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Google to Offer Free Wi-Fi?
meaning writes "Business 2.0 reports on the possibility of Google building a national broadband network and giving Wi-Fi access to everyone in America. From the article: 'So once the GoogleNet is built, how would consumers connect for free access? One of the cheapest ways would be for Google to blanket major cities with Wi-Fi, and evidence gathered by Business 2.0 suggests that the company may be trying to do just that. In April it launched a Google-sponsored Wi-Fi hotspot in San Francisco's Union Square shopping district, built by a local startup called Feeva. Feeva is reportedly readying more free hotspots in California, Florida, New York, and Washington, and it's possible that Google may be involved.'"
Free Wi-Fi? Sure. Why Not? They've been ladling out the free Kool-Aid here for months, and that's worked out well for them. Tastes great too, doesn't it?
DOESN'T IT?!?
*sigh*
OK, Citizen-Praetorian DiBona, you win. Resistance is futile, I see that now. Tell me where I report for re-programming.
The best explaination I've seen is that the USA is the only country that uses "America" in its name, so really, it makes sense as a shorthand.
So if you follow the same logic Uruguay can call themselves Oriental Republic? I don't think so.
Everyone living in any of the American Continents, with the exception of the US and Canada, know that America refers to South/Central/North America and not just The United States of America. They simply refer to it as The United States. If America refers to The United States, then what does Americas refer to but collectively North, Central and South America? two or three United States? This is yet another self centered "American" standard. It may be standard to call the United States "America" but America had been used to refer to the continents since 1507.
The confusion is such that they had to come up with "Americas" to refer to the continent to prevent the term from getting confused with the good ol USA.
From Wikipedia:
" The use of the term America for the United States of America in English and colloquially in other languages is seen by some as politically incorrect (it may be seen as cultural imperialism). By some interpretations, this is also illogical (for example, it would place South America outside America), although the context usually makes clear which 'America' is meant. This led to the emergence of the term Americas to take away the ambiguity (in English), if not the illogicality."
So to please the people who call the United States "America", they had to rename a whole continent?
[alk]