To say that Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam would rather walk across hot coals barefoot than abide government interference with his business is really putting it mildly.

During his keynote presentation at CTIA, McAdam made the rounds of traditional anti-government intervention rhetoric for a few minutes.

Don't stifle innovation!

Look! We're giving the customers what they want! You want to be able to keep your phone number when you switch providers? No problem! We did that! (Never mind that it took the government to force the industry's hand.)

Look! We've embraced open platforms! (Never mind that it took the lure of Google's billions to compel FCC Chairman Kevin Martin to force the industry's hand.)

He also admonished the industry to police itself, in words that seemed to leap off the page of some 1920s-era captain of industry speech primer.

"We cannot let ourselves be made into a 21st century version of the regulated telecommunications industry," he said.

But his self-serving bromides failed to generate even a ripple of applause at the friendliest industry event this side of an Elks' club Clambake.

So McAdams did the only thing that any frothing-at-the-mouth industry executive faced with an impending Democratic administration could do: he all but accused the government of murder.

Complaining about "cumbersome tower siting requirements [that] only burden and inconvenience consumers" (translation: "some damn limousine liberals didn't want a cell tower blocking the view from their ivory tower"), he wound up his speech with a claim that "protracted battles over construction permits" had actually caused people to die, presumably because no one could call 911.

I didn't think it could be done, but someone finally managed to channel both Frederich Hayek and Rush Limbaugh.