Move Along, Moveon.org, Net Neutrality Still Bad Idea

This past Tuesday, June 5, the Maine state Senate passed a resolution, not a bill, that calls for a report to be made regarding Net Neutrality.

In a press release from Senator Ethan Strimling, sponsor of the bill, he states

“This is an important step forward in protecting consumers from Net discrimination and preventing providers from regulating content on the Web. I’m very proud of the bipartisan support this bill has received.”

The bill, LD 1675, is in the House and is expected to be up for a vote tonight. The resolution ultimately does two things: First, it doesn’t change regulations, it simply wants the actions of the FCC watched and a report made. Second, it states that Net Neutrality is under federal jurisdiction and not state jurisdiction. This shows that the state has no business regulating the pipes of the internet.

In a previous blog post regarding Net Neutrality, Arpan Sura makes the claim that

network neutrality legislation would give the federal government massive and unprecedented power over the Internet

That is the last thing we want! By giving the federal government the power to tell us what internet provider we can use and how much it is going to cost us, that seems like an infringement upon our First Amendment rights as Americans. Net Neutrality comes back to the principle of free markets. We do not need Washington telling us how to check our email and communicate with friends and family.

Moveon.org this is not a strategical win nor a tactical one. This is simply a resolution, not a bill, that accomplished nothing.