Just what is Net Neutrality and why does it matter?
Net neutrality is used to describe regulations that force internet service providers to ‘treat all websites the same.’ While this sounds nice and fair and cozy, the reality is that not all websites are created equal. Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming sites require a faster bandwidth than Jane Feminist’s anti-man rants or John Millennial’s ruminations on what decorations look best in a bushy hipster beard. Under competitive, free market rules, ISPs who discriminate against fast websites by throttling their speeds will lose customers, because no one likes waiting for their videos to buffer.
With President Trump’s pick of Ajit Pai to serve as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, overseeing regulation of US airwaves and internet, the concept of net neutrality—an Obama pet project—faces its demise.
Former President Obama originally appointed the commissioner, and his appointment was extended for another five-year term under President Trump. Pai is on record saying he would take a “weed whacker” to FCC regulations, calling net neutrality “a solution that wouldn’t work for a problem that didn’t exist.”
The dirty little secret about net neutrality is that—like everything else the Left is behind—it’s all about control. While it claims that it would allow for all voices to be heard, there’s nothing to stop the government from making exceptions here or there for ‘important’ things. As far back as 2006, Andy Kessler pointed out that “You can already smell the mandates and loopholes” inherent in it because that’s what government does. As with every single other issue, the Left wants the government to decide what’s important and what should be heard—with their input, of course.
Ajit Pai, on the other hand, wants to see the government take its fingers out of the internet pie, and allow for the free market to work its magic. With a Republican majority on the five-member FCC panel, the chances are good that net neutrality—and several other Obama-era rules for the communications industry—will go the way of the dial-up modem.
