Fun_People Archive
15 Jun
EXON/GORTON -:- Round #2, coming up.
Date: Thu, 15 Jun 95 15:09:01 PDT
From: Peter Langston <psl>
To: Fun_People
Subject: EXON/GORTON -:- Round #2, coming up.
Forwarded-by: bostic@CS.Berkeley.EDU (Keith Bostic)
Forwarded-by: Eric Allman <eric@cs.berkeley.edu>
Forwarded-by: "Deven T. Corzine" <deven@asylum.sf.ca.us>
========================================================================
CAMPAIGN TO STOP THE EXON/GORTON COMMUNICATIONS DECENCY ACT
(SEE THE LIST OF CAMPAIGN COALITION MEMBERS AT THE END)
Update: -The Latest News: The Senate voted to attach the
Communications Decency Act to the Telecom Reform bill.
Leahy's alternative was not attached to the Telecom
Reform bill.
-What You Can Do Now
CAMPAIGN TO STOP THE UNCONSTITUTIONAL COMMUNICATIONS DECENCY ACT
June 14, 1995
PLEASE WIDELY REDISTRIBUTE THIS DOCUMENT WITH THIS BANNER INTACT
REDISTRIBUTE ONLY UNTIL June 25, 1995
REPRODUCE THIS ALERT ONLY IN RELEVANT FORUMS
Distributed by the Voters Telecommunications Watch (vtw@vtw.org)
________________________________________________________________________
CONTENTS
Background
The Latest News
What You Can Do Now
For More Information
List Of Participating Organizations
________________________________________________________________________
BACKGROUND
The Communications Decency Act (sponsored by Sen. Exon and Gorton) would
criminalize many forms of expression on online systems. Many believe
it to be unconstitutional, and a fight to oppose it has been waged
since its introduction. It was recently attached to the fast-tracked
Telecommunications Deregulation bill, which is moving quickly through
Congress.
________________________________________________________________________
THE LATEST NEWS
Right up until the last minute, callers reported weary Senatorial
staffers continued to report a deluge of incoming calls, almost all
against the Exon/Coats bill and supporting the Leahy alternative. The
Senate debated the Exon/Coats/Gorton Communications Decency Act and the
Leahy alternative today (June 14, 1995) starting at about 3:30pm EST
for 90 minutes.
The debate was opened by Senator Exon who read a prayer to protect
against computer pornography. Senators Exon (D-NE) and Coats (R-IN)
spoke in favor of their position. Senator Gorton (R-WA) was
mysteriously absent from the debate.
Exon referred those that signed the petition to prevent his censorship
bill as "selfish". Exon presented letters from many groups in support
of his bill, including the Christian Coalition, the Family Research
Council, the National Law Center for Families. He also stated that
75% of computer owners have refused the join the Internet because the
obscene material they feared on the Internet.
Senators Byrd (D-WV) and Heflin (D-AL) cosponsored the Exon bill at
the last minute.
Senators Leahy (D-VT) and Feingold (D-WI) spoke passionately about the
First Amendment and the Internet. Feingold warned against the dangers
of chilling free speech. Leahy brought out the monster petition in
support of his alternative (it looks pretty impressive on television)
and proceeded to try to debunk the myths Exon promulgated about the
Internet. He also trumpeted the success of the Internet, and pointed
out it wouldn't have been nearly as successful if the US government had
tried to micro-manage it.
Both Exon and Leahy then gave back extra debating time and went to a vote
on the bill. The Exon bill was successfully attached to the Telecomm
Reform bill (84-16). The Leahy alternative was not attached to the
Telecom Reform bill.
Questions and answers:
Q: What does this mean?
A: It means we lost this round. The unconstitutional Exon Communications
Decency Act was attached to the Telecomm Reform bill.
Q: What's the next step?
A: Next, we need to ensure that a House equivalent to the Exon
Communications Decency Act is not attached to the House Telecomm Reform
bill.
Q: Where can I find more information about the bill?
A: Check below.
