Defend YOUR Internet Freedom. Act Today!
We have very little time to stop Donald Trump and the Republicans in their attempt to restrict American freedom and destroy the Internet as we know it.
At stake is nothing less than control of a crucial public resource – the Internet. The administration’s goal is to hand over control to corporations that will then be able to restrict the flow of information, effectively censor voices of dissent, and charge outrageous prices for access to online services.
This corporate takeover of the internet is camouflaged under the bland term known as “Net Neutrality.”
“Net Neutrality” is a phony, deceptive label that masks what’s really at stake: FREEDOM.
This is a bald-faced attack on freedom should alarm every Agitator reader, every donor, board member, CEO and nonprofit staffer who cherishes the free flow of information in the digital age.
Our freedom to access the information and resources we need to keep our democracy healthy is under threat. Yet, Republicans on the Federal Communications Commission – led by former Verizon lawyer Ajit Pai – seek to hand our Internet over to private corporations.
The Internet is a public resource that belongs to the people. The Internet was developed by the U.S. government in the 1960s and 1970s with public funds. The idea was to “build robust, fault-tolerant communication via computer networks.”
The result was the Internet, which allows me to type these words and share them with all of you immediately.
If the Internet belongs to anyone, it should belong to Everyone, not corporate fat cats.
Please click on this link to make your voice heard – and share this with your colleeagues, board members, friends and family.
When you talk to your colleagues, and when you write or call your U.S. Representative and Senators remind them:
- Republicans and special interest lobbyists are attacking our freedom and trying to destroy the Internet as we know it. We must stop them from giving control of our public Internet to corporations.
- The Internet was developed by the US government and paid for by American taxpayers.This publicly funded resource must remain fair, open and neutral to benefit the American people.
- All private profit depends on public resources– roads, bridges, ports, telecommunications, and the Internet. We must never hand public resources over to private corporations.
The Internet is a public resource. Say it! Please make your voice heard!
Roger
P.S. Check out this article in Forbes When the FCC Kills Net Neutrality, Here’s What Your Internet Could Look Like. And watch comedian John Oliver”s take on this serious subject. Video is linked in the Forbes article.
3 responses to “Defend YOUR Internet Freedom. Act Today!”
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I will click TWICE on every link I can get my hands on, I pledge, from this day forward. NET NEUTRALITY is spine-cord essential. ¶ I’ve read everything I can, on both sides. There is only one side, I’ve concluded: NET NEUTRALITY. So, of course, I despair. ¶ No one in the wheelhouse stands responsible and neutral and unpurchased. The FCC will fall. The oligarchs will win. Without you. US. WILL YOU STAND? I WILL!!!! So I swear.
Thanks for posting this. Standing with you.
First of all, the alarmist, attacking nature of this article is a little nuts. You do realize that there are two different, well thought out positions on this, and while you may think that one position is clearly right, it doesn’t mean that people who hold the other position are not “attacking our freedom and trying to destroy the Internet as we know it.”
The problem with our modern political discourse is that people like you, Roger, try to villainize people you don’t agree with.
I think you are wrong on this issue, but that doesn’t mean that I think you are trying to be evil. We just disagree.
Now, to your argument for “net neutrality,” remember that there are two options here: either the government controls the internet, or no one does. This isn’t “the people” vs “evil corporations.” This is government control over the Internet vs. no control / free market control.
I can remember when died-in-the-wool liberals like you, Roger, would have railed against the government controlling a communications mechanism. And make no mistake about it – that’s what you are proposing. Once the Internet becomes a government regulated public utility, you really think the only thing they will do to exercise that control is prevent corporate-metering of bandwidth? Bwahahaha! Your memory is short if you think that just because – today – the government might help a little, they wouldn’t use it for other purposes in the years to come.
At least with free market control, companies can sprout up to compete against other companies. If Comcast charges you more to stream video, how long will it be before an innovative company comes along and offers Internet without metering? Heck, if I was Dish Network, I would spend millions advertising unlimited bandwidth, meter-free Internet in areas where cable ISPs are charging more or slowing down access. Same for FIOS vs. cable.
There’s a reason why broadcast TV saw ZERO innovation for over 50 years – because the airwaves were government controlled public utilities. Yet, once cable came along, there was competition. HBO, Showtime, etc. could never have existed under the old regime.
Roger, instead of spewing vitriol at those who disagree with you, you should be entering into a real, honest dialogue. And you should be aware that there are lots of reasons for being AGAINST so called “net neutrality.”