Naples Daily News columnist Jay Schlichter recently opined on the FCC’s impending rollback of the 2015 Net Neutrality rules. I not only echo Mr. Schlichter’s sentiments, but I also join the chorus of internet commentators, industry professionals, hackers, video streamers, online gamers, and tech giants and startups alike by unequivocally denouncing this gutless capitulation to the nation’s largest ISPs — a move that will surely result in the unbridled smothering of countless future generations of technological innovators and the near-certain price-gouging of millions of Americans for years to come.
WHAT THE FUTURE COULD LOOK LIKE
Do you want to pay a premium to use one popular search engine instead of another? Oppose the repeal of net neutrality. Do you want your internet connection to be purposefully slowed down when you try to visit your favorite website (that is, unless you pay more)? Oppose the repeal of net neutrality. Do you think that your ISP should be able to block lawful websites unless you purchase an “upgraded” internet package? Oppose the repeal of net neutrality.
This ham-handed approach to deregulation in cyberspace will not benefit consumers in the long-run. We first sounded the alarm in March of 2017 when Congress used its powers under the Congressional Review Act to nullify an FCC rule that prohibited ISPs from monetizing your sensitive personal information (such as your browser history, email addresses, and application usage data).
CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES IN CONGRESS
Today, we have the ability to tell Congress to use the Congressional Review Act for the good of consumers, rather than to enrich ISPs for the second time. If you believe that a free and open internet is vital to our society, contact your federal Congressman or Congresswoman and urge him or her to nullify the near-certain repeal of the 2015 FCC Net Neutrality rules.