________________________________________________________________________
WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW -- U.S. and non-U.S. citizens
1. Familiarize yourself with the version of the bill that passed,
and the transcript of the Senate debate. (directions to obtain
these are below)
2. Check the voting list below. It wouldn't hurt to send a nice
letter, email, or fax to the Senators that voted to defeat the
Communications Decency Act. Hateful mail to Senators who did
not vote your way is not only *bad form*, but likely to become illegal
soon anyway, under the Communications Decency Act.
In other words, take some time to cool off.
3. If you don't receive Coalition alerts reliably through mail or news,
join the mailing list by sending mail to listproc@vtw.org with
"subscribe vtw-announce Firstname Lastname". We'll have to fight
this battle in the House soon and you should be informed.
4. Relax, it's not the end of the world. We still have this battle to
fight in the House of Representatives and then in the conference
committee. This is a setback, but we haven't lost yet.
________________________________________________________________________
RESULTS OF THE SENATE VOTE
Senators who voted to defeat the Communications Decency Act
(A polite letter to congratulate them for defending your free speech
rights would be appropriate.)
D ST Name (Party) Phone Fax
= == ================== ============== ==============
D CT Lieberman, Joseph I. 1-202-224-4041 1-202-224-9750
D DE Biden Jr., Joseph R. 1-202-224-5042 1-202-224-0139
D IL Simon, Paul 1-202-224-2152 1-202-224-0868
senator@simon.senate.gov
D IL Moseley-Braun, Carol 1-202-224-2854 1-202-224-2626
D MA Kennedy, Edward M. 1-202-224-4543 1-202-224-2417
senator@kennedy.senate.gov
D MI Levin, Carl 1-202-224-6221 na
D MN Wellstone, Paul 1-202-224-5641 1-202-224-8438
D NM Bingaman, Jeff 1-202-224-5521 na
Senator_Bingaman@bingaman.senate.gov
D NY Moynihan, Daniel P. 1-202-224-4451 na
D OH Glenn, John 1-202-224-3353 1-202-224-7983
R RI Chafee, John H. 1-202-224-2921 na
D VA Robb, Charles S. 1-202-224-4024 1-202-224-8689
Senator_Robb@robb.senate.gov
vascr@CapAccess.org
D VT Leahy, Patrick J. 1-202-224-4242 1-202-224-3595
senator_leahy@leahy.senate.gov
R VT Jeffords, James M. 1-202-224-5141 na
D WA Murray, Patty 1-202-224-2621 1-202-224-0238
D WI Feingold, Russell 1-202-224-5323 na
russell_feingold@feingold.senate.gov
Senators who voted to support the (CDA) Communications Decency Act
(They voted for the CDA and to curtail your free speech rights.
Writing them an impolite and nasty letter would be a bad idea, and
may soon be illegal under the CDA anyway. Take some time to cool down.)
D ST Name (Party) Phone Fax
= == ================== ============== ==============
R AK Murkowski, Frank H. 1-202-224-6665 1-202-224-5301
R AK Stevens, Ted 1-202-224-3004 1-202-224-1044
D AL Heflin, Howell T. 1-202-224-4124 1-202-224-3149
R AL Shelby, Richard C. 1-202-224-5744 1-202-224-3416
D AR Bumpers, Dale 1-202-224-4843 1-202-224-6435
D AR Pryor, David 1-202-224-2353 1-202-224-8261
R AZ Kyl, Jon 1-202-224-4521 1-202-228-1239
R AZ McCain, John 1-202-224-2235 1-602-952-8702
D CA Boxer, Barbara 1-202-224-3553 na
D CA Feinstein, Dianne 1-202-224-3841 1-202-228-3954
R CO Campbell, Ben N. 1-202-224-5852 1-202-225-0228
R CO Brown, Henry 1-202-224-5941 1-202-224-6471
