The FCC's Guide to Losing Net Neutrality Without Really Trying

[Joanne98]

Ever have to negotiate a contract or try to sell a used car?

Would you start the give-and-take by naming the lowest price you're willing to accept and then try to get a better deal?

Of course not. Yet somehow, that's the exact "strategy" the Obama administration seems intent on pursuing -- and not just on tax cuts for the richest Americans.

The Washington Post's Greg Sargent described this pathology among Democrats in a post last week:

The problem isn't that Dems aren't capable of winning an argument. It's that they don't think they're capable of winning a protracted political standoff, even on an issue where the public is on their side, once Republicans start going on the attack. They seem to set their goal early on at salvaging a compromise, rather than going for the win. As a result, they tend to telegraph weakness at the outset, sending a clear message that they'll essentially give Republicans what they want as long as they can figure out a way to call it a compromise.
I don't know if such rampant spinelessness is genetic or contagious, but substitute "big phone and cable companies" for "Republicans" in the previous paragraph, and you've nailed the Federal Communications Commission's approach to the Net Neutrality debate.

Over the past year, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski has managed to take the administration's top tech priority - and Obama's promise to "take a back seat to no one" on the issue - and driven it into a ditch.

Instead of staking out a strong position and forcing powerful companies like AT&T and Comcast to come to the table for a compromise, Genachowski has been negotiating against himself, backpedaling from his backpedaling, and ultimately proposing toothless rules that look nothing like real Net Neutrality.

Yet now Genachowski expects the millions of Americans who have spoken out for Net Neutrality to buy this lemon when the FCC meets to vote on his rules on Dec. 21.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/craig-aaron/the-fccs-guide-to-losing_b_795061.html

[myrna minx]

1. I think I'm going to go back to bed for the weekend.

What an awful week. :-(

[snappyturtle]

3. Me too. It has been an awful week. I feel so badly today in contrast

to the elation I felt on inauguration day.

[myrna minx]

6. Two years ago i was elated and now I'm horrified and disgusted.

:-(

[NorthCarolina]

2. It's a tough task to 'appear' to be working in the best interests of the people, while

secretly working to benefit Corporate interests.

[snappyturtle]

4. How about:

It's deceitful to 'appear' to be working in the best interest of the people, while
secretly working to benefit Corporate interests.

[NorthCarolina]

5. Well, it is deceitful no doubt,

but the magic of conservative politics is to take policy that is detrimental to the public, but beneficial to the uber-rich, and make it seem as though it is designed to benefit 'all Americans'.

Prime example is the estate tax. When the GOP wanted to cut it, their word guru did studies and determined that there would be push back from the voters in cutting the "estate" tax, because the word "estate" is something that most immediately associate with the wealthy. Not many middle class voters have an "estate" to pass on to their kin. But change the word "estate" to "DEATH", and now it's the "DEATH tax", and well...everyone is gonna die right?