Stop Discrimination Against BlackProf.com
On Thursday the House Judiciary Committee will cast a vote on “H.R. 5417: the Internet Freedom and Non-Discrimination Act.” Blackprof.com readers should call the judiciary committee members and urge them to support the bill (the list is at the end of the email). John Conyers (a former Blackprof.com guest), Rick Boucher and Zoe Lofgren are sponsoring the bill.
Sites like Blackprof.com will not stand on equal footing with giant commercial sites unless we pass this bill and turn back the threat posed by telephone and cable company lobbyists.
Here’s the summary of the bill:
The bipartisan bill would guarantee our right to "net neutrality" -- the principle that Internet users should be able to access any web content they choose and use any applications they choose, without restrictions or limitations imposed by their Internet service provider.
"Net neutrality" may sound obscure and wonky. But it is crucial if the Internet is to remain a forum for us to talk to one another, to access web sites for information, to read, write and comment on blogs, to engage in political forums, or to donate money and learn about political candidates. There is a real risk that telephone and cable companies, which provide access to the Internet for 95 percent of U.S. consumers who go online, will use their market power to transform the Internet into largely a vehicle for selling us things - entertainment, games and goods. And even then, only those goods and commodities from which they can extract the most profit will be most accessible. . . . The nonprofit and noncommercial sector could be distinguished from the for-profit sector of the online community in terms of services offered, and would suffer because they cannot compete in an environment where they have to pay for better service.
Blackprof.com guest Marcy Peek talked about this issue here in February, and more info from Common Cause is here and here.
Please dial 202-225-3121 (the Capitol Switchboard) to call one of the judiciary members to have them support the bill (I just called Chris Van Hollen’s office): Howard Berman (CA); Gerry Nadler (NY); Bobby Scott (VA); Mel Watt (NC); Sheila Jackson Lee (TX); Maxine Waters (CA); Marty Meehan (MA); William Delahunt (MA); Robert Wexler (FL); Anthony Weiner (NY); Adam Schiff (CA); Linda Sanchez (CA); Chris Van Hollen (MD); Debbie Wasserman Schulz (FL).
Comments
Prof. O: Do you remember when a DVD player cost $1500? It now costs $75 for a top of the line Sony brand.
How they do that?
What would have happened if DVD player "neutrality" had been imposed by the likes of Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Conyers, and the other Democratic Party members?
Innovation is needed, especially that increasing the speed of uploading blog comments. If higher fees produce such innovation from the wealthy corporations turning the Net into a spectacular transmitter of commercial speech and graphics, to sell stuff, then I oppose internet neutrality.
Posted by: Supremacy Claus | May 24, 2006 07:47 PM
Note the vote on Net Neutrality in the House Energy and Commerce Committee on April 26th: http://www.savetheinternet.com/=count The Markey Amendment provided for Net Neutrality and Rush, Towns and Wynn voted No. The bill considered by that committee is known as Barton-Rush. Pointing this out is not an endorsement of their position.
Posted by: Reader | May 25, 2006 09:13 AM
SC- you've got to be kidding me? CEO and corporate profits at all time highs, and you think we should give them more of our money for "innovation?" i don't think you understand the issue very well.
read this for a better perspective. the old "we've got to charge more so we can have innovation" is the biggest line of crap out there. cough, big pharm, cough. tell that to small business owners making money by developing new markets that, they'll wonder why they don't get such breaks when megacorporations that already are highly profitable do.
Posted by: chicago dyke | May 26, 2006 09:11 AM
Chicago: Your disagreement can only be solved with data from experience. All laws are ghastly human experimentation violating the Nuremberg Principles. One of them is, would the experimenter allow this experiment to be carried out on himself. The Congress has answered that one. It tries to exempt itself from all oppression it inflicts on the rest of the public, including allowing itself racial discrimination in employment.
The solution is to pilot test any proposal in a small area. It works. Try it in a bigger area. Then go national, after showing the results are robust. No routine national law should be passed that has not been demonstrated to work in at least one state.
From past experience, your Toyota Corolla is a car that is 1000 times better than a 1906 Rolls Royce, in every way, including in the department of silence enough to hear a ticking clock. How that happen?
Being a leftie, you likely drive a Kerry-Edwards stickered Subaru slowly, in the left lane, at rush hour, obstructing all productive people in German cars, trying to get to work, so they may pay high taxes, to fund your redistributionist schemes.
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