
> When we speak of "one billion people living off one dollar per day," we may
> as well talk of such basic necessities as clean drinking water, which is not
> available to most of them in developing countries. Internet, by definition,
> can be used only with a phone and most developing countries have a phone
> density of just one or two percent.
>
> The people who have phones can also afford to buy personal computers. What
> they need are low-cost connections, when Internet charges are as much as one
> dollar per hour! If the international leased circuits are paid for and the
> charges for domestic circuits are based on actual costs of the telecom
> companies (plus a reasonable margin of profit), the Internet will certainly
> become affordable for most people.
>
> Best regards,
> Muhammad Abd al-Hameed
> GPO Box 109, Lahore, Pakistan 54000
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Kai Schraml [mailto:mailto:thekaiser@earthlink.net]
> Sent: Friday, July 16, 1999 10:50 PM
> To: 'M. A. Hameed'
> Subject: RE: UNDP proposal on taxing Internet
>
> One billion people live off less than a dollar a day... I highly doubt they
> will be buying a computer anytime soon. What outlet and phone line do you
> expect them to plug into?
>
> Kai Schraml
>
> Kai Schraml
> Target Earth International
> "Serving the Earth, Serving the Poor"
> www.targetearth.org
>
> Work Info:
> PO Box 25
> Colfax, WA 99111
> 509 981 3245 phone
> 509 332 4411 alt phone
> 509 332 5375 fax
> mailto:teams@targetearth.org
>
> Home info
> 720 NE Thatuna Rd
> Pullman, WA 99163
> 509 332 7231 phone
> mailto:thekaiser@earthlink.net
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: M. A. Hameed [SMTP:mailto:mah@BRAIN.NET.PK]
> Sent: Thursday, July 15, 1999 7:25 AM
> To: mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU
> Subject: UNDP proposal on taxing Internet
>
> The UNDP suggestion about tax on information via Internet has a parallel
> right in the US. As required by the Federal Telecommunications Commission,
> the phone companies pay money into a fund to meet "the universal service
> obligation." The fund is used for providing telecom services in rural parts
> of the country.
> In the context of Internet, all Internet service providers in the top
> richest countries should pay a small percentage of their total annual
> revenue to the UNDP. The fund should be used to pay for the international
> leased circuits of the Internet service providers in the less developed
> countries. The money will ultimately come back to the rich countries because
> the international circuits are mostly owned by their own multinational
> telecom companies. But it will promote tremendously the use of Internet in
> the less developed countries.
> The payment should, however, be subject to the condition that the national
> telecom companies in the relevant developing countries will charge only cost
> plus rates for the domestic circuits and local connectivity, and not the
> usually exorbitant monopoly prices.
> The result of the plan will be the availability of Internet at a very low
> cost to the users in the developing countries. There will be the one-time
> cost of a basic personal computer but that will not be much of a problem for
> most users.
>
> Best regards,
> Muhammad Abd al-Hameed
> GPO Box 109, Lahore, Pakistan 54000
>