As much as it pains me to say this because I absolutely hate junk mail: internet service providers should be like the USPS, with an obligation to deliver all the content regardless of the content.

The internet is (arguably) more powerful today than the telephone is, or ever was, as a tool for mass communication, learning, and dissention. If the government allows companies to stifle this resource without themselves providing an unbiased alternative, then the government has effectively, indirectly, snuffed out a very important medium for free speech in the 21st century.

There's always some sort of reasonable limit that must be imposed. The USPS is a neutral carrier but they're not required to transport dangerous materials or hostile devices like mail bombs.

Where that line is drawn is where there should be debate. By what definition is something hostile, and so on.

The USPS does get to require that things are properly labeled and items which are /hazardous/ (such as highly flammable/reactive/etc materials) might require non-generic transport (which is that USPS is supposed to provide).

Are you proposing that EM emissions controlled entirely by the transporting party might spontaneously explode based on the content of the data as transcribed by those automated systems?

I mean just as the USPS will not knowingly transport things like mail bombs, an ISP should be permitted to curtail traffic known to be harmful (e.g. DDOS variety).

Obviously the packets themselves won't explode.

Good point. Isn't this already defined though? For example, you cannot shout "fire!" in a crowded courthouse when there is no fire and expect to walk out without any penalties.

You should say to edit phone calls, just as an ISP has the right to edit the intarweb tubes.