What is net neutrality? Why does it matter? Net neutrality is the principle that Internet providers like Comcast & Verizon should not control what we see and do online. In 2015, startups, Internet freedom groups, and 3.7 million commenters won strong net neutrality rules from the US Federal Communication Commission (FCC). The rules prohibit Internet providers from blocking, throttling, and paid prioritization – “fast lanes” for sites that pay, and slow lanes for everyone else. – Battle for Net Neutrality
“You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.” – Obi-Wan Kenobi
Wanna bet?
I am pretty sure by now that the vast majority of the hideous beasts chosen by Trump to run his administration and by extension, burn America to the ground, were selected from the very pits of hell. These disgusting creatures really are just demonic incarnations; from Kellyanne “Alternative-Reality” Conjob, to Sarah “I-Lie-For-A-Living” Huckabee, to EPA chief Scott “Fuck-America-First” Pruitt, to budget director Mick “Scumbag-in-a-Suit” Mulvaney, and so many more including and especially, the ultra-expression of sociopathology in dress shoes, Trump’s FCC Chairman, Ajit “Most-Punchable-Face-Award-Winner” Pai.
Ajit Pai, another demon from hell, another Corporate Whore in a long line in the Trump line-up, another narcissistic, greedy, lying, corrupt weasel, is going to have a vote in the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on December 14, 2017. If they are not stopped, it will be the beginning of end the Internet as we know it, starting on that day.
Chairman Pai is a bag of shit. (I might repeat that a lot, because it’s worth repeating).
Between April 27, 2017 through August 30, 2017, The FCC had an open comment period from the public to speak on Net Neutrality. There were over 21 million comments submitted and the majority were in favor of keeping Net Neutrality and opposed Ajit Pai’s nefarious goal to reverse the current rules that were adopted during the Obama administration.
Initially, it appeared that there were many comments that supported Ajit Pai’s wet dream to give Internet Service Providers (ISPs) like Comcast, Verizon and AT&T complete power over internet traffic, including slowing down certain websites, charging a fee to visit any websites (such as Facebook and Twitter), blocking content at will with no oversight, and so on. But most of the comments in favor of Pai’s scheme were actually fake and according to VICE, about a million of these supportive comments falsely used the names of real people. Even more disturbing, “half a million comments were filed from Russian email addresses, and 50,000 consumer complaints are missing from the record.”
Russian email addresses? Are you fucking kidding me?
Of course, Ajit Pai jumped into action and disregarded all those comments, launched a thorough investigation, and … no, he didn’t. He didn’t do a damn thing – like actually DOING HIS JOB – because he is a bag of shit, see.
The American people are rightfully pissed off and a nationwide protest took place on December 7, 2017. If you aren’t pissed off, then you haven’t been paying attention, so they say. But the Trump presidency has been an endless daily tsunami of shit-storm catastrophes, and it’s easy to overlook some of the most hideous outrages that are happening by these collective scumbags.
So, pay attention, because this is one of the most important things that will ever happen. And no matter how much news you watch, you might not even see more than a whisper about this story because the corporations that control most of the major media outlets or otherwise have a vested financial interest in ending net neutrality aren’t willing to fully inform the public about this corruption.
So, tell Chairman Pai to LEAVE NET NEUTRALITY ALONE.
Ajit Pai used to work as an attorney for Verizon, by the way. Can you take a wild guess what he’s going to do after he gets done fucking over America as FCC Chairman and goes back to the private sector?
Find out more at Battle for the Net.
Call your Senators and Representatives and tell them you’ve had enough of Trump’s swamp. Tell them Net Neutrality matters: 202-224-3121
“Our freedoms are vanishing. If you do not get active to take a stand now against all that is wrong while we still can, then maybe one of your children may elect to do so in the future, when it will be far more riskier – and much, much harder.” – Suzy Kassem, Rise Up and Salute the Sun: The Writings of Suzy Kassem
Recommended Websites:
Battle for the Net (Battle for Net Neutrality)
Center for Democracy & Technology: Keeping the Internet Open, Innovative and Free – Homepage
Public Knowledge Public Knowledge promotes freedom of expression, an open internet, and access to affordable communications tools and creative works. We work to shape policy on behalf of the public interest.
Electronic Frontier Foundation
Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC)
Fight for the Future, defending our basic rights and freedoms: “Fight for the Future is dedicated to protecting and expanding the Internet’s transformative power in our lives by creating civic campaigns that are engaging for millions of people. Alongside internet users everywhere we beat back attempts to limit our basic rights and freedoms, and empower people to demand technology (and policy) that serves their interests. Activating the internet for the public good can only lead to a more vibrant and awesome world.”
