gTLD for developing regions was Re: [] knitters needle

[Rafik Dammak]

Hello Evan,

while, I only agreed with Bill statement and didn't develop further, I am
replying to what you said:

>
> I continue to be amazed at the speed at which seemingly obvious
> explanations are so casually dismissed within the ICANN bubble.
>

I don't think that we are talking about obvious, trivial or evident
explanations, stating them as obvious only dismiss any other alternatives
but not necessarily providing a rationale.


> To deny such answers merely because of their perceived simplicity may
> offer comfort to those who need to add "layers of personal interpretation"
> in order to fit a pre-conceived conclusion, but the onus is on them<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occam%27s_razor>to disprove the simple explanation.
>

I don't think the "layer of personal interpretation" is about the
complexity/simplicity of explanations but more about the fact that some may
have pre-conceived narratives and shape unintentionally the facts to fit
the former (I think that is called "confirmation bias"). I understand that
your opinion about new gTLD program but it is dubious to project it in
context like africa without investigation, fact-checking and analysis


> Furthermore, there is an intellectual requirement to separate logical
> analysis from wishful thinking; the inclination to distort the distinction
> between the two even has its own meme<http://www.wisegeek.com/what-does-woulda-coulda-shoulda-mean.htm>
> .
>
>
 I didn't see any kind wishful thinking, we are more questioning the
causality relation stated without further proving that few applications
from africa is caused by little interest. how can we state about interest
when there is no indication about awareness about the program at decent
level?


> I have yet to see significant evidence in the developing world of "if we'd
> only known about the gTLD program we would have applied".
>

well, how you can prove that there was little interest? just because few
number of applications? quite vicious circle :)


> As a counterpoint, anyone who was even casually watching<http://www.ethiopianreview.com/articles/34306>
> the <http://www.techcentral.co.za/get-set-for-the-africa-gold-rush/29833/>
> IT <http://www.domainnews.co.za/2012/03/darkest-africa/> media<http://www.prlog.org/11329153-kass-international-media-broadcasts-yes2dotafrica-campaign-pregnant-with-africa-said-sophia.html>in
> Africa <http://www.biztechafrica.com/article/aftld-takes-africa/527/>could not avoid the protracted political sparring between DCA and Uniforum
> on who had more entitlement to ".africa"
>

"IT media in africa", are those regionally known? covering big parts of
region of 54 countries with its diversity in term of languages and
cultures? it is unfortunate to use .africa as kind of redherring, yes it is
controversial and it has long history, but it doesn't mean that will define
all other existing or possible applications .


> -- and those with an appropriately entrepreneurial bent would have
> wondered why a TLD was so valuable to those two groups. ICANN can't buy
> that kind of outreach (though I fully agree that it didn't even try). But
> lack of ICANN outreach does not mean that those who could have applied (but
> didn't) were unaware.
>

you are assuming that possible entrepreneurs have to know about .africa and
then thinking  about applying or not? you can  try to check how many in the
region in net industry are aware about .africa and .arab projects.

in fact, ICANN left outreach to insiders ..


>
> Eliminating wishful thinking (for instance, expecting that
> developing-world entrepreneurs would react to the same stimuli -- in the
> same way -- as developed-world ones) from the discussion would indeed "take
> us very far" in really analysing whether the current path of iCANN wrt
> gTLDs is in the global public good.
>
you are focusing on entrepreneurs,what about communities for example?

it is not matter of stimuli but prospective opportunities matching the
regional context.


> There are numerous core assumptions behind ICANN policy that, I submit,
> are simply out-of-whack with the Real World -- and nowhere is evidence of
> this disjoint more apparent than in developing economies.
>
> Dismissal of such premises -- without disproving them -- does not make the
> discussion go away. It just forces such debate outside the bubble, to other
> forums in which you're not a participant. And some of those emerging forums
> are a direct threat to ICANN and the multi-stakeholder model.
>


not sure about emerging forums that you are mentioning, you mean ITU etc?
in fact, the few number of applications from developing regions is good
argument that ITU can sell to show how much ICANN is careless about
internationalization and developing countries.

Rafik


>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.ncuc.org/pipermail/ncuc-discuss/attachments/20120709/35b07a50/attachment-0001.html>