Let's Cold Cock the Neo-con War on the Internet

By: Teddy
Published On: 7/13/2007 10:10:09 PM

Remember the recent conspiracy to turn control of the Internet and wireless communication over to mega corporations?  I refer to the recent campaign with the bogus title of Internet Freedom or Internet Parity, which, like so many of the Bushie neocon policies, meant exactly the opposite of its moniker, since among other things, it contemplated giving total control of Internet communications to big pro-Republican corporations, letting them charge varying rates to allow faster service for selected customers, for instance. Apparently the angry grassroots response against such a power grab by greedy corporations, sponsored by various bloggers and MoveOn.org, was surprisingly successful... 
Successful so far, at least, since Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Barack Obama, Arianna Huffington, and other so-called Liberals nesting in the Democratic Party created such a stink that they persuaded Kevin Martin, the Republican Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission to re-think the proposal, and come down on the side of, gasp!, the liberals, who insisted on "open access."  Open access requires that the FTC not turn the Internet over entirely to the control of mega corporations, but rather reserve portions of the upcoming auction of radio spectrum to non-mega corporations, thus enlarging the number of bidders.  The effect will be to allow smaller, less well-heeled entities to buy a share of the spectrum; this will also reduce somewhat the total amount of income the government will receive from the auction because no longer will money be the sole criterion for grabbing control of wireless communications--- monetary muscle will no longer be the sole determinant of who "wins" the auction. Even worse, two other Republican members of the FTC, Robert McDowell and Deborah Tate, agree with Chairman Martin and "the liberals."

The horror of this!  Why, the government, through the FTC, will actually protect the little guy against the predator corporations! Such an infuriating outcome so upset J. William Lauderback, EVP of The American Conservative Union, that he issued a call to arms through Human Events, the ultra-conservative newspaper and blog, screaming "Stop the FTC from handing MoveOn.org and the Liberals a Huge Victory!" The gist of his argument was that Open Access meant increased government regulation, interference in the free market, restriction of competition, and loss of income to the government, "robbing the Treasury of dollars that have been reserved for, among other things, deficit reduction and public safety!" He begged every true Conservative to call Chairman Martin and the two treacherous Republican members, McDowell and Tate, and tell them loud and clear to reject efforts by the liberals of the Democratic Party to "diminish the value of the spectrum in order to advance a narrow, politically driven agenda" while "punishing the American taxpayers." And "call TODAY."  (Note the phony concern for the taxpayer, while not mentioning the sliding scale of fees intended by the mega corporations, which would punish the poor little taxpayer even more if the Conservatives had their way.)

Let's put this conspiracy to bed once and for all. It's time for bloggers and the little guy in the grassroots to offer positive reinforcement to Martin, McDowell, and Tate.  Let's mount our own offensive against that of the Conservative Union (a front for the greedy mega corporations). Tell the FTC to proceed with Open Access, that it is not a liberal vs. conservative question but one of fairness and a level playing field.  Call TODAY (or no later than Monday):
FTC Chairman Kevin Martin: 202-418-1000
FTC Commissioner Robert McDowell: 202-418-2200
FTC Commissioner Deborah Tate: 202-418-2500
Or call the main switchboard at FTC: 1-888-225-5322

Grassroots, arise!


Comments



Without Open Access (Teddy - 7/13/2007 10:52:21 PM)
the AT and T's will conrol the Internet, and remember, these are the folks who illegally turned over private phone records to the government, ostensibly for reasons of "national security." Big Brother will be watching you! (if he isn't already). And, of course the potential for giving liberal blogs or anti-Bush writers the slow-as-molasses hookup on the Internet or otherwise hampering them will exist. Does anyone really believe the power will not be used?


Teddy, you are so right !!!!! (Used2Bneutral - 7/13/2007 11:13:23 PM)
the big phone companies have done everything they can nationally and now even at the state level to gain control of the newer technologies and the Internet.... as a result the USA is now 24th in the world and dropping in broad-band deployment and we generaly invented it and made it work....  The same companies are now poised to block the deployment of the next generation of wireless broad-band and screw the American public AGAIN !!!! It is so bad even the real Republicans can't deal with the corruption and mis-use of the public trust..... Make the calls PLEASE.... there is NO second chance on this !!!! This is a play by the Cheneys and his henchmen like at Haliburten in conjunction with Soutwest Bell (the new owners of AT&T) and Verizon to again gain control of how we communicate world-wide. They know they have to move NOW or forever lose their advantage because the Dems are winning the hearts and minds of the gerneral electorate.

