[NNagain] [Starlink] FCC Upholds Denial of Starlink's RDOF Application

Thu Dec 14 12:48:21 EST 2023

FCC's staff continues to shrink. 1420-or-so employees in 2022, 1755-or-so
in 2012, 1952-or-so in 2004. So about a 25% reduction over the last twenty
years. There are several good people there among the staff, however they
also face an increasing number of tasks and demands with less resources.
Public service depends on folks being willing to step up and be of service.

Also, ultimately it is the decision of the Commissioners. Staff can brief
the Commissioners and present evidence, the Commissioners are there to make
the policy decisions. Remember Commissioners are Presidentially-appointed,
Senate-confirmed which selects for certain things in keeping with our
Constitution. For the staff, this means accepting that politics may
supersede even the best technical briefing.

Such is how representative governments work. And if you circle back to
Plato's The Republic, the conclusion is such is how humanity wants it - we
don't want a perfectly wise, benevolent, philosopher king. Each of us wants
compromises - the difference being those specific compromises. Plato
(through the voice of Socrates) also concludes humanity would probably kill
a perfectly wise, benevolent, philosopher king if we were to ever have one
- again because despite everyone saying they want this, they really only
want such a person if that person agrees with them fully. Or as Tears for
Fears aptly put it: "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" =
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awoFZaSuko4

On Thu, Dec 14, 2023 at 1:00 AM Frantisek Borsik via Nnagain <
nnagain at lists.bufferbloat.net> wrote:

> Thanks, Robert. Exactly what I meant. Therefore I added NN list, because
> Nathan was engaging with us there, and with Dave (me and some others, to my
> knowledge) either directly or via his staffers and he really wanted to
> catch up on tech things that are the culprits of Net Neutrality
> (bufferbloat.)
>
> So instead of assuming that Nathan Simington and Brendan Carr are “bought”
> as someone did, I can the FCC itself as an entity can be understaffed at
> worse.
>
> But still, I appreciate efforts to learn about what’s going in here and
> getting it right.
>
> All the best,
>
> Frank
> Frantisek (Frank) Borsik
>
> https://www.linkedin.com/in/frantisekborsik
> Signal, Telegram, WhatsApp: +421919416714
> iMessage, mobile: +420775230885
> Skype: casioa5302ca
> frantisek.borsik at gmail.com
>
>
> On Thu, 14 Dec 2023 at 3:46 AM, Robert McMahon <rjmcmahon at rjmcmahon.com>
> wrote:
>
>> I think this common in that appointment of commissioners go through a
>> political process. The FCC has a technology group, too. When I worked with
>> them about 8 years ago, they had skilled researchers on staff and a highly
>> skilled director. They asked good questions about engineering decisions,
>> like what is limiting the number of mimo streams on devices.
>>
>> Their physical facility is a bit dated, and they don't get stock grants.
>> I respect the engineers I worked with for what they did.
>>
>> Bob
>> On Dec 13, 2023, at 2:38 PM, Frantisek Borsik via Nnagain <
>> nnagain at lists.bufferbloat.net> wrote:
>>
>>> I would love for Nathan to be here with us, and comment on that :-) so I
>>> will add NN list as well.
>>>
>>>
>>> All the best,
>>>
>>> Frank
>>> Frantisek (Frank) Borsik
>>>
>>> https://www.linkedin.com/in/frantisekborsik
>>> Signal, Telegram, WhatsApp: +421919416714
>>> iMessage, mobile: +420775230885
>>> Skype: casioa5302ca
>>> frantisek.borsik at gmail.com
>>>
>>>
>>> On Wed, 13 Dec 2023 at 11:21 PM, Richard Roy <dickroy3777 at comcast.net>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ------------------------------
>>>>
>>>> *From:* Starlink [mailto:starlink-bounces at lists.bufferbloat.net] *On
>>>> Behalf Of *Frantisek Borsik via Starlink
>>>> *Sent:* Wednesday, December 13, 2023 1:26 PM
>>>> *To:* Dave Taht via Starlink
>>>> *Subject:* [Starlink] FCC Upholds Denial of Starlink’s RDOF Application
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> “*Elon Musk*’s Starlink was not the only major company to inflate its
>>>> capabilities
>>>> <https://broadbandbreakfast.com/2021/04/rdof-reverse-auction-criticized-google-makes-pandemic-gains-california-broadband-access-for-k-12/> in
>>>> RDOF bids. Nearly 100 bidders have defaulted since the auction, leaving in
>>>> limbo an estimated $2.8 billion
>>>> <https://broadbandbreakfast.com/2023/06/what-happens-to-the-estimated-2-8-billion-in-rdof-defaults/> of
>>>> the $9.2 billion originally awarded.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> The FCC upheld another denial
>>>> <https://broadbandbreakfast.com/2023/12/fcc-proposes-22-million-fine-against-ltd-over-rdof/>
>>>>  on Monday in the case of LTD Broadband, which appealed the
>>>> commission’s finding that it could not reasonably serve the more than
>>>> 500,000 locations to which it had committed. The commission also hit LTD
>>>> with a $21.7 million fine for its default.
>>>>
>>>> The commission’s two Republicans dissented to Starlink’s denial,
>>>> claiming they saw a path for the company to improve its speeds before the
>>>> first deployment deadline in 2025.”
>>>>
>>>> *[RR] The reason two lawyers “saw a path” is because they were
>>>> bribed/conned into to see it. In my nearly 50years of experience dealing
>>>> with the FCC, extremely rarely are the people at the top in the commission
>>>> tech savvy.  In general, they have NO CLUE when it comes to technology …
>>>> period! **JJ*
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> https://broadbandbreakfast.com/2023/12/fcc-upholds-denial-of-starlinks-rdof-application/
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> All the best,
>>>>
>>>> Frank
>>>> Frantisek (Frank) Borsik
>>>>
>>>> https://www.linkedin.com/in/frantisekborsik
>>>> Signal, Telegram, WhatsApp: +421919416714
>>>> iMessage, mobile: +420775230885
>>>> Skype: casioa5302ca
>>>> frantisek.borsik at gmail.com
>>>>
>>> ------------------------------
>>>
>>> Nnagain mailing list
>>> Nnagain at lists.bufferbloat.net
>>> https://lists.bufferbloat.net/listinfo/nnagain
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
> Nnagain mailing list
> Nnagain at lists.bufferbloat.net
> https://lists.bufferbloat.net/listinfo/nnagain
>
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