I'm at a loss to think of one good reason a president needs this power. Can anyone elucidate?
Obama Can Shut Down Internet For 4 Months Under New Emergency Powers
11–14 of 14 posts
Re: Obama Can Shut Down Internet For 4 Months Under New Emergency Powers
#12Is shutting down the internet physically possible? Ignoring the consequences, I'm just curious about the implications on infrastructure. I, for one, am really unsure about what the internet is as far as the hardware connections go.
Sort of. There are two probable ways it would happen. The first, and most likely, is that the government could order all ISPs to stop the flow of data through their pipes. Theoretically, they could also shut down some of the root nameservers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Root_nameserver), many of which are owned by the government. But again, this wouldn't truly shut down the Internet, it'd just stop browsers from being able to turn addresses into IP addresses. If you knew the IP of the site you were trying to visit, they couldn't stop you with that method.
Edit: also note that since DNS resolution is a redundant system, they'd have to shut down EVERY root nameserver (or at least the ones in the US) to stop resolution completely. Otherwise it'd basically just slow down, though potentially to the point where it'd become unusable.
Re: Obama Can Shut Down Internet For 4 Months Under New Emergency Powers
#13He can also nuke half the U.S. if he wants to, but that doesn't make it probable. An hour of internet downtime in the U.S. would cause more economic damage than 9/11 and the grounding of all airplanes. Do it once and you lose the confidence of investors everywhere, and you will see a bank run that will drive the value of the dollar to the ground. Not to mention what it will do to domestic confidence. Economies and na…
Readers of this publication may very well be preparing for the rapture by stockpiling bibles and ammunition, so it's not worth applying logic to the situation.
And spam. Mustn't forget spam.
Re: Obama Can Shut Down Internet For 4 Months Under New Emergency Powers
#14If this story is accurate, and it probably isn't, it's a step forwards for Internet-libertarians. Under the Communications Act, the President already had the power to shut the entire Internet down indefinitely for national security reasons. The people making angry noises about stuff like this don't understand the law as it already exists.