Teddy your ROCK !!!!  JimS at NoVa.org



Cross-posted on Daily Kos (Teddy - 7/14/2007 12:11:21 PM)
after reading your comment. Soread the word, maybe we can get more phone calls. Thanks


It never ends (Teddy - 7/14/2007 10:49:47 AM)
even if the FCC holds firm and enacts Open Access, I'll bet that enormous economic pressure (other big corporations will refuse to advertize on the little guy's networks, various strange lawsuits will arise sponsored directly or indirectly by the mega communications corporations, etc) to grind down the small guys on the Internet and then buy them out. I wonder if Open Access will have a protective clause in there somewhere to prevent such spruious "market forces" from getting their way in the long run.

I am gradually coming around to the view that we need to go after the legal definition of corporations as legal persons. That modification occurred relatively recently (19th century, I believe) and has produced all sorts of unintended consequences--- some good, many bad. It's worth investigation and study.



Don't let the internet go the way of the mainstream media (Rebecca - 7/14/2007 12:19:50 PM)
After the Vietnam war the conservatives decided we had to leave Vietnam because they lost control of the media (or never had it) and also because of all those nasty rock groups who put out anti-establishment and anti-war songs. You remember these folks, Country Joe and the Fish, Frank Zappa, the Rolling Stones, the Jefferson Airplane, etc., etc.

These two factors, the media, and those rock groups really messed things up for the imperialists. So what happened to a fair media and small and independent record companies? You guess it. Bye bye.

Am I the only one who has noticed that there is no musical anti-war culture this time around? The music died after the Vietnam war.  Yes, the music has died as a way to express the thoughts of anyone who disagrees with the imperialists, and this is not an accident.

This time around it is the internet which messed them up. Can anybody guess what the next target will be?



Any anti-imperialist (Teddy - 7/14/2007 12:30:12 PM)
or anti-corporate message is simply stifled, i.e., not played on the corporate-dominated media. Too bad. Actually, would not rap make a very good medium for protest if it would ever get off its misogyny? Of course, you are right, the imperialist corporations and their minions have targeted the new communications technologies for more reasons than simply to make money. YouTube has already been gobbled up.


Rap subject matter is good for the imperialsts (Rebecca - 7/14/2007 6:21:55 PM)
I am convinced the only reason rap is allowed on the air is that the majority of it encourages blacks to turn against their own and to commit illegal acts.

This serves the purpose of the white corporatists. We all know they have been trying to get blacks since the abolition. The reason is simple. Most blacks vote Democratic.

I am convinced the reason we hear the type of rap music which is on the air is to encourage young black men to do things which will land them in jail. Because they can't vote if they are in jail.

I listen to WPFW a lot and I believe most black people are a lot more politically savvy than whites. That's because they have had the game run on them for decades. Its a pity that the smart savvy black person is not the stereotype. You hear black people saying things on this station that wouldn't be allowed on mainstream TV.

Yet most people identify black people with rap music with gangsta subject matter. Its all a negative PR job by the corporate media. Ever since Edward Bernaise invented the PR industry the powers that be have been using Freud's theories  (Bernaise was Freud's nephew) to control the masses. It should be noted that the Nazi regime in Germany used Bernaise's methods as well. They just loved him.

Here is a quote from a Tom Rushing article on thie very subject:

"Before Bernaise worked his magic, the American population only bought goods according to their needs. It was practically unheard of to buy something for any other reason. Bernaise made it acceptable to make a purchase based on desires. Using Hollywood through product placement, and the media, he changed the population into an easily placated self-absorbed group where before they were actively participating. Over the years, this has changed Democracy from a function of the entire society into less than a passing diversion. It is not by accident that here in the United States we have perhaps a lower voter turnout than anywhere else in the world."

Read the entire article here:

http://www.takebackw...



Placate "the masses" (Teddy - 7/15/2007 7:05:51 AM)
with a modern form of bread and circuses. A few observers have commented on the docility of the American public in the face of the long list of depredations against their civil liberties by this Administration, and the answer has been that The System provides material goods, sports extravaganzas--- and religion to distract. A six-pack, good football or NASCAR races, gambling,and lots of big boy toys (flat screen TV, muscular SUVs, barbecue grills, mindless television shows, knicknacks and electronic fun), an occasional dollop of fright coupled with a soothing "I'm protecting you from terrorists", and no one even notices the erosion of personal liberties.


Moral decay (Rebecca - 7/15/2007 11:16:34 AM)
The materialization of our culture is the ultimate moral decay. The imperialism and the military-industrial complex is just another version of that. Making war a profitable business is the ultimate objectification and materialization of human life. The results is a REAL culture of death.