My site isn’t broken. I’m protesting.
I’ve waited a long time to write about this. Years. I’ve been waiting for the moment when the knowledge is actionable. That time is now.
Tomorrow, September 10, 2014 is the day that that users of the Internet will protest the telecommunications lobby’s attempt to break the Internet for profit.
Explaining the Problem
I had planned to write a whole lot on the subject, but no one put it better (or funnier or more entertainingly) than John Oliver:
Why This Matters
Our economy is intimately tied to the Internet. Short of a worldwide cataclysm, there’s no going back. Over time we’re going to need faster, more reliable Internet. All of us. Not just the big companies who can afford to pay massive sums of money to telecom companies in return for high-performance connections.
The beauty of the Internet is that anyone can make something, and anyone in the world can use it. You don’t need permission. You don’t need a lot of money. You just need some willpower and skill.
If the telecom companies win, the only services that will be fast enough to make users happy are the ones owned by gigantic companies. Killing net neutrality would seem like a big hit to companies like Google, Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Yahoo, Microsoft, and Netflix… But it would actually strengthen their hold on the market because they can afford to pay the telecom companies for high performance. Their upstart competitors won’t have the cash. Killing net neutrality would put a moat around the Internet giants that would further strengthen them at the price of innovation among small businesses.
Join the Battle for the Internet
- Sign the petition.
- Call your representatives and demand that they protect the Internet.
If net neutrality is killed, the ramifications will be very difficult to undo. Please find it in yourself to take action. This is about fighting for the future of freedom and the economy.
The Geek Whisperer 