Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsTWO EASY ACTIONS to SUPPORT NET NEUTRALITY & Help Obama Fulfill His Promise--by Bill Moyers
How to Keep the Internet Open and FreeDont let net neutrality become another broken promise
by Bill Moyers and Michael Winship
President Obama could stiffen Tom Wheelers spine with one phone call. Thats not likely, given the broken promises that litter the White House grounds But the FCC meets on May 15. Before then, you can send an e-mail to make your opinion known at
openinternet@fcc.gov.
Or direct a tweet to:
Wheeler @TomWheelerFCC.
After the meeting, there will be a public comment period of 30 to perhaps 45 days before they start finalizing any new rules. Speak up. You have a chance to tell both Obama and Wheeler what you think, so that the will of the people, not the power of money and predatory interests, is heard.
-------
Barack Obama told us there would be no compromise on Net neutrality. We heard him say it back in 2007, when he first was running for president.
We have to ensure [a] free and full exchange of information and that starts with an open Internet, he said in a speech at Google headquarters, the presidium of cyberspace. I will take a backseat to no one in my commitment to network neutrality, because once providers start to privilege some applications or websites over others, then the smaller voices get squeezed out and we all lose. The Internet is perhaps the most open network in history and we have to keep it that way.
He said it many more times. And defenders of Net neutrality believed him, that he would preserve Internet access for all, without selling out to providers like Verizon and Comcast who want to charge higher fees for speedier access hustling more cash from those who can afford to buy a place at the front of the line. On this issue so important to democracy, they believed he would keep his word, would see to it that when private interests set upon the Internet like sharks to blood in the water, its fate would be in the hands of honest brokers who would listen politely to the pleas of the greedy, and then show them the door.
Unfortunately, it turned out to be Washingtons infamous revolving door. Last May, President Obama named Tom Wheeler to be FCC chairman. He had other choices, men or women whose loyalty was to the public, not to rich and powerful corporations. But Tom Wheeler had been one of Obamas top bundlers of campaign cash both in 2008 and again in 2012, when he raised at least half a million dollars for the presidents re-election. Like his proposed new rules for the Web, that put him at the front of the line.
Whats more, Wheeler had been the top gun for both the National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA) and the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA), lobbyists for the cable and wireless industries. However we might try to imagine that he could quickly abandon old habits of service to his employers, thats not how Washington works. Business and government are now so intertwined that public officials and corporate retainers are interchangeable parts of what Chief Justice John Roberts might call the gratitude machine.
Remember the FCC chairman under George W. Bush? Michael Powell was no champion of Net neutrality then, and now he works for its evisceration as CEO of the NCTA, the cable industrys trade association, the same job Chairman Wheeler held three decades ago. Round and round they go, and where they stop actually they never stop. They just flash their EZ Pass as they keep shuttling through that revolving door.
Consider: Daniel Alvarez was a long-time member of a law firm that has advised Comcast. He once wrote to the FCC on behalf of that giant, arguing against Net neutrality rules. Hes been hired by Tom Wheeler.
Former Ambassador Phillip Verveer also worked for Comcast and the wireless and cable trade associations, both of which have opposed Net neutrality. Hes now Tom Wheelers senior counselor.
Attorney Brendan Carr worked for Verizon and the telecom industrys trade association, which lobbied against Net neutrality. Now Brendan Carr is an adviser to FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai, who once described open Internet rules as a solution in search of a problem and used to be a top lawyer for Verizon.
To be fair, Tom Wheeler has brought media reformers into the FCC, too, and has been telling us all that we dont understand that were the victims of misinformation about the new rules that he is still for Net neutrality. Possibly. But the publics no chump, and as you can see from just those few examples from the reporting of intrepid young journalist Lee Fang, those new rules are not the product of an immaculate conception. They were hatched in a place where industry midwives huddle around the cradle, waiting to privatize sorry, baptize the new arrival, and claim him for their own. Everyone else nonprofit groups, startups, the smaller, independent content creators and everyday users move to the rear. The Net will be neutral no more.
President Obama could stiffen Tom Wheelers spine with one phone call. Thats not likely, given the broken promises that litter the White House grounds. But the FCC meets on May 15. Before then, you can send an e-mail to make your opinion known at openinternet@fcc.gov. Or direct a tweet to Wheeler @TomWheelerFCC.
After the meeting, there will be a public comment period of 30 to perhaps 45 days before they start finalizing any new rules. Speak up. You have a chance to tell both Obama and Wheeler what you think, so that the will of the people, not the power of money and predatory interests, is heard.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License.
InfoView thread info, including edit history
TrashPut this thread in your Trash Can (My DU » Trash Can)
BookmarkAdd this thread to your Bookmarks (My DU » Bookmarks)
3 replies, 629 views
ShareGet links to this post and/or share on social media
AlertAlert this post for a rule violation
PowersThere are no powers you can use on this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
ReplyReply to this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
Rec (12)
ReplyReply to this post
3 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
TWO EASY ACTIONS to SUPPORT NET NEUTRALITY & Help Obama Fulfill His Promise--by Bill Moyers (Original Post)
KoKo
May 2014
OP
KoKo
(84,711 posts)1. Kick for Visibility...!
L0oniX
(31,493 posts)2. Email sent.
rhett o rick
(55,981 posts)3. Thanks for posting KoKo. nm