You Say You Want a Revolution : A Story of Information Age Politics

Rating:
Summary: Diplomatic Hypocrisy
Review: As a member of the federal government, it is an embarrassment that someone of Mr. Hundt's self-perceived stature would write such satire. I agree with the reader from Alexandria. Mr. Hundt would have done more justice to all the readers if he would have spent some time explaining his thoughts behind his ill-advised tenure while serving in the FCC. Nevertheless, I guess it was my choice to waste these few hours reading another piece from this author's literary garden of fiction.

Rating:
Summary: self-praise!
Review: As the author of this short and easy-to-read book, I believe readers ought to be permitted to take away from it not necessarily what I put in it, but what they found. However, I just read a ranting review from someone who claimed to have read the first few chapters and to have been put off by the description of my dancing on a conga line with Gary Hart. This actually is the first sentence of the book. The failed Presidential candidate referenced is Mike Dukakis. I mean, really, if you're not going to read past the first 20 words, I think you should give the book to someone else!

Rating:
Summary: Both Major Parties are Responsible for this Mess
Review: Former Chairman of the Federal Communications Communications Commission Reed Hundt is far too enamored of activist government. This unfortunate mindset severely hindered the author's legitimate opposition to the excesses of the Republican controlled U.S. Congress. Hundt rightfully wished to draw "attention to the contradictions between sound conservative ideology and (actual) Republican behavior." Many right-wing Republican elected officials indeed talked the talk about encouraging free economic activity in the telecom industry while hypocritically kowtowing to the wishes of the powerful and wealthy Baby Bells. Capitalist godfather Adam Smith long ago warned that businessmen are inclined to collude together to defraud the consumer. A logically consistent conservative opposes both the careless welfare given to financially disadvantaged individuals and the corporate classes. Also, the Baby Bells originally benefited from the monopoly status granted to them by the government. They therefore have obligations unlike those corporations that never received such special favors. These truths are readily ignored by many conservatives especially when tempted by the not so subtle bribes offered by the rich corporations. "Al Gore's agenda was clearly," added Hundt "to promote competition, stimulate investment and innovation, and guarantee social benefits." Please note the very last item---enbracing this goal did a tremendous amount of harm.

Having your heart in the right place is not always a guarantee of splendid results. The author muddled his core message with extraneous pursuits best left off the agenda. Effective politics require a focussing upon the priorities of your limited time in either elected or appointed office. Political capital is expensive and should be cautiously spent. It is wise to sharply distinguish between the direct duties of the state, and the social needs best handled by the myriad mediating structures that underpin a viable social order. The principle of subsidiarity must guide us when deciding whether to grant government further power over us. Hundt and his immediate bosses Bill Clinton and Al Gore are the products of the discredited thinking of the 1960s that advocated paternalistic big government as the ultimate savior of the poorer classes. Hundt's FCC even went so far as to advocate that Internet service providers offer heavily discounted Internet access to schools and libraries. Conveniently overlooked is the harsh fact that such policies frustrate the true goals of companies competing in the free enterprise system while additionally burdening cash strapped ISPs who could ill afford this somewhat disingenuous form of taxation. The Libertarian Cato Institute at times indulges in extremist rhetoric. But in this instance, it sensibly argues that the poor will inevitably earn access to today's technologies just as they earlier acquired radios, automobiles, and televisions. Expensive government welfare programs have a history of doing more harm than good.

Unhappily, the Baby Bells were able to persuade the powers that be in Washington, D.C. to inadvertently permit them to sabotage their new competitors. Essentially the latter were thrown into battle with one hand tied behind their back. The allegations are numerous concerning the mischief caused by the giant incumbent telecoms. These bullies are sometimes fined, but the penalty is never more than a mild slap on the wrist. This ultimately only encourages these behemoths to run rough shod over both their customers and weaker competitors. Even well educated and affluent consumers often find themselves powerless to challenge the abuses of the Baby Bells. Reed Hundt has an interesting story to tell. Some people charge Hundt with name dropping, but I merely sense a candid description of the author's everyday normal existence. I recommend "You Say You Want a Revolution." There are admittedly some weaknesses, but Hundt still earns four stars.