Free Press: Free Press fights for your rights to connect and communicate. “We’re working to create a world where people have the information and opportunities they need to tell their own stories, hold leaders accountable, and participate in our democracy. We fight to save the free and open internet, curb runaway media consolidation, protect press freedom, and ensure diverse voices are represented in our media.”
Internet Defense League – Protecting the Free Internet since 2012
For further reading, please see the following:
“House Democrats demand GAO investigate fake net neutrality comments,” by Joan McCarter, Daily Kos; December 6, 2017
Excerpt: FCC Chairman Ajit Pai refuses to investigate or cooperate with outside investigations of hundreds of thousands—maybe millions—of instances of fake anti-neutrality comments to the agency. There’s rock solid evidence that real people’s names and addresses were stolen by hackers to make comments against an open internet, without their knowledge or permission. Pai, rather than acknowledging this, is using it as an excuse to toss out almost all comments on the issue, so that he can ignore the millions of pro-net neutrality comments. House Democrats want an investigation so they’re asking the Government Accountability Office to do it.
“House Dems want investigation of fake net neutrality comments,” by Harper Neidig, The Hill; December 6, 2017
“Rushing to Gut Net Neutrality May Leave Internet Providers with No Federal Oversight,” by Mike Ludwig, Truthout; December 5, 2017
“I’ve been to the Philippines 4 times now and lived here for over 7 months a few years back. If there’s anything I’ve learned it’s how the internet providers have screwed people over here. They do here what they want to do in the states. I.E.: make us pay on an ala-carte type of system. You pay for access, then you pay for the things you want access to. How stupid is this. In the Philippines they offer unlimited access but it contains certain amounts of bandwidth or speed, but not both. You pay for exactly what you think you need and God forbid you desire to reach beyond those limitations. You can’t. You have to buy more access as you feel you need to. You can buy text access or facebook access or streaming access or movie downloads, etc. … It stinks.”
See: “The Coming GOP Plan for the Internet,” by xaxnar, Daily Kos; December 6, 2017
“FCC Commissioner Says FCC’s Net Neutrality Process ‘Lacks Integrity’,” by Jason Koebler, Motherboard (VICE); December 5, 2017
In trying to repeal net neutrality to appease big telecom interests, the Republican-controlled Federal Communications Commission has also shown little interest in normal operating procedures, which has led one of the Democrats on the commission to take the highly unusual step of publicly denouncing the process.
“While I fundamentally disagree with the merits of the FCC’s proposal, what is equally concerning is the lack of integrity to the FCC’s process that has led to this point,” Democratic FCC commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said in an emailed statement Monday.
It is rare for someone on the commission itself to state publicly that the process is unfair (she is, after all, nominally involved in the process itself). Rosenworcel and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman noted in an emailed statement to Motherboard that roughly one million comments [*] on the proposal seem to have fraudulently to have used the names of real people; half a million comments were filed from Russian email addresses, and 50,000 consumer complaints are missing from the record.
“The integrity of our process is at stake,” the email said.
Scheniderman’s office is currently investigating the process for anomalies.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has declined to investigate these issues, and, in general, the commission has gone about repealing the rules in a cynical way: The repeal was announced the day before Thanksgiving, for instance, and it’s common knowledge that the vast majority of Americans support net neutrality protections – large corporate internet service providers have been the main impetus behind rolling back the regulations.
Rosenworcel called Monday for the FCC to delay its official vote until official investigations into these anomalies take place.
[*] This publication is cited in the above article: “Public Comments to the Federal Communications Commission About Net Neutrality Contain Many Inaccuracies and Duplicates,” by Paul Hitlin, Kenneth Olmstead and Skye Toor, Pew Research Center; November 29, 2017 (19 pages)
“Don’t Believe AT&T’s Net Neutrality Lies,” by Matt Wood and Dana Floberg, Free Press; December 5, 2017
“Headlining at Verizon Headquarters, FCC Chair Ajit Pai Dismisses Net Neutrality Defenders as ‘Desperate’,” by Julia Conley, Common Dreams; December 5, 2017
“Protests Planned Nationwide as Vote on FCC’s ‘Catastrophic’ Plan to Kill Net Neutrality Looms,” by Jake Johnson, Common Dreams; December 4, 2017
“The F.C.C. Wants to Let Telecoms Cash in on the Internet,” by the Editorial Board, New York Times; December 3, 2017
“Net Neutrality, in a Nutshell, Is a Nondiscrimination Law,” by Matt Wood, Free Press; December 1, 2017
“If FCC Chairman Ajit Pai wants to ‘set the record straight’ on net neutrality he should stop lying,” by Tristan Greene, The Next Web; December 1, 2017
“The Internet Is Freedom, and It Is Under Attack,” by William Rivers Pitt, Truthout; November 30, 2017
“Fact-Checking FCC Chair Ajit Pai’s Net Neutrality ‘Facts’,” by Andrew Couts, Daily Dot; November 30, 2017
Excerpt: On Dec. 14, the Federal Communications Commission will vote on a proposal that could, if the critics are to be believed, change the internet forever.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has put forward a proposal that would roll back rules protecting net neutrality, a founding principle of the internet that demands internet service providers (ISPs) treat all internet traffic equally. That means they can’t block content, throttle traffic from particular sources, or create “fast lanes” that speed up traffic for content providers that pay extra for the privilege.
