Net Neutrality isn’t some big regulation that makes the internet worse. It ensured that ISPs couldn’t do things like:
- Turn the internet into packages like they do with cable. (which already happens in places like Portugal)
- Tell Netflix they need to pay a ransom to serve their customers, which they’ve done before.
- Control the narrative and censor opinions they don’t like, which they continued to try even under NN.
- Throttle or block connections to competing services, like they have before NN.
- Block the use of apps they don’t like, like AT&T did to Facetime before Net Neutrality.
They lobbied so hard for it because they wanted to be able to do these things again. If they didn’t want to do them, why did they feel so strongly about it that they poured millions into lobbying for it?
Net Neutrality wasn’t giving the government power over the internet - Net Neutrality was taking tyrannical power away from cable companies to do whatever the hell they want with your traffic. Cable should be treated as a utility now, it’s insane that it’s not. It’s the information age, and control over our internet infrastructure without any oversight is ridiculous - the companies that control them are the mostly the same companies that control our cable news broadcasting, and with this kind of power, they can control the entire narrative both on cable news and on the internet.
Further, why did they create thousands of fake accounts on the FCCs website as well? Many accounts were made under dead people’s names even, and they’re not trying to block the investigation into the issue as well.
Lets not forget that they also made propaganda legal again now terribly long ago, though I’ll concede that’s not the Trump presidency that did that. Obama did his share too - I always was upset about the NDAA crap, which allows Americans to be detained indefinitely without trial, (just gotta call someone a terrorist and their constitutional rights go out the window).
Let me end this by saying that Ajit Pai had personal financial reasons to be against NN. He was bought and paid for and shamelessly screwed us all. He even just laughed and joked when Mignon Clyburn voiced the concerns of the people. He gave zero shits what the people thought. He and many politicians of his ilk just did what they were lobbied to do. Ajit himself comes from Verizon and will probably be rewarded with a cushy position at the company once he’s done leveling the FCC.
I’m keeping to my VPN statement. Keep yourselves safe. After all, even before NN was repealed, they already made it legal for ISPs to collect and sell our browsing history
I wouldn’t say the internet is “succeeding” as well as it should be anyway. The telecoms have just eaten half a trillion dollars at this point, instead of using it for upgrading our infrastructure as they were expected to. Our internet should be MUCH better than it is.
As for the laws itself, we can only hope that it gets stuck in courts and we have a blue midterm in 2018.
Lastly, I’d like to draw attention to the fact that “Koder” here apparently made an account JUST to write that comment for some reason, which seems damn fishy to me. I’m aware of bots and people that are paid just to go around the internet and create accounts on forums like these and make pro-cable-lobby comments.
I actually thought twice about pointing that out, not wanting to start any shit because like I said that’s how threads end-up locked for getting too heated - but I know potential astroturfing when I see it.
Be aware of what’s going on. It’s not all gonna happen overnight - it’ll happen in small increments.