Re:Cato Institute: The Case Against Net Neutrality
by syllogism on Thursday December 23, 2010 @12:59AM
(#2033673)
to paraphrase "Internet access is not a right, so we shouldn't protect it". The reality is that so much human communication, including participation in democratic processes and a huge part of the economy happens online, and so it is reasonable to consider it a human right. The fact that it is relatively new doesn't change that.
On the one hand internet access and participation in digital communities is almost a modern form of free assembly. It's important for just the same reasons that free assembly is --- and threatening to power structures for the same reasons too.
The problem is that there are no "public spaces" in which to do this assembly --- all of the spaces on the internet are privately controlled. But this "modern free assembly" that's emerged is tremendously important, and we need to find some way to guarantee it.
On the one hand internet access and participation in digital communities is almost a modern form of free assembly. It's important for just the same reasons that free assembly is --- and threatening to power structures for the same reasons too.
The problem is that there are no "public spaces" in which to do this assembly --- all of the spaces on the internet are privately controlled. But this "modern free assembly" that's emerged is tremendously important, and we need to find some way to guarantee it.