Why we need Net Neutrality
First and foremost: it'll create jobs at the expense of the corporations, not government. This will increase desperately needed tax revenue at all levels of government. As long as the corporations are at worst breaking even, then profits could stand to be invest in the American public by creating jobs. If it takes regulation to create and spur competition, I'm all for it.
AT&T Suggests To 300K Employees To Lobby the FCC
"We encourage you, your family and friends to join the voices telling the FCC not to regulate the Internet," Cicconi wrote in his letter. The company verified the letter.
So, basically they are astro-turfing. They are making it appear as if the "save the corporation!" movement is some kind of grass roots thing. Yeah right!
In the letter, he offered several talking points.
1. Wireless consumers enjoy a many options for mobile services;
2. Competition in the wireless industry is strong;
3. AT&T and other carriers need flexibility to manage their networks;
4. Net neutrality rules could hamper a goal of the White House to bring broadband to every U.S. household;
5. If the FCC passes the new regulations, the rules should apply to more than just network operators and should also include Web content companies like search engines.
Allow me to refute:
1. Wireless consumers enjoy an oligopoly of limited and expensive options for mobile services. Who in Europe pays as much as we do per text message?
2. Competition is limited due to the oligopoly nature of the industry. How many wireless phone companies are there in the USA?
3. "The Carriers" managed their networks VERY well in the 1990s and early 2000s when there was Net Neutrality.
4. Bringing broadband to all households is a great goal but it shouldn't mean giving up our freedom of speech and of association due to "politically motivated blocking." Imagine having to pay this cartel a fee if you want to run you're own blog or to use facebook or myspace?
5. Since when is a content provider a utility carrier? This kind of illogic is astonishing because it is utterly false. To me, this is the nail in the coffin that says that AT&T is only looking out for their own interests and not the publics best interest.
Let me be clear, net neutrality is key to maintaining our democracy, constitution, and freedoms. If we allow telecom oligopolies take away one of the founding principles of the internet (net neutrality), we deserve what's coming to us.
Net neutrality existed for most of the internet's existence. Only a few years ago this rule was abandoned. Already one ISP has "exclusive" content. This is a dangerous trend because it means that a telecom can determine your entire online experience. They will determine your experience to benefit their bottom line. This may include blocking a third party candidate that believes in enforcing monopoly and oligopoly laws. Yeah, wikipedia will be accessible to all, but what about a new emerging website? what if no one decides to "provide" them?
Look, the pipes for the internet are like air. It needs to be breathable, you cannot deprive anyone of it, it keeps you alive and functioning, and it's everywhere it needs to be. I believe, net neutrality is about keeping democracy alive and functioning. So many businesses, innovation, and commerce depend on net neutrality. It would be awful to lose it.
AT&T Boss Asks Employees to Fake It
AT&T’s network investments increased immediately following the imposition of the Net Neutrality merger condition and continued to rise over the two years of the merger agreement. When the neutrality condition expired on Dec. 29, 2008, the company sharply reduced its investment.
So when Cicconi says that Net Neutrality means no buildout, the opposite is true.
By pressuring the company’s employees to pose as average citizens and post AT&T talking points, Cicconi is asking them to be doubly deceptive. Not only are they asked to hide their true identities but also to spread misinformation on behalf of a company that seems to be getting more desperate by the day.
As you can see, net neutrality is actually an agent of competition, thus spending, thus jobs! AT&T is going to pull the "boo-hoo" sob story about net neutrality costing people jobs. This is bunk. It'll make jobs, preserve democracy, spur continued internet innovation, and make information and access equal for all.