... "But the UN is a government--" "No it isn't," Martin insisted, "It's a talking shop. Started out as a treaty organization, turned into a bureaucracy, then an escrow agent for various transnational trade and standards agreements. After the Singularity, it was taken over by the Internet engineering task force. It's not the government of Earth; it's just the only remaining relic of Earth's governments that your people can recognize. ..." Singularity Sky, by Charles Stross, ISBN: 0-441-01179-9, Ace Books. From page 281 of the July 2004 paperback edition. _______________________________________________ Ietf@xxxxxxxx https://www1.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf