Today’s Links: February 21, 2012

OPINION

RAMESH PONNURU: “U.S. Limits on Government Can’t Work Everywhere
“Although the drafters and ratifiers of the U.S. Constitution sought a stronger central government than the Articles of Confederation had allowed, they also viewed government power with much more skepticism than most constitution makers in other societies have done. The Constitution they adopted constrains the federal government by granting it limited powers and subjecting proposals for its expansion to multiple vetoes. It also, as Michael Greve points out in his important new book “The Upside-Down Constitution,” places state governments in competition with one another, limiting their power. Not all peoples will favor such tight constraints, still less their political elites.”

ROBERT MCDOWELL: “The U.N. Threat to Internet Freedom
“On Feb. 27, a diplomatic process will begin in Geneva that could result in a new treaty giving the United Nations unprecedented powers over the Internet. Dozens of countries, including Russia and China, are pushing hard to reach this goal by year’s end. As Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said last June, his goal and that of his allies is to establish ‘international control over the Internet’ through the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a treaty-based organization under U.N. auspices. If successful, these new regulatory proposals would upend the Internet’s flourishing regime, which has been in place since 1988.”

MATTHEW BOYLE: “LightSquared Shaping Up as the FCC’s Solyndra
“Documents and copies of communications obtained by The Daily Caller indicate that the Federal Communications Commission propped up broadband company LightSquared with favorable regulatory decisions and other special treatment, while driving its competition out of business.”

NEWS

CYBERBULLYING – Tyler Clementi Cyberbullying Trial Starts Today
“Jury selection begins Tuesday in a New Brunswick, N.J., courtroom for the trial of Dahrun Ravi, the Rutgers University student who with a silent flip of his laptop webcam secretly watched his roommate in a moment of gay intimacy, and unwittingly set in motion a series of events that would make him a national symbol of cyber-bullying.”

INNOVATION – Nevada Becomes First State to Regulate Self-Driving Cars
“Yesterday, Nevada became the first state to approve regulations that permit self-driving cars. Since the legislation process began last June, Nevada officials worked with insurance companies, car manufacturers, law enforcement and testing professionals to develop rules mainly aimed at safety, according to PC magazine.”

FOOD – Fed Up With Menu, Students Stage Lunchroom Boycott
“[Superintendent Antonio] Aguirre defended the school’s menus, saying they are based on policy set by the Texas Department of Agriculture — which provide specific nutritional guidelines for foods like fruits and vegetables, portion sizes and fried foods. But he also saluted the students for harnessing the “power of their own learning.”