Rating:
Summary: pick something else
Review: looking for a little inside info on how the FCC operates and some background on some of their more controversial decisions of the clinton era, i incorrectly assumed that the memoirs of the FCC Chair would shed some light. all i got was inside the huge, some could argue enormous, head of Reed Hundt, an egomaniac looking for someone to spin. i can't even finish the book it's so poor. all the politics aside, this book is really very poorly crafted. it's not insightful and just plain upsetting to read the machinations about how, through regulatory rules, reed hundt and al gore single handedly spurred the economic resurgence of the US economy. how absurd!

Rating:
Summary: Hundt's ego obscures all benefit
Review: Reed Hundt has done a masterful job of relating how government, technology and business have approached massive changes in information technology. Ironically, it appears that those who wish government would run like a business actually objected when it did -- e.g., when the FCC auctioned wirless spectrums for several billion dollars. Had the government, and particularly Vice President Gore, not been there to offer and defend a vision, the information industrialists would have kept America dysfunctional in the telecommunications age. Stated another way, my ability to send this review would still be sometime in the future, and your ability to read it nonexistent. Yet, this book also has a unique value to those, like me, involved in local government. In clear, and often witty, prose, Mr. Hundt demonstrates why local government needs to rise above pedestrian concerns about the information age. Just as the broadcast industry had to think outside the HDTV box, local government needs to focus beyond the monthly cable bill. While the Administration and the FCC have made it possible for the industry to profitably connect the school girl in Carthage, Tennessee, to the internet, there is still much to be done and many voices to be heard. In one sense, Mr. Hundt's book is an adventure tale that stretches from the rainy skies of Redmond, Washington, to the hearing rooms of Washington, D.C., to the residence of the American Ambassador to France. It tells how a trek that took Mr. Hundt four years now takes the rest of us less than four seconds. Through college, law school, and two decades of local government service, I have never found a book, like Mr. Hundt's, that provides a roadmap on how to help wonderful federal public servants, with a unique vision at the right time in history, respond to legitimate citizen needs and necessary corporate interests. Mr. Hundt aptly demonstrates that there is a revolution at hand. For those who have no clue as to how to join, reading this book is a first, meaningful and necessary step.

Rating:
Summary: These Guys Made it Happen!
Review: This book is worth reading twice because there is more here than immediately meets the eye. True, it has a lot to teach about how people get things done -- and how things get done to people -- in Washington. But the import of what is said often extends beyond public policy to any realm in which there is a struggle for money and power.

I am a professor at a business school (and, in the interest of full disclosure, a friend of the author); and last week I was teaching material on Andrew Carnegie. The point at issue was whether Carnegie should be loyal to his one-time mentor at the expense of his investment philosophy or loyal to his philosophy instead. Reed Hundt encountered this kind of conflict more than once; and this is what he concluded: "Many in public life believe they are loyal to people and principles, but they excuse disloyalty to some people on the ground of principle, and disloyalty to some principles on the ground of personal ties. There is always an out."

This is just as true in private enterprise as in public life. It is an observation well worth thinking about and typical of this book.

Rating:
Summary: Fun and insightful look at Washington meets Broadband
Review: This book opened my eyes to the dealings of large telecom and media corporations and their lobbying in Washington.

Reed Hundt is clearly partisan in his views but he is an insider who writes clearly and incisively. This book is fun!

You might disagree with Mr Hundt political views or the effects of his influential chairmanship but you got to give him credit for disclosing facts that would have otherwise been unknown. "You Say You Want a Revolution" is refreshing; Reed Hundt's book opens the door for controversy and contributes a thriving democracy in America.