Cable Companies to Offer $9.95 Broadband for Poor Homes

cj3waker said:
such bullshit. Im sick of my taxes subsidizing others. I have to pay $40 a month for broadband, and now my taxes are making up the difference so others can get it for $10. Wake the F up
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I'm sick of subsidizing your water, roads, health insurance, public parks, mass transit, and so forth. If you promise to never leave your home, ever, so that you do not use anything else that is also available to the public and paid for in taxes... I'll personally reimburse you for your subsidy that you pay on broadband. (Which is zero, btw.)

Fucking self centered asshole...
 
cj3waker said:
such bullshit. Im sick of my taxes subsidizing others. I have to pay $40 a month for broadband, and now my taxes are making up the difference so others can get it for $10. Wake the F up
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LeninGHOLA was being sarcastic, but here we have people who actually think this way. Wow.

LeninGHOLA said:
There is no such thing as an extenuating circumstance. If you are poor, it is because you hate Jesus and hate working. I think anyone who makes less than $40k a year should pay 100% in taxes. All poor people are freeloading scum.
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techrat said:
I'm sick of subsidizing your water, roads, health insurance, public parks, mass transit, and so forth. If you promise to never leave your home, ever, so that you do not use anything else that is also available to the public and paid for in taxes... I'll personally reimburse you for your subsidy that you pay on broadband. (Which is zero, btw.)

Fucking self centered asshole...
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you dont, because we pay (not that it is because the system needs reformed) but "equal" taxes. You dont pay a $500 road fee + taxes so that I can drive on the same road for $100 a month +taxes. Broadband is not a right, if you want it pay for it on your own. People have a right to access broadband, they dont have a right to free (or cheaper) broadband on someone elses dime
 
If it was purely the cable companies doing it themselves** I have no problem with it. But the fact that is a FCC sponsored program, being paid by taxpayer dollars, is bull. Not that it is the only thing like it, we subsidize nearly everything, and I think its absolute shit.

**if an ISP was to do the program on their own, prices for the rest (including me) would go up. So if the ISP is unwilling to make the contribution, why the hell should I be required to?
 
u.s already invested 3 billions in broadband fiber optic expansions in the midwest and another 400 millions on low income families' broadband equal opportunities expansions
 
I understand that there are many people out there that are struggling just to survive, and that there are freeloaders that take advantage of the programs that are created to help the real struggling people, so its a tightrope we have to walk, trying to avoid going too far in these cases but also trying to find out what actually works.

My issue though is that this wont solve the problem or bring these people out of poverty and into the middle class or beyond. Cheap internet and cheap computers can help people stay connected and sure it will help them make resume's , etc, etc. But if jobs are hard to come by, all the internet or pcs in the world wont get you a job or something better. Plus, if you are trying to get by and you really need a job, you don't need a pc or even a formal resume to get a job. I know it sucks, but Ive seen job postings for fast food, grocery stores, retail, etc. So while a pc and internet connection are helpful tools, they aren't the only option and they are not the only way to find work.

Ultimately, this is a band aid, something that people will appreciate and maybe even make them feel like everything is going to turn around, but will amount to nothing if the economy doesn't recover and jobs remain few and far between. To me, feeling good about giving those in poverty these deals just amounts to making yourself feel good. Its not going to solve the problems we have, its only a helpful tool.


Finally, I'm in a low income bracket and while Im above the poverty line, I'm certainly not what you'd call 'middle class' . I struggle with bills too and a couple emergency needs are all it would take to put me in serious risk (injury, car repair). I pay for internet access and have built my own pcs over the years. I could certainly use a break on internet fees ($10 vs $50-60), but for some reason Im not considered important enough to get help. Now first of all, I wouldn't want the government subsidizing this stuff for me, but if I was ok with it, I wouldn't understand why only one group deserves the opportunity over another (especially since my tax dollars are involved).
 
Where is the citation that it was being sponsored by tax dollars? The FCC said it wasn't, but they could be bending the truth.
 
LeninGHOLA said:
Where is the citation that it was being sponsored by tax dollars? The FCC said it wasn't, but they could be bending the truth.
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I had assumed that this program was getting money from the fcc program to get broadband into more homes. They sure did ask for a big chunk of money to make it happen, so I would think at least some of the money is involved with this.

if that can be clarified, that would be helpful
 
trooper11 said:
I had assumed that this program was getting money from the fcc program to get broadband into more homes. They sure did ask for a big chunk of money to make it happen, so I would think at least some of the money is involved with this.

if that can be clarified, that would be helpful
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I was under the impression that Comcast started doing this in order to get the FCC off their backs about the NBC aquisition, then FCC asked other ISP's to follow suit, and they did? I'll have to read more.
 
Greene420 said:
Yeah, they WILL NOT have a dedicated gming video card, thats pretty obvious since the whole PC costs as much as a good GPU card :D

I have $14.95 DSL in my area from AT&T for their lowest tier, and I have paid comcast numerous times $19.99 a month for their 16Mbps service (over 1MB/a sec download) at $24 after tax. You have to call the comcast guys over and over, find the right one, and you can ALWAYS get $19.99 or $24.99 cable internet (normal cable internet, not fiber).

I personally can use this $9.95, but I bet its going to be SUPER slow and restricted. I don't see how I could not qualify.... I meet all low standards of living :D

EDIT: And hey< I read the article.. comcast ALREADY DOES the $9.99 internet!

Major key notes:
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You could build a gaming rig for $250. Albeit not top of the line but gaming capable none-the-less.
 
Hamish Campbell said:
Assuming your anecdote isn't embellished at all, wouldn't the fact that multiple generations of the same family not being able to rise above poverty tell you something about the larger socioeconomic system at work?
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Well firstly why do you assume they were unable to rise about it as opposed to their choosing to lay back and live off the taxpayer?

I'm not talking about some kids raised in an inner city ghetto but instead a group whose second generation lived 30 feet from my back door, went to the same school as I did and sat next to me in my classes and we ate together at lunch.
 
I love all the angry people here who are thinking poor people are getting gaming rigs and 20Mbps internet for super cheap. But if you are really mad, you can get broadband DSL for $15 a month or less and OMG, go to Best Buy and buy a laptop for $250. Netbooks are even cheaper.
 
Emission said:
You could build a gaming rig for $250. Albeit not top of the line but gaming capable none-the-less.
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I want you to piece together one with Windows, monitor, keyboard and mouse for that price. We will see just how game capable it is.
 
LeninGHOLA said:
There is no such thing as an extenuating circumstance. If you are poor, it is because you hate Jesus and hate working. I think anyone who makes less than $40k a year should pay 100% in taxes. All poor people are freeloading scum.
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By your post one can infer that scum also come in every income bracket, dad. Mom said so.
 
Staples said:
I want you to piece together one with Windows, monitor, keyboard and mouse for that price. We will see just how game capable it is.
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Yep, Me too. And I don't as a rule play too many games anymore, I'm mostly gamed out these days, forums are way more interesting. :D
 
LeninGHOLA said:
Well, do you think people are going to go have a baby because they want cheap internet? Also, if the poor people stop having babies, our population will decline, because rich people aren't.
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Populations cannot always increase. We are getting to that point. It is bad management to continue going forward at this point thinking we will always be expanding.
 
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