Technology Liberation Front (TLF)

You may not have heard about the Technology Liberation Front (TLF), but you should. Despite having the words "technology liberation" in their title, however, they are not exactly like the Program on Liberation Technology at Stanford University. Our goal is to understand how information technology can be used to defend human rights, improve governance, empower the poor, promote economic development, and pursue a variety of other social goods. TLF's is to report on—and hopefully help to reverse—what they perceive as the "dangerous trend of over-regulation of the Internet, communications, media and high-technology in general." Thus, whereas we are non partisan, TLF has an overt libertarian point of view. (See, for example, TLF's statement on Cyber-Libertarianism.) Also, whereas we do academic research and design, TLF functions more as a libertarian filter for tech issues of the day. Nevertheless, we think our similarities provide fruitful areas for collaboration: We are both focused on elucidating the important role technology can play in promoting the public good. Thus, we encourage you to visit TLF from time to time for an interesting libertarian perspective that, while different from our own non partisan stance, is still motivated by a similar desire to use technology for social good. Here's a sampling of recent stories on TLF:

• The FCC Goes Backwards. I have an op-ed on the FCC’s broadband re-classification plan on AOL today, paired with a counterpoint commentary from Megan Tady of Free Press. My piece focuses on how the plan will lead to FCC intrusiveness in almost every area of broadband. But “third way” labels notwithstanding, it is sheer folly to try to wrap a monopoly era regime around competitive broadband services. The FCC is about to embark on a lengthy legal battle that will cost tons of political capital while offering it very little chance of winning.

• The Onion? No, Real Life. The Smoking Gun and Miami Herald report that a Miami International Airport TSA worker has been arrested for beating up a co-worker who joked about his endowment after observing the assailant walk through a whole-body imager or “strip-search machine.”

• TechCrunch TV on Net Neutrality. I appeared this afternoon on the inaugural edition of TechCrunch TV to talk about–what else?–Net Neutrality.