From: "Keith F. Lynch" <kfl at KeithLynch.net>
Subject: [WSFA] Re: A Transcontinental Telegraph, Hurrah!
To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>
Date: Tue, 25 Oct 2011 22:57:15 -0400 (EDT)
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>

"Michael Walsh" <MJW at press.jhu.edu> wrote:
> .... followed by an advertisement for a drug to enlarge his hat ....

No, spam requires that the communication medium be extremely
inexpensive, at least for the sender.  The transcontinental telegraph
was not, since it was a very limited resource.  there was just the one
line, and a skilled telegrapher could sent at most about 30 words per
minute on it.

I haven't been able to find what it cost to send a telegram to the
opposite coast in 1861, but I'm sure it wasn't cheap.

Similarly, it wasn't until overseas phone calls became cheap that it
was possible to outsource every job that can be done via telephone to
wherever on the planet wages were lowest.

And it's fairly plausible that the reason we haven't been invaded by
monsters from outer space is because interstellar travel in inherently
very expensive.  It might be nice to be able to travel all over the
galaxy, but not if it means Earth gets invaded or even destroyed.