THE FCC IS BEING LED BY A FORMER VERIZON LAWYER, AND
HAS THROUGHOUT THOUGHT THAT NET NEUTRALITY SHOULD NOT EXIST.
THAT THE INTERNET PROVIDERS, LIKE VERIZON, COMCAST AND
OTHERS, SHOULD BE ABLE TO DISCRIMINATE, AND SLOW SOME
WEBSITES DOWN, SPEED OTHERS UP, AND BASICALLY DESTROY THE
INTERNET AS WE KNOW IT, AND HAD ALMOST ALL THE POWER TO DECIDE
WHO HAS WEBSITES THAT WORK, THAT FUNCTION, AND WHO DON'T, TO JUST
A HANDFUL OF INTERNET PROVIDERS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY, WHO
OFTEN HAVE EITHER MONOPOLIES OR DUOPOLY'S THROUGHOUT THE
ENTIRETY OF THE UNITED STATES.
SO, TODAY THEY WENT A LITTLE FURTHER IN EXECUTING THAT PLAN.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION CHAIRMAN AJIT PAI'S
PLAN TOOK ITS FIRST STEP FORWARD ON THURSDAY, GOING TO THE HILL.
THE COMMISSION VOTED TWO – ONE ALONG PARTY LINES TO ADVANCE
PAI'S RESTORING INTERNET FREEDOM PROPOSAL, WHICH WOULD REPEAL
CURRENT NET NEUTRALITY PROTECTIONS.
THAT IS ORWELLIAN A TITLE AS YOU COULD POSSIBLY HAVE A
FOUR-DAY REGULATION.
RESTORING INTERNET FREEDOM, WHICH WOULD IN REALITY
DESTROY THE INTERNET FREEDOM, AND HAD ALL THE POWER OVER
TO ABOUT FIVE COMPANIES.
THIS IS SO LOATHSOME, AND SO OBVIOUSLY AGAINST INTERNET
FREEDOM, THAT THIS IS A RARE ISSUE THAT LIBERALS AND
CONSERVATIVES UNITE OVER ON THE INTERNET.
THE ONLY PEOPLE THAT DON'T UNITE OVER IT ARE THE REPUBLICAN
POLITICIANS, WHO ARE BOUGHT, LOCK STOCK AND BARREL, BY
THOSE SAME FIVE COMPANIES.
THEIR VOTERS ARE NOT WITH THEM, NO ONE ON THE INTERNET IS
WITH THEM.
EVEN THE MOST DIEHARD DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTERS ONLINE GO, WAIT
WAIT WAIT, OUR WEBSITES CAN BE SHUT DOWN IF WE DON'T PAY A
RANSOM TO THOSE FIVE COMPANIES?
THAT SOUNDS LIKE A TERRIBLE IDEA.
THAT'S RIGHT, AND NOT ONLY THAT, IT NOT ONLY ADVANTAGES
THOSE FIVE COMPANIES, IT GIVES A HUGE ADVANTAGE TO OTHER
CRONY CAPITALISTS, WHO COULD THEN GO AND LEGALLY BRIDE,
THROUGH CAMPAIGN DONATIONS, OTHER POLITICIANS, TO SAY
HEY, YOU KNOW, IN MY FIELD, WHILE YOU GIVE ME AN
ADVANTAGE AND SLOW DOWN THE WEBSITES OF MY COMPETITORS?
I'LL PAY OFF THE POLITICIANS AND I'LL GO PAY OFF THE INTERNET
PROVIDERS, AND I GOT MORE MONEY THAN YOU, SO YOU NO LONGER
HAVE FREEDOM.
ALL OF A SUDDEN NO ONE GO TO YOUR WEBSITE, BECAUSE IT'S
TOO SLOW.
HOW DO YOU LIKE THAT, RESTORING INTERNET FREEDOM BILL?
THEY ARE ABSOLUTELY ORWELLIAN.
THE HILL CONTINUES TO EXPLAIN, "PAI'S PROPOSAL WOULD
UNDERMINE EXISTING NEUTRALITY RULES BY UNDOING THE LEGAL
BASIS OF THE REGULATIONS."
THEY SAY, NO NO NO, THE REGULATIONS WERE KEEPING
FREEDOM AWAY FROM THE INTERNET.
REALLY?
THE INTERNET SEEMS PRETTY FREE RIGHT NOW.
THEY SAY, BUSINESSES JUST CAN'T THRIVE ON THE INTERNET
BECAUSE OF THE CURRENT RULES.
PREPOSTEROUS!
GOOGLE, FACEBOOK, AND SOME OTHER TECH GIANTS
ROLLBACK, YET WE'RE DOING OKAY, AND THE INTERNET FREEDOM IS WHAT
ALLOWED US TO BUILD THESE COMPANIES, AND BREAK THE
MONOPOLY OF THE REST OF THE MEDIA HAVE.
AND TO THEIR CREDIT, THEY COULD ACTUALLY DO CRONY CAPITALISM
TOO, BUT THEY ARE NOT.
THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO PAY THE RANSOM TO VERIZON, COMCAST,
ETC.,
BUT THEY ARE NOT.
THEY ARE, FOR THE TIME BEING, ACTUALLY DOING THE RIGHT
THING AND FIGHTING FOR INTERNET FREEDOM.
WE ALSO HAVE SOME RICH FOLKS ON OUR SIDE FOR A CHANGE HERE,
BECAUSE ALL THE INVESTORS WHO PUT MONEY INTO INTERNET
VENTURES SAID, WE PUT MONEY IN EFFECTING THESE RULES.
DON'T TELL ME HOW YOU ARE GOING TO RESTORE FREEDOM BY DESTROYING
THE RULES THAT ALWAYS EXISTED ON THE INTERNET KEEP IT FREE.
IS A TOTAL AND UTTER LIFE.
"THE OBAMA ERA NET NEUTRALITY REGULATIONS, PASSED INTO THE 50
AS THE OPEN INTERNET ORDER, AIMS TO CREATE A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD
ON THE INTERNET BY ENSURING THAT BROADBAND PROVIDERS TREATED ALL
ONLINE CONTENT THE SAME," AND THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT THEY ARE
LOOKING TO END, NOW, AS AJIT PAI LOOKS TO DESTROY INTERNET
FREEDOM, AND UNSURPRISINGLY GIVE A MASSIVE, GIANT ADVANTAGE
TO THE COMPANY THAT PREVIOUSLY EMPLOYED HIM, AND PAID HIM A LOT
OF MONEY, AND MY GUESS IS WILL EMPLOY HIM AGAIN, AND THEY HAVE
EVEN MORE MONEY AFTER HE IS DONE INSTITUTING THESE NEW RULES.
"PAI WANTS TO CONTINUE THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION'S ASSAULT
ON FREE SPEECH AND POLITICAL DISSENT," THAT IS ACCORDING
TO THE FIELD PRESS DIRECTOR, AND I THINK SHE IS EXACTLY RIGHT.
IF YOU CARE ABOUT FREEDOM, DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU ARE
RIGHT-WING, LEFT-WING OR IN THE MIDDLE, IF YOU CARE ABOUT THE
WEBSITES YOU LIKE OR WANT TO CREATE, WELL GUESS WHAT?
YOU'RE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO AFFORD THE RANSOM TO THOSE
COMPANIES, SO FIGHT FOR FREEDOM NOW, BEFORE THEY TAKE IT
AWAY
FROM YOU.