LAST CALL TO SUBMIT COMMENTS TO THE FCC ABOUT NET NEUTRALITY!!
Aug 31, 2021
Story
I have been incredibly busy and apologize for not having had time to update my posts on the FCCs proposed "Pay to Play" rule, which would seriously endanger Net Neutrality and our ability to freely publish online without being marginalized to an internet slow lane. I woke up today realizing that it was the last day for us to submit our comments to the FCC website, and found several tools from petition sites that will make this easier for many of us. I had already submitted comments, but wrote another long and impassioned plea in which my World Pulse sisters played a starring role and submitted it using CredoAction's link.
If you are still unfamiliar with this issue, I encourage you to read my post in the Resources section of World Pulse and my previous posts in my journal, as well as the excellent comments many WP sisters have left on them. Here are some current messages from others urging us all to weigh in and make our voices heard, with links that will forward your comment directly to the FCC public comment site:
CredoAction has published a tool on their petition site that will forward your comment directly to the FCC public comment website HERE> I am not sure if this is only accessible to people in the US, so I encourage you again to send your story to a friend in the US so they can relay it to the FCC for you as part of their own comment.
Credo Action's message to us: "Net Neutrality is important because the Internet is an essential service people rely on to conduct our most basic daily affairs, from applying for a job to finding a home, to running a small business. And our right to communicate freely and be heard lies at the heart of our ability to participate equally in our democracy.
"A string of federal court cases has made it abundantly clear that the FCC has the power to enforce strong Net Neutrality rules, but only if the FCC goes through the process of undoing a terrible Bush-era decision to deregulate broadband instead of treating it like the vital public utility it has become.
"Chairman Wheeler says that he wants to preserve the open Internet. But his proposal explicitly states a preference for not reclassifying broadband -- the one and only thing that will allow the FCC to protect Net Neutrality and ban discrimination on the Internet.
"The public can’t be silent in the face of this. You can bet that Chairman Wheeler will be hearing from the army of lobbyists who work for the big telecoms intent on destroying Net Neutrality.
"We need to make sure he also hears from us. Don't delay. Click this link to submit a public comment today."
Rachel Kolyer of DailyKos.com has this to say: "With less than one week until the FCC July 15 deadline for the first round of public comments in the fight for real net neutrality rules, we need to maximize pressure on FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler to treat the internet as a public utility. And I happen to know just how to do that.
Two months ago, because of the enormous amounts of grassroots activism the Daily Kos community generated in opposition to FCC Chairman Tim Wheeler’s proposal to allow internet “fast lanes,” I had the opportunity to meet personally with Chairman Wheeler.
In that conversation, the Chairman made it clear that personal comments from real people, telling real stories about how the end of Net Neutrality would impact them, are the comments he reads and gives the most credence to.
Now, before the July 15 comment deadline, these are exactly the sort of personal comments we need you to send directly to Tom Wheeler.
This is a big ask. It is not just clicking a button or signing your name. We’re asking you to take five minutes from your day to write a personal email to the FCC explaining how the creation of a two-tiered internet will impact your life.
Will you give us a few minutes of your time? This is how you can make the biggest difference to save net neutrality, and thus Daily Kos.
Please click here to write and send the FCC your personal story and thoughts about why an open internet, free from corporate control by AT&T, Time Warner, Comcast, and Verizon is essential to your life.
At Daily Kos, we’ve made this as easy for you as possible--when you click through to our landing page, you will be able to write your message, enter your name, and send the email directly to the FCC.
We’ve provided a few writing prompts for you, if you need some inspiration. But please don't send exactly what we have suggested. The most important thing is that the email comes from you, in your words, to urge Chairman Wheeler to protect real net neutrality.
Please, take a few minutes to write and send your thoughts to the FCC. This may be our best way to protect the future of an open internet." CLICK HERE
These public comments matter. The FCC is listening to what the public has to say, and a strong public outcry could force the FCC to abandon this flawed plan. More than 100,000 people have submitted public comments, overwhelmingly in opposition to the FCC's telecom-friendly plan.
Another petition plays on the fact that although an overwhelming number of comments opposing the proposed Pay to Play rule and in favor of protecting an open internet with real net neutrality have been posted at the FCC website, chairman Tom Wheeler has made no effort to schedule public hearings.
Before Chairman Wheeler considers passing rules which could end net neutrality and open the door for pay-to-play lanes, he should face the American public.
Even US Senators Bernie Sanders, Al Franken and Cory Booker are taking action! "At a time of increased corporate control over the media and the flow of information, it is absolutely imperative that the Internet remain on a level playing field, open to all.
"Whether you are a major news corporation or a one-person blogging operation, whether you are Walmart or a family-owned small business, there should be net neutrality for all.
"Right now the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is considering a rule that would allow large Internet providers like Verizon and Comcast to charge businesses for faster access to Internet users. This rule would give large corporations yet another advantage over small Internet companies and average citizens. These types of pay-to-play agreements will end the democratic foundation of the Internet, and strike a major blow against the free flow of ideas.
"Join me and my colleague Senator Al Franken in protecting net neutrality so that big telecom can’t pick winners and losers online.
"Our free and open Internet has made invaluable contributions to democracy here in the United States and around the world. We must not allow the FCC to let big corporations to turn a profit by putting a fee on the free flow of ideas." http://save-the-internet.com/sanders
For those who cannot submit their comment directly to the FCC, you can still make your voice heard by signing one of these international petitions. Many continued thanks to Mary S, who brought them to my attention:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/internet_apocalypse_loc/
https://www.change.org/petitions/tom-wheeler-save-net-neutrality
Friends and sisters, this is our last chance to do out part to preserve Net Neutrality and ensure a level playing field for all of us on the internet. Let's prove that Women Weave the Web and flip the script on Net Neutrality! Take a few minutes today to make your own contribution and take a stand alongside the many activists, elected officials, and concerned individuals who are fighting for our right to a free, open and fair internet.
IMPORTANT ADDITION: LeanaM has informed me that the Women Weave the Web campaign has a partner in Access who is also fighting for Net Neutrality. Anyone in the world can submit their comment using the form at this link: ACCESS: FCC, Protect Net Neutrality Remember the deadline is July 15, so submit your comment today!!
