Date: Thu, 30 Apr 92 22:58:58 PDT
From: [email protected](Jim Warren)
Subject: File 2--Pres. Candidates ONLINE (Perot, Bush, Clinton, Brown, etc.)

                   Please copy, post & circulate

It's time to have an ONLINE presidential debate/forum.

Here is the message I just faxed and snailmailed to the indicated
presidential candidates.

** Please send your own request (feel free to modify this one if you wish).**
** If they get enough requests, they will be pressured to participate.     **
** (When you send a request to them, please send a note of it to me.)      **


Greetings,
 We invite you to join an ONLINE presidential candidates' forum.

 Ross Perot has proposed using "electronic town-hall meetings" to
allow citizens to participate in their/our government.

 Jerry Brown has reaped national headlines from "going online" on a
small computer network (GEnie) to discuss his candidacy with a
national audience.

 George Bush signed legislation last year, to greatly enhance the
nation's "electronic highway system" that already connects 1.3-million
computers.

There are about 8- to 15-million people who are "online" -- using
computer-teleconferencing and electronic-mail services across this
cooperative web of computers called the "Internet."  Several million
people regularly read news and participate in public discussions using
this network.

Perot and Brown have shown that they know how to use these "electronic
highways" to share their views with those whom they propose to
represent.  We ask you to do the same.

 We ask you to make your views available to 8- to 15-million people.
You can do so, at little or no cost to you or to your audience.

Here's how:

 1.  You will "speak" by electronically "posting" your remarks on the
network within a one-week period -- at any time and place that is
convenient for you, night or day, using any normal telephone.  [also,
please see item 9, below]

 2.  You will post (1) position-statements and comments on issues of
interest to you, similar to"opening remarks" in a face-to-face debate,
and (2) your responses to questions from reporters selected by the
nation's leading news media.

 3.  The reporters will be chosen by daily newspapers with at least
250,000 circulation, plus recognized national news-magazines, plus the
national television networks.  These organizations will be invited to
select one of their editorial/news staff to pose questions to you
throughout the one-week period.  Reporters will be encouraged to pose
follow-up questions and to post special note if a candidate fails to
respond to a question by the end of the week's forum.

 4.  Both the candidates and the reporters will be encouraged to
consult with others in drafting their questions, responses and
comments.  The number of questions per reporter will be limited by
agreement among that group.

 5.  For each question or comment, reporters will be limited to
10-lines x 80-characters/line.  Each of your responses will be limited
to 40-lines x 80-characters/line.  There will be separate facilities
provided where you can post more extended comments and
position-papers, if you wish to do so.

 6.  All participants will agree that their questions, responses and
comments are to be in the public domain and may be copied without
further permission.

 7.  The participating reporters will agree to accept electronic-mail
from anyone wishing to send it to them during the one-week period, and
their electronic addresses will be attached to each of their
questions.  Thus, everyone else online will be able to suggest
questions and offer additional information and comments to the
reporters.

 8.  In parallel with this debate/forum where participation will be
limited to presidential candidates and the questioning reporters,
there will also be a nationwide public forum in which everyone online
may discuss the questions, your responses and the issues that are
raised -- via an established system for such discussion already in use
by several million people.

 9.  We will schedule this forum as soon as one or more major
national candidates agree.  It will take place regardless of whether
all candidates choose to participate.

 10.  There will be no cost to your campaign -- assuming that your
campaign has access to a personal-computer with a telephone-modem and
can find someone you trust* who can operate it and is familiar with
how to use the network.

* - If you cannot locate a computer person, we will be happy to
distribute a request for volunteers across the network for you.

A copy of this has been faxed and mailed to other candidates as noted,
below.  Copies have also been posted to numerous online newsletters
and newsgroups, and e-mailed to numerous leaders across the network.
You may be somewhat-able to gauge likely-interest in this proposal by
the number of similar requests you receive in the next several weeks,
by phone-call, fax and "snailmail."

 I would be happy to discuss this with you or your staff, and look
forward to your timely reply -- which will also be promptly publicized
across the nets.

I remain, Sincerely,
/s/ Jim Warren
   Electronic Civil Liberties Initiative
   345 Swett Road
   Woodside CA 94062
   415-851-7075; fax/415-851-2814; e-mail/[email protected]

[ And, for identification purposes only: founder, InfoWorld newspaper;
Contributing Editor & "futures" columnist, MicroTimes (~200,000 circulation);
organizer & Chair, First Conference on Computers, Freedom & Privacy (1991); a
recipient, first Pioneer Awards (1992), Electronic Frontier Foundation;
founding host, PBS television's "Computer Chronicles" series; founding
President, Microcomputer Industry Trade Association; member, Board of
Directors, Autodesk, Inc.; etc. ]

cc:
H. Ross Perot, P.O.Box 517010, 12377 Merit Dr.#1100, Dallas TX 75251-7010
 attn: Sharon Holman or Tom Luce, unofficial campaign honcho/a
 national/800-685-7777;  in Texas/214-419-5000;  fax/800-925-1300
Jerry Brown, 2121 Cloverfield Blvd.#120, Santa Monica CA 90404-5277
 attn: Jodie Evans, campaign manager
 national/800-426-1112;  in California/310-449-1992;  fax/310-449-1903
George Bush, 1030 15th St. NW, Washington DC 20005
 attn: Robert Mosbacher, campaign manager
 national/202-336-7080;  [no 800-number];  fax/202-336-7117
Bill Clinton, P.O.Box 615, 1220 W. 3rd St., Little Rock AR 72201
 attn: Dave Wilhelm & Jeff Eller, campaign manager & campaign spokesperson
 national/501-372-1992;  [no 800-number];  fax/501-372-2292
[Send other copies to the presidential candidates of *your* choice.]

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