Kerry says government invented Internet, cuts would stifle innovation

[Mass]

http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/148071-kerry-says-government-invented-internet-and-gop-cuts-would-stifle-innovation

Kerry says government invented Internet, cuts would stifle innovation
By Alexander Bolton - 03/08/11 12:26 PM ET
Senate John Kerry (D-Mass.) warned Tuesday that spending cuts could wipe out future government achievements, like the invention of the Internet, which Kerry credited to Washington.

“A lot of people don’t think about that. But the fact is the government invented the Internet,” Kerry said in a 30-minute floor speech.

Kerry said the Internet was first conceived by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) as a communications system in case of nuclear war.
...

I have not seen the speech, but I love the "Kerry says". As we all know, Google and Facebook invented the Internet. Governement?

[karynnj]

1. I love that he says that, because if asked to defend it, it's easy

it started as DARPA net and even the big expansion that happened in the 1990s were partially because of legislation that Gore wrote that funded research and development on it. It is true that private companies were involved even early on, especially BBN in MA, but they did it as a government funded project.

[Mass]

2. Raw story got from this speech Kerry want to cut Social Security.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/03/09/kerry-to-balance-budget-we-must-reform-revenue-taxes-spending-and-entitlements/

[TayTay]

3. "Reforming" Entitlements is a mixed comment

We absolutely do need to reform Medicare. That system, as well as Medicaid, is in very dangerous condition. I would wholeheartedly agree with Sen. Kerry that these entitlements need reform, immediately, if not yesterday.

I liked the Senator's speech. I think he is right. Clearly, Kerry was talking about preserving programs that aid in job creation will seriously looking at how other programs, including defense, use their funds. I don't have a problem with that. I do have a problem with the ideological way the Repubs slashed programs they don't like.

EDIT: Sorry, I have limited computer time this day and made this comment too short. There are many ways to look at Medicare spending with an eye to saving money. Not all of these ways involve cutting benefits to recipients, per se. Medicare is a massive, massive program that employs thousands of vendors to administer services, equipment, etc. There are sweetheart deals, many of them with big Repub cos that desperately need to be reformed. I am completely for that. Completely.

EDIT edit, redux: This is what I mean as refers to defense spending and this goes on all the time in Medicare:

The deficit isn't the only threat to contractors. Late last year, the Pentagon's chief weapons buyer, Ashton Carter, announced that his office would seek fixed-price contracts to replace so-called cost-plus deals, which cover all expenses and pay an extra incentive fee, even for troubled programs. Under the new arrangement, the Pentagon and contractors would share cost overruns. Companies would have an incentive to deliver weapons below the agreed cost, though such deals can also "wipe out the profit" or cause a loss, says Todd Harrison, an analyst with the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. That's a novel concept for many weapons contractors.

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_10/b4218028646985.htm

Medicare is an absolutely necessary GOVERNMENT program. But, there are a lot of pols with "blood on their hands" as regards money in that program. We have to insist on REGULATION to make sure the money is spent wisely. There are a huge number of sweetheart deals in the program and many of those sweetheart deals have angels in Congress with donors who own the deals. If Sen. Kerry means to go after these arrangements, bless him for doing so. It can preserve benefits.

More research to come after I help my son dye more clothing for his upcoming convention appearances. (Oy, the life of being an artists' Mom.)

[karynnj]

4. I am sick and tired of the idiotic far left

It is beyond stupid, that this author completely ignores the part of the speech specifically on SS - the part where Kerry says that other than small tweaks, SS is good for the century! Small tweaks - are just that - and the most obvious is to raise the limit that you pay the tax on - or maybe pay some percent on income from capital.

What is stupid is NONE of them bothered to listen to the linked speech - instead they argue it is because he is rich, because Teresa is rich, because he was in S&B, because he lost to Bush and didn't "fight". Not to mention, one who uses the 1970ish John Lennon as his icon spoke of "people" being against JL - I assume implying JK as one of them given the thread - another answers that JL was deported - which he wasn't.

If truth be know, by 1972 JL was completely sick of the far left anti-war movement that this poster likely would have happily been apart of.