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Vint Cerf and Robert Kahn Awarded Medal of Freedom

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the still-waiting-for-mine dept.

3l1za writes ""President Bush on Thursday announced the recipients of this year's Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civil award." Vinton Cerf and Robert Kahn -- for their design of "the software code used to transmit data over the Internet" -- are among those to be honored next Wednesday. "

7 of 149 comments (clear)

  1. WTF? by khasim · · Score: 3, Insightful

    A boxer ... an actor ... a singer ... a different actor ... a baseball player ... a radio personality?

    The Medal of Freedom?

    So the requirements are ... what? It certainly isn't "distinguished service" anymore.

    1. Re:WTF? by Bogtha · · Score: 4, Insightful

      George Orwell referred to misuse of words like this as "swindles and perversions":

      Many political words are similarly abused. The word Fascism has now no meaning except in so far as it signifies "something not desirable." The words democracy, socialism, freedom, patriotic, realistic, justice have each of them several different meanings which cannot be reconciled with one another. In the case of a word like democracy, not only is there no agreed definition, but the attempt to make one is resisted from all sides. It is almost universally felt that when we call a country democratic we are praising it: consequently the defenders of every kind of regime claim that it is a democracy, and fear that they might have to stop using that word if it were tied down to any one meaning. Words of this kind are often used in a consciously dishonest way. That is, the person who uses them has his own private definition, but allows his hearer to think he means something quite different. Statements like Marshal Petain was a true patriot, The Soviet press is the freest in the world, The Catholic Church is opposed to persecution, are almost always made with intent to deceive.

      -- Politics and the English Language

      Throwing words like "democracy" and "freedom" around as generic terms of praise is not just poor English, it actively clouds peoples thinking and is often deceitful.

      --
      Bogtha Bogtha Bogtha
  2. Re:Why is he giving it now? Why not years ago? by Zevon+2000 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Excellent point. On the other hand, it's certainly possible that no one in the Bush camp had heard of Vint Cerf before Europe started making noises about giving over control of DNS to an international group. Maybe they thought Al Gore really had invented the Internet?

    --
    "Someone somewhere had to wear pants for the first time. The meek and indecisive do not change our world." -Montville
  3. And if they'd patented it.... by rdean400 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    we'd still have a bunch of proprietary network islands floating in a sea of mediocrity.

  4. Re:They should turn down the medals. by s20451 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Firstly, there is nothing wrong with them accepting the prize money, or getting other money from sponsors, and establishing such awards themselves. Alfred Nobel was just a prviate Swedish citizen. For that matter there is nothing preventing you or I from doing the same.

    Secondly, unless the money spent is in the neighborhood of $20 million (not likely), there would be no hope of setting up an annuity equivalent to a Nobel prize (which are worth about $1 million each).

    Thirdly, rejecting a prize is insulting and generally doesn't make people willing to hear your suggestions as to how the money should be otherwise spent.

    --
    Toronto-area transit rider? Rate your ride.
  5. If you don't find this 'Newsworthy'... by Mulletproof · · Score: 4, Insightful

    "This is newsworthy?"

    Well let's see, these people only helped create a system that has not only impacted millions of people worldwide, but changed the nature of information dissemination and business commerce for you, your kids and their kids. You tell me if this is news worthy. On second thought, let me tell you. It's nothing short of revolutionary. Then you go about discrediting an example of another award, as if it somehow makes this any less newsworthy or deserving of recognition when it really has nothing to do with anything.

    Yeah, some people will find the shit in anything if it's labelled Microsoft, Bush or [insertyourfavoritenamebrandehere], regardless of how deserving it is.. I thought we marked crap like this 'trolls'...

    --
    You need a FREE iPod Nano
  6. Re:The history of the award, and the need. by fm6 · · Score: 3, Insightful
    This is generally cronyism at its worst, and media attention getting at its finest. There is no Constitutional mandate or power. President Harry Truman enacted [medaloffreedom.com] the medal in 1945 and it was virtually ignored until JFK brought it back -- through an Executive Order [wikipedia.org] in 1963.
    Dude, get a life. Cronyism is handing out jobs to underqualified friends. Dubya has certainly done his share of that, but it's not the same thing as handing out commerative tchatchkas to people he deems important.

    BTW, there was only one president (Eisenhower) between Truman and Kennedy. So every prexy since Truman, with a single exception has done this.