First He Invented The Internet

You do realize the title of this thread is completely false, don't you?

http://www.snopes.com/quotes/internet.asp

>2 jjwilson61:: I think LE was being ironic...

You think? How could you tell?

I doesn't look ironic to me. It looks like another tired jab at a person who doesn't deserve it.

~5

What would a politician have to do to "deserve it"?

If the "it" is being ridiculed endlessly for using hyperbole then nobody deserves that.

Actually, I don't see the irony. Could someone explain it to me?

“During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet.”

- Al Gore, March 9, 1999

8> I guess you didn't bother to read the link to Snopes that I posted. Here's some quotes from it.

"Clearly, although Gore's phrasing might have been a bit clumsy (and perhaps self-serving), he was not claiming that he "invented" the Internet (in the sense of having designed or implemented it), but that he was responsible, in an economic and legislative sense, for fostering the development the technology that we now know as the Internet."

"If President Eisenhower had said in the mid-1960s that he, while president, "created" the Interstate Highway System, we would not have seen dozens and dozens of
editorials lampooning him for claiming he "invented" the concept of highways or implying that he personally went out and dug ditches across the country to help build the roadway. Everyone would have understood that Ike meant he was a driving force behind the legislation that created the highway system, and this was the very same concept Al Gore was expressing about himself with his Internet statement."

Well, we all have to have our heros, and some of us have to have our prophets. But I must say, you quote very well. Do you know quicksiva?

I quoted what I did to support my point. You're always complaining that the people here just spout opinion and don't cite other sources. So do you want rigourous discussion or not?

>10 jjwilson61: I guess you didn't bother to read the link to Snopes

Where do you think I got the Gore quote?

“You can’t possibly disagree with SNOPES !!! For God’s sake, man; they have a website !!!”

Yes, I read Snopes explaining that Gore didn’t say what he said.

I enjoyed the hypothetical non-sequitur regarding Eisenhower as well.

But my favorite part was their extended hand-waving about the difference between "create" and "invent." They go on for two paragraphs on that.

Lastly, I note, for those who keep an eye on such things, that Snopes is the latest example of O'Sullivan's Law.

Wait, I have to change my favorite part of the Snopes piece. Snopes refers to

“A spirited defense of Gore’s claim by Vint Cerf (often referred to as “the father of the Internet)...”

So we’re defending Al Gore’s claim to be the Father of the Inernet by citing Cerf, whose expertise we establish by calling him... the Father of the Internet!!! LOL!!!!!!!! Awesome. So righteous. You can’t make this shit up.

Well... Vint Cerf's credentials need no establishing. If you're arguing about who is the father of the Internet, you're supposed to already know who he is. You might have a different opinion about who deserves the title (I'm more of a Jon Postel supporter) but you can't just skip him.

Amtep, I believe it was the argument through authority/prestige that was being questioned, not whether or not Vint Cerf was "father of the internet."

That is indeed a separate point. But Vint Cerf does have specific first-hand knowledge of the creation and growth of the Internet, so quoting him is not argument by authority but simply evidence^*. The snopes.com article omits the key quote from his statement, though:

"While it is not accurate to say that VP Gore invented Internet, he has played a powerful role in policy terms that has supported its continued growth and application, for which we should be thankful." (emphasis mine)

Of course, he's silent about whether "took the initiative in creating the Internet" would be accurate. My own opinion is that Gore was referring to the transition from the scientific and military networks in the 80s to the generally available network in the 90s. From a US-centric government point of view, it does make sense to see the former in terms of the interlinked networks (ARPANET, NSFNET, etc) and the latter as "the Internet".

^* I make a distinction between evidence and proof here

Again, the point is the amusing way the snopes citation of Cerf undercuts itself.

>17 Amtep: Yeah, I considered mentioning that quote too. Like you, I find it interesting that Snopes omitted it. But I wanted to avoid an extended divagation into the difference between the words "create" and "invent."

~17

I really doubt that Vint Cerf's status as "father of the internet" allows him to read Al Gore's mind or imparts to him (Cerf) any greater insight as to what he (Gore) may have "really meant" when he made the claims he made. Hence, argument from authority.

He didn't do either of those things, so I don't see the "hence" there.

I thought Tim Berners Lee invented the internet.

He invented the world wide web. The internet was around before that/ he just turned it into something that was not just of interest to nerds.