Re: RC: It this true?

[Maryanne Stroud <gabbani@starnet.com.eg>]

Nope. It's a hoax. There are webpages of these things so you can check
up on them. Let me know if you want a reference

Maryanne Stroud Gabbani
Cairo, Egypt
gabbani@starnet.com.eg

Bob & Amber Roberts wrote:
> 
> This was sent to me.  Does anyone know if this is true?  If so, it would
> severely curtail my involvement with RideCamp.
> 
> Amber
> 
> >>Internet Legislation
> >
> >Please read the following carefully
> if you intend to stay online >and
> >continue using email:
> >
> >The last few months have revealed an
> >alarming trend in the Government of the United States attempting
> >to quietly push through legislation that will affect your use of the
> >Internet. Under proposed legislation the U.S. Postal Service will
> >be attempting to bilk email users out of "alternate postage fees".
> >Bill 602P will permit the Federal Govt to charge a 5 cent surcharge
> >on every email delivered, by billing Internet Service Providers at
> >source. The consumer would then be billed in turn by the ISP.
> >
> >Washington D.C. lawyer Richard Stepp is working without pay to
> >prevent this legislation from becoming law.
> >
> >The U.S. Postal Service is claiming that lost revenue due to the
> >proliferation of email is costing nearly $230,000,000 in revenue per
> >year. You may have noticed their recent ad campaign "There is
> >nothing like a letter". Since the average citizen received about 10
> >pieces of email per day in 1998, the cost to the typical individual
> >would be an additional 50 cents per day, or over $180 dollars per
> >year, above and beyond their regular Internet costs.
> >
> >Note that
> >this would be money paid directly to the U.S. Postal Service for a
> >service they do not even provide. The whole point of the Internet
> >is democracy and non-interference. If the federal government is
> >permitted to tamper with our liberties by adding a surcharge to
> >email, who knows where it will end. You are already paying an
> >exorbitant price for snail mail because of bureaucratic efficiency.
> >It currently takes up to 6 days for a letter to be delivered from
> >New York to Buffalo.
> >
> >If the U.S. Postal Service is allowed to tinker with email, it will
> >mark the end of the "free" Internet in the United States. One
> >congressman, Tony Schnell (r) has even suggested a "twenty to
> >forty dollar per month surcharge on all Internet service" above
> >and beyond the government's proposed email charges. Note that
> >most of the major newspapers have ignored the story, the only
> >exception being the Washingtonian which called the idea of email
> >surcharge "a useful concept who's time has come" (March 6th
> >1999 Editorial. Don't sit by and watch your freedoms erode away!
> >
> >Send this e-mail to EVERYONE on your list, and tell all your
> >friends and relatives to write to their congressman and say
> >"No!" to Bill 602P. It will only take a few moments of your
> >time, and could very well be instrumental in killing a bill
> >we don't want.
> >
> >
> >Kate Turner
> >Assistant to Richard Stepp, Berger, Stepp and Gorman
> >Attorneys at Law 216 Concorde Street, Vienna, VA
> 
> Vicki Osendorf
> St. Cloud Technical College
> 1540 Northway Drive
> St. Cloud, MN  56303-1240
> Voice:  (320) 654-5482
> Fax:  (320) 654-5568
> Phone:  (800) 222-1009, extension 5482
> E-mail:  vao@cloud.tec.mn.us
> 
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