[citation][nom]littlebomb[/nom]Republicans = Attack abortion rights Attack internet freedom Attack the right to organize unions Attack the right to sue corporations Fight for corporations to abuse the environment and it's workers Fight to lower taxes on people who never have to work again because of insane amounts of wealth Who's freedom are they fighting for? The common man's or corporation's that aren't human?[/citation]
Did you miss the biggest piece of legislation the government has passed in it's history? It effectively mandated that Americans whom are required to buy health insurance be required to buy a more expensive version (which may not necessarily be better for them) but as well expanded the number of people whom had to purchase it? Anyone see those "shrinking premiums" that were promised. Anyone notice how Wall Street watched the stocks of the major insurance companies sky rocket after the bill was signed into law?
Who did that help? The common man or the insurance company executives who haven't worked a real job in their life?
I can go on if you like, but I am sure you can see that both sides play that game. And don't give me the load of crap that one side is worse than another.
On topic: this is a very scary issue to talk about. On one hand, you have people talking about censoring the internet, metering the bandwidth provided to certain kinds of files, etc. On the other hand, you have consumers who are basically paying for people to whatever they want on the internet.
If I as a consumer only visit my e-mail, Tomshardware, and facebook, then it doesn't make sense for me to pay for internet that is intended for gamers, file sharers, and other power internet users. It would be cheaper for the average consumer to allow more intensive materials to cost more than less intensive, because the average internet user doesn't use extremely intensive applications.
It also makes sense that a site like Tomshardware would be outraged that this would be going on because they are likely power users (I personally am) and enjoy the common man paying for their right to game, file share, youtube, etc.
It goes beyond simple metering though. While some may cringe at the idea of an internet filter, it could be argued that an internet filter could block potentially harmful content from entering the computing eco-system. We could restrict information like "how to make a bomb" or "how to shoot an assault rifle" from common people so they have to consult an expert on these matters who can make decisions on whether it's safe to hand out such information.
Obviously, this is a very very very touchy subject. It's one that should be thought out immensely.
Furthermore, the current Net-neutrality rules are abysmally bad for everyone. The FCC did a terrible job with them. I wouldn't fund them either. I can't say it's for the same reason the Republicans are blocking this, but it's definitely a reason.