Later this month Wormtongue’s FCC is going to start regulating ISPs. in a federal takeover of the Internet. Because the White House and the Democrats apparently want more opportunities for graft. Next we can safely assume, based on past federal performance, Internet innovations like Facebook and Twitter will have to be approved by multiple layers of regulators and a congressional committee or two. More greased palms all around.
And then, when us who get none of the grease but pay for all of it in higher prices get used to Internet things progressing really slooowly—which is the normal, glacial pace of government—the regulators will turn to the content. Also known as censorship. That’s when we’ll hear about the blogger’s fairness doctrine.
Wormtongue famously hates bloggers.
The old fairness doctrine kept most of television and radio far away from controversy because it was either too hard to find a willing representative of the other side of the argument or too time-consuming (read expensive) to air a comprehensive rebuttal.
It’ll be interesting to see if the Internet, a decentralized technology, can be successfully censored by a central authority. Or if millions of rebels can create an alternative Net that drives the feds crazy trying to regulate it. But I suppose if Net censorship works in China it’ll work here, too. Perhaps signing this petition will help hold it off for a while. But I wouldn’t bet on it.
As novelist/journalist Arthur Koestler once said: “One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up.” Guess which approach Wormtongue and his Democrat cronies favor for thee and me?
Internet freedom was fun while it lasted.
Via Instapundit & The Other McCain
UPDATE: One of the five FCC commissioners reveals Barry’s 332-page plan for regulating the Internet. Republican appointee Ajit Pai says it will micromanage the Web and increase costs for everyone, in some cases with hidden taxes. Gotta pay for the graft.
THE TEXAS SCRIBBLER 