This is one of the rare things that my lefty brother and I agree on. He’s far geekier and more knowledgeable about this than I am, and when I ranted about the recent spate of telcomm ads decrying it, he clarified that it’s not necessarily false advertising, because it depends on how you define net neutrality. And it’s true that packets need to travel in some kind of order; as a practical matter, some types of data are given precedence. But the system doesn’t treat customers differently; we’re all on the same information superhighway, and there is no HOV lane.
Go to SaveTheInternet.com and find out how to help.
You have a lefty brother? My prayers, dear, DEAR girl.
And as a rsident of Northern Virginia, the HOV lane is WAAAaaaaaaaay overrated.
LOL, and thanks for your prayers. When Katrina hit, he and his wife were kind enough to take us all in for more than two weeks, which was a real challenge for everyone.
I used to live in N. VA also – Woodbridge & Dale City – but that was in the early 90s when they were just finishing the HOV. Sorry to hear it’s not working out. :-/
Yes, the effectiveness of the No. VA’s HOV lanes is a whole different can of worms that doesn’t seem to have a solution on the horizon. I don’t care if there were 12 HOV lanes, you’re still in traffic until Massaponax on 95 South.
As for net neutrality, I work with the hands Off the Internet coalition and am opposed to the proposed “net neutrality” regulations. This truly isn’t a partisan issue and Dr. Alfred Kahn, an influential deregulator in the Carter Administration points out,
“Why all the hysteria? There is nothing ‘liberal’ about the government rushing in to regulate these wonderfully promising turbulent developments. Liberals of both eighteenth and twentieth–and I hope twenty-first–century varieties should and will put their trust in competition, reinforced by the antitrust laws–and direct regulation only when those institutions prove inadequate to protect the public.”
http://www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=20209
There is simply no reason to preemptively impose these regulations. The ability to do so isn’t going anywhere so until the doomsday theories start to manifest themselves in any way we don’t need to restrict the internet with “net neutrality.” Just my two cents, thanks.
Thanks for your comment but I’m afraid I’m going to have to disagree. I really don’t see how the current situation is restrictive, but I can certainly see how having a fast track and a slow track is restrictive – to those who can’t pay the big bucks, at least. Most of my clients (I’m a web developer) are small businesses would couldn’t keep up with their larger competitors.
Furthermore, after the “doomsday theories start to manifest themselves” it’s a bit late to respond then – it’s a fait accompli.