Until 2015, net neutrality was essentially optional. That changed when the FCC voted to reclassify broadband providers as “common carriers” under Title II of the Communications Act, which allowed the FCC to regulate ISPs’ practices and enforce net neutrality rules. If the new FCC proposal passes—and it’s all but certain it will—those rules will disappear, as will the Title II classification….
In the face of intense opposition, which is fueled by a deep distrust of ISPs and concern for the future of the open internet, Pai this week released a list of “myths and facts” about net neutrality in an attempt to “set the record straight” on his proposal to gut net neutrality rules.
The problem is, much of the “facts” he puts forth are either wildly misleading, missing key context, or simply speculation. To be fair, there’s rampant speculation among Pai’s critics as well. So, let’s take a look at each of Pai’s “myths” and “facts” and see where the truth really lies….
The main reason Pai wants to kill net neutrality rules is that, he claims, they are stifling the ISP industry and, therefore, limiting investment in building out and improving their networks. This is a claim the industry itself makes. However, data collected by Free Press, one of the leading pro-net neutrality non-profits, shows that investment across publicly traded ISPs has risen more than 5 percent, on average, in the two years since the net neutrality rules went into effect. In fact, Comcast increased investments by more than 26 percent. Not only that, but broadband speeds have increased since 2015, showing network improvements that benefit customers.
On top of all that, some ISP executives themselves have admitted to investors that net neutrality rules did not negatively impact their investment decisions.
All that said, some ISPs have reduced investment, with US Cellular’s business expenditures dropping by nearly 25 percent over the past two years.
So, as Business Insider reports, Pai is cherry picking data as an excuse to lift rules that could allow ISPs to expand their businesses in ways they currently can’t, such as getting paid for “fast lanes.” ….
It’s true, the FCC’s commenting process for its net neutrality proposal has been an unmitigated disaster, with fake comments submitted both in favor and against the current net neutrality rules. A Pew Research study found that only 6 percent of the 21.7 million comments submitted in response to the proposal were unique.
“Killing Net Neutrality Would Muzzle Many Teacher-Activists,” by Steven Singer, gadflyonthewallblog; November 29, 2017
“Comcast deleted net neutrality pledge the same day FCC announced repeal,” by Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica; November 29, 2017
“What Actually Happens the Day Net Neutrality Is Repealed,” by Dell Cameron, Gizmodo; November 29, 2017
“Here’s What a Country Without Net Neutrality Looks Like,” by Teodora Zareva, Big Think; November 29, 2017
Excerpt: To get an idea, we can also look at Portugal, a country that – even though it is covered under EU’s net neutrality rules – has found big enough loopholes in them. The country’s wireless carrier Meo requires users to pay additionally for apps and services they would like to use, like WhatsApp, Facebook, Snapchat, and Messenger. Video apps are also offered as paid add-ons in a variety of bundles.
This kind of set up could easily harm smaller companies. If, for example, Snapchat and Messenger are in different bundles, each of which is an additional $4.99 to your plan, it is very likely that you will choose to use only one. Also, small businesses won’t have the resources to pay providers to push their content or products to the top. They could potentially lose all internet traffic.
Ajit Pai says that repealing net neutrality is good for consumers because it will allow for more investment from telecoms, but that is a weak argument. Research suggests that it is precisely open competition and not lack thereof that causes higher investment. As The Economist points out, “declining competition does more than harm some consumers; it makes firms lazy.”
Without net neutrality, telecoms won’t have to compete based on the quality of their products, but would be able to tie the hands and eyes of their customers to their products, whether or not the customers actually like them.
“Network news has all but ignored the GOP scheme to censor the internet,” by Matthew Chapman, Shareblue; November 28, 2017
“At least 1.3 million comments opposed to net neutrality were likely fake: Report,” by Charlie May, Salon; November 25, 2017
“FCC Chairman Ajit Pai cheating and lying to give the internet away to big telecom,” by Joan McCarter, Daily Kos; November 24, 2017
“Rogue FCC Ignoring Majority of Americans That Support Net Neutrality” (9:29) by The Humanist Report, November 23, 2017
“Here are the five officials who will decide the controversial changes to net neutrality rules,” by Jim Puzzanghera, Los Angeles Times; November 22, 2017
“Public Knowledge Responds to FCC Chairman Pai’s Proposal to Gut Net Neutrality Rules,” by Shiva Stella, Public Knowledge; November 22, 2017
Excerpt: Today, the Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai published the agency’s “Restoring Internet Freedom” draft Order that would roll back the agency’s 2015 Open Internet Order, which created strong net neutrality rules that force broadband providers to treat all internet content and services equally.
