Save the Internet!

Urlesque recently did an awesome bit on Net Neutrality. Dear friend CC works this shit day and night for the rest of us--like a superhero-- and when she stays with me I like to pretend I'm helping fight the good fight.

In the same vein here's the poop on net neutrality:

Net Neutrality! It's a big issue! Super-important! I'm not sure why but everyone else is shouty about it so I'm being shouty too!

1. Learn the basics

Okay, Net Neutrality is the principle that internet service providers shouldn't treat some web traffic differently than other traffic. That means that Verizon can't deliberately make Yahoo load slower than Google, or that Time Warner can't charge you extra to get access to certain websites.

Right now, net neutrality is an FCC policy. Congress is looking at bills to either make net neutrality into law or to outright kill it.

2. Know the sides

Here's where the real reasons for net neutrality become clearer. The main opponents of net neutrality are the ISPs, who argue that they'd never use their power to limit service, charge more or control information. That would make more sense if Comcast hadn't gotten caught last year doing those things.

Speaking for the ISPs is John McCain, who totally takes back that comment about not knowing how to use a computer, and who isn't at all thinking about the $894,379 the telecoms donated to his various campaigns! He's introduced a bill called the Internet Freedom Act.

Of course some heavyweights support net neutrality: Google, Amazon, Yahoo, and other companies that want their content to get out to users without paying the telecoms extra. Granted, they already have an advantage: Google has enough servers to deliver a web page far faster than a smaller company. But once it goes into the pipeline, all traffic is the same.

Alongside these companies are groups like MoveOn.org, the AARP, Gun Owners of America, the Christian Coalition, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the ACLU, the Parents Television Council, and loads of other organizations. This is clearly not a traditional partisan battle. These groups are convinced that net neutrality will help maintain the freedom of information we enjoy online today. So are Vint Cerf and Tim Berners-Lee, who invented the internet and the web.

Too long, didn't read? Let Jon Stewart explain it.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
From Here to Neutrality
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3. Picture the consequences

Here's another even simpler explanation: Know how a cable bill depends on which channels you order? Well a Reddit user named quink mocked up the sort of plan that would be legal without net neutrality:

Check out the full version. Yep, that's just a total of $80/month to get most of the internet you already use! What a deal. And that's being generous; Comcast knows you'd pay more for your porn and music.

4. Do something!

So what can you do? First, you can tell your Congressman: Here's a super-simple e-mail you can copy and paste to fight McCain's anti-net-neutrality bill, which would preempt any net neutrality laws. This page even links to the directory of Senate email addresses so you can get in and out in two minutes. (Here's more about McCain's bill.)

You can also sign the "Save the Internet" petition to register your support alongside all those organizations I mentioned. You can be on a list with the Christian Coalition and the ACLU at the same time!

Oh and you can get laid, if you're into Belgian girls with awful YouTube shows.

5. Dig deeper

Net neutrality is a complicated topic. Even neutrality supporters at the Electronic Frontier Foundation are worried about doing it right, so we don't accidentally give the FCC the ability to censor the internet. So when you're asked to support any particular plan, check who supports it and who's against it. There's a right way to save the internet.