[david_shaw]

Not totally sure how the fundraising process for a TLD works. Can you buy whatever TLD you want? Can I get david.shaw? That would be awesome.

The problem is that even if you get 'jsfounder' status with your donation, there's no guarantee you'll actually get anything other than your name on a petition.

It's a cool idea, and I support lots and lots of TLDs (as they allow creative domain names other than .com et al), but this seems like it might be a sneaky way to raise some capital without having to do anything.

edit: furthermore, do these passionate individuals plan to not organize the petition if they aren't funded?

[gfosco]

It costs ~200k to buy a TLD, so if they are not funded they will obviously not be applying for the TLD.

[jessedhillon]

The fee is only to apply -- the application would still need approval before this becomes a TLD. The fee is not refunded in the case of denial.

[digitalsushi]

Crimony. For 200,000 dollars you can get the finest silks and fanciest hats and the blackest boots for a moment with the king.

Or you can buy 200,000 dollars worth of attention from already-upset people and start your own peer based DNS resolution service.