Net Neutrality is a hot topic these days and for good reason, the threat of no longer having Net Neutrality is more serious then you might think. If you are a gamer then you can check out the importance of Net Neutrality here. If you are new to this topic then be sure to check out why this matters and how important it is.
Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the world wide web, Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple and a couple of other pioneers of the industry have come forward in order to ask Congress and FCC to cancel their vote on Net Neutrality. The pioneers believe that the repeal is based on flawed and inaccurate data. The following is part of the open letter to the lawmakers
We are the pioneers and technologists who created and now operate the Internet, and some of the innovators and business people who, like many others, depend on it for our livelihood. We are writing to respectfully urge you to call on FCC Chairman Ajit Pai to cancel the December 14 vote on the FCC’s proposed Restoring Internet Freedom Order.
Berners-Lee talked about the fact that when he created the world wide web he did not have to pay a fee for it. He did not have to ask anyone’s permission. If this law is passed against Net Neutrality then this can affect us all, including gamers, streamers, businesses, sites and companies as a whole as described below.
“If US net neutrality rules are repealed, future innovators will have to first negotiate with each ISP to get their new product onto an internet package. That means no more permissionless space for innovation. ISPs will have the power to decide which websites you can access and at what speed each will load. In other words, they’ll be able to decide which companies succeed online, which voices are heard – and which are silenced.”
Tim Berners-Lee also talked about connectivity and content markets being separate and how this has worked for a long time. If that is not the case then both will be under the same control and that will undermine America as the as a leading digital innovator. Competition is going to suffer to say the very least.
Net Neutrality is a big issue not as compared to before because ISPs have the tools needed in order to discriminate traffic, unlike the past. ISPs need to focus on providing cheaper and faster internet rather than getting greedy. The internet should be a human right and it is in some parts of the world and it is stupid that Net Neutrality needs to be discussed when it is clear that this is a human right. According to Berners-Lee:
“I want an internet where ideas spread because they’re inspiring, not because they chime with the views of telecoms executives. I want an internet where consumers decide what succeeds online, and where ISPs focus on providing the best connectivity. If that’s the internet you want – act now. Not tomorrow, not next week. Now.”
Battle For Net Neutrality Is Real And Here Is What You Can Do
Write to your Government Representatives about Net neutrality
(The brand new) MailMyGov was founded on the idea that a real letter is more effective then a cookie cutter email. MailMyGov lets you send real physical letters to your government reps. We can help you find all your leaders:
- federal (White house, House of Representatives, Supreme Court, FCC & more)
- state (U.S. Senate, Governors, Treasurers, Attorney General, Controllers & more)
- county (Sheriffs, Assessors, District Attorney & more)
- and city representatives (Mayors, City Council & more)
Using just your address and send a real snail mail letter without leaving your browser.
https://www.mailmygov.com
Other things you can do to help:
You can visit these sites to obtain information on issues currently being debated in the United States:
- https://votesmart.org/
- https://www.govtrack.us/
- https://www.aclu.org/
- https://petitions.whitehouse.gov
- (suggest more sites here? msg this bot please with unbiased, non-partisan factual sources only!)
Donate to political advocacy
Other websites that help to find your government representatives:
- http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
- https://whoaremyrepresentatives.org/
- https://www.govtrack.us/
- https://resistbot.io/
- https://democracy.io/#!/ (will send an email on your behalf to your senators.)
- https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials
- https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?OrderBy=state
Be sure to support Net Neutrality if you want the internet to be free like it is right now. You can make a difference and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Contact your local lawmaker or at the very least share this post so that this message can be read by people that can make a bigger dent.
