

Steve Wozniak to the FCC: Keep the Internet Free - ShabbyDoo
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2010/12/an-open-letter-to-the-fcc-regarding-net-neutrality/68294/

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ShabbyDoo
I don't agree with everything Woz argues, but the story about his dial-a-joke
line makes it worth a read.

The core argument that I have in favor of net neutrality is that, at least in
the US, the last mile of connectivity to one's home is provided via a
government-mandated monopoly or duopoly. My local government granted Time
Warner and Windstream (a regional phone company, formerly Alltel) exclusive
rights to run wires down my street and to my house. In exchange for these
rights, those companies agreed to rate approval and other restrictions. Now,
they want to indirectly extract more money from people in my community by
selling premium access to their homes. I am not sure why net neutrality is not
seen as a local or state issue -- much like cable rates and the price of
electricity.

Similar arguments can be made about the wireless carriers. The US government
artificially limited competition in the wireless space by deciding how many
different entities could own the spectrum in any particular geography. While I
am more sympathetic to the wireless companies' arguments for traffic
prioritization, the claim of absolute free enterprise is laughable.

I am a small-L libertarian. I don't think I should have any right to tell
Apple what content it should or should not carry on iTunes, what products
WalMart should stock on its shelves, or any number of other things that
private enterprises operating largely without beneficial government mandates
might care to do. But, to suggest that a government-enabled monopolist should
be able to pick and choose the issues where it can pull out the Free
Enterprise trump card is absurd.

~~~
zdw

       I am not sure why net neutrality is not seen as a local or state issue
    

IANAL, but wouldn't this be an obvious application of the Interstate Commerce
clause, as traffic is likely to be crossing state lines?

