The Left has long demanded the implementation of their definition of an “Open Internet” and “Internet Freedom.” Sounds great, right? Who could be opposed to that? Then again, who could be against a “Fairness Doctrine?” Or “Network Neutrality?”
All represent terrible government policy. But the Left is very good at naming very bad policies.
The American people – as a general rule and principle – want less government involvement in most things. The Left – wanting more in nearly all – must obfuscate their intentions. Concocting innocuous names for noxious plans is a staple.
Here’s what lead Media Marxist outfit Free Press means by “Internet Freedom” – as described on their website SavetheInternet.com (get it?):
Internet Freedom means Net Neutrality
Net Neutrality means that Internet service providers (ISPs) may not discriminate between different kinds of online content and apps.
No ISP is currently doing anything like this – but that couldn’t matter less to the Left. To “remedy” this non-existent problem, the Barack Obama Administration illegally imposed Net Neutrality – which makes the government the Regulator Overlord of every single website.
Since nowhere on the planet are governments messing with Internet freedom.
Internet Freedom means Mobile Rights
(T)he free speech rights of mobile device users are at risk. Private corporations and governments now have unprecedented control over the information we access and share via mobile networks, and too often this information is exploited.
As with Net Neutrality, private corporations have all along had this “unprecedented control” – and they haven’t exploited it.
And who invited the First Amendment-abusing government? The Left – who now decries its presence.
Internet Freedom means Open Spectrum
While broadcasters and mobile phone companies have government-issued licenses for certain portions of the airwaves, other swaths are open, meaning that any company can develop a product —like a cordless home phone, Bluetooth headset, baby monitor or remote control — that utilizes this open space without any need for a government license.
Again, who keeps inviting the government?
To help the next generation of wireless technology take root, we need to ensure that spectrum held by companies like AT&T and Verizon is put to use in the public interest — and we need to make more spectrum available outside these companies’ control.
AT&T and Verizon – and T-Mobile, Sprint, Virgin, Cricket,… – desperately need more spectrum. To serve the “public interest” – by giving the public in what they are interested: faster, better wireless service.
The Left would stiff these public interest-serving companies – to give away more of this preciously finite resource. Even though there is already at public disposal more unlicensed spectrum than licensed.
For the Left, “Internet Freedom” means – free from charge.
Internet Freedom means Universal High-Speed Internet
(B)roadband access in the United States is far from universal. Millions of Americans still stand on the wrong side of the “digital divide,” unable to tap into the political, economic and social resources of the Internet.
This is fundamentally incorrect.
As of June, 2011, 95% of all Americans had access to broadband Internet from cable, DSL, fiber or other wired services. That’s up from 15% as recently as 2003, and zero percent in 1996, when high-speed Internet didn’t even exist.
This seems to be fairly universal access achieved in a remarkably rapid manner.
The basically regulation-less Internet has become a free speech-free market Xanadu. About as open as anything going – a bastion of freedom.
By Reality’s definition – not the Left’s. For the Left, “freedom” and “openness” come from greater government control.
Warped, yes?
If it had been up to the government we’d all still be on dial-up because AOL was “too big to fail.”
A.) Speaking from personal experience, being able to access the Internet isn’t all it is cracked up to be. But I guess cat videos have to be watched by someone, so universal access has that going for it.
B.) the Left has this paranoia–and that is the correct word, paranoia–about corporations. I’m not going to say corporations are angels–to paint with an overly broad and inaccurate bush, if business ethics were ethics, you wouldn’t have to put the word “business” in front–but by and large the “evil controlling corporation” things pales in significance to what I see from the Left, where they never come out and just flat out say what they are really aiming for. The current Second Amendment argument is a case study, though some are finally saying “no guns, period”. But overall, I’d say that if there is one group in America that, as a class, could be said to have an agenda involving control of Americans by stealthy means, it ain’t corporations, it’s Progressives. “Long march through the institutions” should ring a bell.
And I don’t consider it a coincidence that the two companies I am convinced try hanky-panky (or have) in an effort to control the public perception of things are Facebook and Google. If folks want to point fingers, the IT community may be the biggest malefactor of anything in the corporate world. And they don’t do it for profit, they do it for “the Cause”.
Take the head of BP during the Gulf oil spill. Did that guy give you the impression he was a brilliant master of the Illuminati, a genius at pulling strings, or a dunce probably able to run his company, and not much more? Then take Barack Obama and Bill Clinton….
Many of your points are right on target. However the left does not believe in these principals for everyone. Only with those that agree with their policies and ideology.
The left is quick to decry sites that support the political right, Christianity, Judaism, prepers, home schooling, small business onwers, gun rights, immigration reform, etc etc etc. THOSE types of sites….well we need to be protected from their evil influence.
Try to put up a site that criticizes generational welfare, points out that Lincoln wasn’t for freeing the slaves but rather against the concept that the southern slave owner had lower costs due to “free labor” and should pay a higher tax rate to “equalize” the marketplace, or anything critical of Obama for that matter and see how long it takes for the left to make you, your family, your community, your business, etc the “cause d’ jour” for destruction.
The ‘toilet factor’ of the internet is beginning to overtake the letitmate useful benefit of the internet.
However, there is a good side to the toilet factor. Like a magnet, it draws all the failings of human nature to the surface for all to see, smell and evaluate. Above all else, it reveals how many people can be influenced and accumulated into a commune mentality by those who have particular self serving motives for mind control over others — some such commune mentalities are indicitive of being more dangerous than others.
Sad that so much of the internet is being ‘used’ by so many self serving extremist people and groups for mind control rather, than promoting and expanding individual analytical reasoning that produces legitimate productive benefit to society at large.
Nice description of all the fine folks over at OFA or Occupy Wallstreet
Since you inadvertently omitted other relative groups let me bring them forth for you.
1. Tea Party
2. Religious Right/Moral majority
Oooops! They’re synonymous. Oh well!