The agency’s new proposal downgrades broadband from a “telecommunications service” under Title II of the Communications Act, to a mere “information service.” If adopted at the FCC meeting on December 14, the draft Order will eliminate the existing network neutrality rules (“no blocking, no throttling, and no ‘fast lanes’”) that currently protect the Open Internet. Millions of Americans expressed support for these rules by submitting comments with the FCC leading up to the 2015 Open Internet Order, and millions of Americans have opposed FCC Chairman Pai’s proposal to roll back these rules since he announced it last spring.
The following can be attributed to Harold Feld, Senior Vice President at Public Knowledge:
“Today’s draft Order shows both an appalling disregard for the record and an astounding disregard for even the basics of administrative law. It would seem more likely, as some have suggested, that Chairman Pai and Congressional Republicans have released this Order to create a crisis atmosphere and push through legislation authored by the cable companies rather than in a serious attempt at policy.
“For almost 20 years, both Republican and Democratic Chairmen of the FCC have asserted the FCC’s ongoing responsibility and authority to protect consumers and promote competition in the broadband access market. Rather than admit that this draft Order is a radical break from a bipartisan consensus on FCC authority to protect consumers generally and net neutrality specifically, Chairman Pai prefers to surrender this power to broadband providers, enabling them to set their own ‘net neutrality’ standards.
“In an even more brazen violation of law, Chairman Pai claims to be able to simultaneously divest the FCC of authority while claiming unlimited power to preempt the states as well. Under Chairman Pai’s expansive theory of preemption, the FCC could — in theory — preempt every state law applicable to Google, Facebook, or any other information service. For a man claiming to correct the previous Administration’s ‘overreach,’ this is an astonishing claim to unlimited power to advance corporate interests at the expense of the public.”
“Net neutrality: Portugal shows how American internet could look if FCC ditches rules,” by Rob Price, Business Insider; November 21, 2017
Excerpt: Simply put, net neutrality means that all data on the internet is treated equally. An internet service provider can’t prioritize certain companies or types of data, charge users more to access certain websites and apps, or charge businesses for preferential access.
Advocates of net neutrality argue that it ensures a level playing field for everyone on the internet. Telecoms firms, however, are largely against it because of the additional restrictions it places on them.
But with the Republican-majority FCC likely to vote on December 14 in favor of rolling back the order, what might the American internet look like without net neutrality? Just look at Portugal.
The country’s wireless carrier Meo offers a package that’s very different from those available in the US. Users pay for traditional “data” – and on top of that, they pay for additional packages based on the kind of data and apps they want to use.
“F.C.C. Plans Net Neutrality Repeal in a Victory for Telecoms,” by Cecilia Kang, New York Times; November 21, 2017
Excerpt: The Federal Communications Commission released a plan on Tuesday to dismantle landmark regulations that ensure equal access to the internet, clearing the way for internet service companies to charge users more to see certain content and to curb access to some websites.
The proposal, made by the F.C.C. chairman, Ajit Pai, is a sweeping repeal of rules put in place by the Obama administration. The rules prohibit high-speed internet service providers, or I.S.P.s, from stopping or slowing down the delivery of websites. They also prevent the companies from charging customers extra fees for high-quality streaming and other services….
The action “represents the end of net neutrality as we know it and defies the will of millions of Americans,” said Michael Beckerman, chief executive of the Internet Association, a lobbying group that represents Google, Facebook, Amazon and other tech companies….
The plan to repeal the existing rules, passed in 2015, would reverse a hallmark decision by the agency to consider broadband a public utility, as essential as phones and electricity. The earlier decision created the legal foundation for the current rules and underscored the importance of high-speed internet service. It was put in place by Tom Wheeler, an F.C.C. chairman under President Obama.
“Say Goodbye to Net Neutrality. Say Hello to the FCC’s Trickle-Down Experiment,” by Mike Ludwig, Truthout; November 21, 2017
“Former FCC Commissioner: Net Neutrality Is a First Amendment Issue,” by Michael Winship, June 21, 2017
“Net Neutrality Redux: Why Republicans Shouldn’t Mess with the Internet,” by Mike Ludwig, Truthout; April 28, 2017
Resist.
Trump Watch 
Reblogged this on Trumpism.
LikeLike