D CT Dodd, Christopher J. 1-202-224-2823 na
R DE Roth Jr. William V. 1-202-224-2441 1-202-224-2805
D FL Graham, Robert 1-202-224-3041 1-202-224-2237
R FL Mack, Connie 1-202-224-5274 1-202-224-8022
D GA Nunn, Samuel 1-202-224-3521 1-202-224-0072
R GA Coverdell, Paul 1-202-224-3643 1-202-228-3783
D HI Akaka, Daniel K. 1-202-224-6361 1-202-224-2126
D HI Inouye, Daniel K. 1-202-224-3934 1-202-224-6747
D IA Harkin, Thomas 1-202-224-3254 1-202-224-7431
R IA Grassley, Charles E. 1-202-224-3744 1-202-224-6020
R ID Craig, Larry E. 1-202-224-2752 1-202-224-2573
R ID Kempthorne, Dirk 1-202-224-6142 1-202-224-5893
R IN Coats, Daniel R. 1-202-224-5623 1-202-224-8964
R IN Lugar, Richard G. 1-202-224-4814 1-202-224-7877
R KS Dole, Robert 1-202-224-6521 1-202-224-8952
R KS Kassebaum, Nancy L. 1-202-224-4774 1-202-224-3514
D KY Ford, Wendell H. 1-202-224-4343 1-202-224-0046
R KY McConnell, Mitch 1-202-224-2541 1-202-224-2499
D LA Breaux, John B. 1-202-224-4623 na
D LA Johnston, J. Bennett 1-202-224-5824 1-202-224-2952
D MA Kerry, John F. 1-202-224-2742 1-202-224-8525
D MD Mikulski, Barbara A. 1-202-224-4654 1-202-224-8858
D MD Sarbanes, Paul S. 1-202-224-4524 1-202-224-1651
R ME Snowe, Olympia 1-202-224-5344 1-202-224-6853
R ME Cohen, William S. 1-202-224-2523 1-202-224-2693
R MI Abraham, Spencer 1-202-224-4822 1-202-224-8834
R MN Grams, Rod 1-202-224-3244 na
R MO Bond, Christopher S. 1-202-224-5721 1-202-224-8149
R MO Ashcroft, John 1-202-224-6154 na
R MS Cochran, Thad 1-202-224-5054 1-202-224-3576
R MS Lott, Trent 1-202-224-6253 1-202-224-2262
D MT Baucus, Max 1-202-224-2651 na
R MT Burns, Conrad R. 1-202-224-2644 1-202-224-8594
R NC Faircloth, D. M. 1-202-224-3154 1-202-224-7406
R NC Helms, Jesse 1-202-224-6342 1-202-224-7588
D ND Conrad, Kent 1-202-224-2043 1-202-224-7776
D ND Dorgan, Byron L. 1-202-224-2551 1-202-224-1193
D NE Kerrey, Bob 1-202-224-6551 1-202-224-7645
D NE Exon, J. J. 1-202-224-4224 1-202-224-5213
R NH Gregg, Judd 1-202-224-3324 1-202-224-4952
R NH Smith, Robert 1-202-224-2841 1-202-224-1353
D NJ Bradley, William 1-202-224-3224 1-202-224-8567
D NJ Lautenberg, Frank R. 1-202-224-4744 1-202-224-9707
R NM Domenici, Pete V. 1-202-224-6621 1-202-224-7371
D NV Bryan, Richard H. 1-202-224-6244 1-202-224-1867
D NV Reid, Harry 1-202-224-3542 1-202-224-7327
R NY D'Amato, Alfonse M. 1-202-224-6542 1-202-224-5871
R OH Dewine, Michael 1-202-224-2315 1-202-224-6519
R OK Inhofe, James 1-202-224-4721
R OK Nickles, Donald 1-202-224-5754 1-202-224-6008
R OR Hatfield, Mark O. 1-202-224-3753 1-202-224-0276
R OR Packwood, Robert 1-202-224-5244 1-202-228-3576
R PA Santorum, Rick 1-202-224-6324 na
R PA Specter, Arlen 1-202-224-4254 1-717-782-4920
D RI Pell, Claiborne 1-202-224-4642 1-202-224-4680
D SC Hollings, Ernest F. 1-202-224-6121 1-202-224-4293
R SC Thurmond, Strom 1-202-224-5972 1-202-224-1300
D SD Daschle, Thomas A. 1-202-224-2321 1-202-224-2047
R SD Pressler, Larry 1-202-224-5842 1-202-224-1259*
R TN Thompson, Fred 1-202-224-4944 1-202-228-3679
R TN Frist, Bill 1-202-224-3344 1-202-224-8062
R TX Hutchison, Kay Bailey 1-202-224-5922 1-202-224-0776
R TX Gramm, Phil 1-202-224-2934 1-202-228-2856
R UT Bennett, Robert 1-202-224-5444 1-202-224-6717
R UT Hatch, Orrin G. 1-202-224-5251 1-202-224-6331
R VA Warner, John W. 1-202-224-2023 1-202-224-6295
R WA Gorton, Slade 1-202-224-3441 1-202-224-9393
D WI Kohl, Herbert H. 1-202-224-5653 1-202-224-9787
D WV Byrd, Robert C. 1-202-224-3954 1-202-224-4025
D WV Rockefeller, John D. 1-202-224-6472 na
R WY Simpson, Alan K. 1-202-224-3424 1-202-224-1315
R WY Thomas, Craig 1-202-224-6441 1-202-224-3230
________________________________________________________________________
FOR MORE INFORMATION
We will be archiving the version of the Communications Decency Act
that passed, the roll call vote that went with it, and the transcript
of the Senate debate.
We will make these available through the methods below as soon as
they are available through the Government Printing Office (this usually
takes about 24 hours). Please try to use the Web or Gopher sites first
before using our email server.
Web Sites
URL:http://www.panix.com/vtw/exon/
URL:http://epic.org/
URL:http://www.eff.org/pub/Alerts/
URL:http://www.cdt.org/cda.html
FTP Archives
URL:ftp://ftp.cdt.org/pub/cdt/policy/freespeech/00-INDEX.FREESPEECH
URL:ftp://ftp.eff.org/pub/Alerts/
Gopher Archives:
URL:gopher://gopher.panix.com/11/vtw/exon
URL:gopher://gopher.eff.org/11/Alerts
Email:
vtw@vtw.org (put "send help" in the subject line)
cda-info@cdt.org (General CDA information)
cda-stat@cdt.org (Current status of the CDA)
________________________________________________________________________
LIST OF PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS
In order to use the net more effectively, several organizations have
joined forces on a single Congressional net campaign to stop the
Communications Decency Act.
American Civil Liberties Union * American Communication Association *
American Council for the Arts * Arts & Technology Society * Association
of Alternative Newsweeklies * biancaTroll productions * Californians
Against Censorship Together * Center For Democracy And Technology *
Centre for Democratic Communications * Center for Public Representation
* Citizen's Voice - New Zealand * Computer Communicators Association *
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility * Cross Connection *
Cyber-Rights Campaign * CyberQueer Lounge * Dutch Digital Citizens'
Movement * Electronic Frontier Canada * Electronic Frontier Foundation
* Electronic Frontier Foundation - Austin * Electronic Frontiers
Australia * Electronic Frontiers Houston * Electronic Frontiers New
Hampshire * Electronic Privacy Information Center * Feminists For Free
Expression * First Amendment Teach-In * Florida Coalition Against
Censorship * Friendly Anti-Censorship Taskforce for Students * Hands
Off! The Net * Human Rights Watch * Inland Book Company * Inner Circle
Technologies, Inc. * Inst. for Global Communications * Internet
On-Ramp, Inc. * The Libertarian Party * Marijuana Policy Project *
Metropolitan Data Networks Ltd. * MindVox * National Bicycle Greenway *
National Coalition Against Censorship * National Public Telecomputing
Network * National Writers Union * Oregon Coast RISC * Panix Public
Access Internet * People for the American Way * Rock Out Censorship *
Society for Electronic Access * The Thing International BBS Network *
The WELL * Voters Telecommunications Watch
(Note: All 'Electronic Frontier' organizations are independent entities,
not EFF chapters or divisions.)
________________________________________________________________________
End Alert
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© 1995 Peter Langston
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