Why U.S. Broadband Service Is So Awful

[cleathco]

(whine) "I live in the country, 100 miles from anyone, and I can only get dialup and it is slow"

these idiots need to get a clue. I am reminded of japan, where someone made hotel sleep cubicles that were reminiscent of a morgue room.

like others said, our population density and geographic size is nothing like those other countries.
add to that the massive costs in burying cable, getting right of ways and so on.
it becomes very unfeasible.
That is why we are stuck with our current telco and cable monopoly structures.

Problem is, I live on the highway between two metropolitan areas. Avenue Broadband actually tore up my front yard (without notification) to drop fiber optic cable between the two towns. I bit my tongue (they destroyed my wifes flower garden to drop the line) and simply called after the installation to see if they would offer service to me. Answer was no. I asked when would service be available, since their cable is sitting in my front yard. Their answer? They have no plans to service my area in the forseeable future.

I wouldn't have a problem with satellite internet, and I actually like my 3G internet now that there's no cap on it. My problem is that you have companies that run the line where ever they want, without even telling you they were going to install it, but when it comes time to deliver some service, nope, can't do it.

Oh, and I called a year after they ran their cable to try again. It took them two weeks to get back to me, with once again, no service in the forseeable future. I'm tempted to plant my mailbox where their fiber is and "accedentally" cut it with a spade.

 

[TwistedAegis]

The ends don't justify the means here. We can't undermine the free market just so we can all have faster internet. I don't agree with forcing companies to sell THEIR infrastructure.

So yes, we need faster internet, but there are better ways to go about doing it that don't involve the government. They're already too involved in, well, everything.

So you mean that the gov't providing right of ways and public funds in order for these companies to build out their infrastructure means they can then give the shaft back to the public? No thanks.

 

[kinein]

Used to be, I thought the USA was the most technologically advanced nation in the world. Korea and Japan and parts of Europe do have superior internet speeds. The commercial realization won't happen at once all over the U.S. only in bits and parts when there is a good enough reason for broadband companies.

 

[Ibanezfoo]

Problem is, I live on the highway between two metropolitan areas. Avenue Broadband actually tore up my front yard (without notification) to drop fiber optic cable between the two towns. I bit my tongue (they destroyed my wifes flower garden to drop the line) and simply called after the installation to see if they would offer service to me. Answer was no. I asked when would service be available, since their cable is sitting in my front yard. Their answer? They have no plans to service my area in the forseeable future.

I wouldn't have a problem with satellite internet, and I actually like my 3G internet now that there's no cap on it. My problem is that you have companies that run the line where ever they want, without even telling you they were going to install it, but when it comes time to deliver some service, nope, can't do it.

Oh, and I called a year after they ran their cable to try again. It took them two weeks to get back to me, with once again, no service in the forseeable future. I'm tempted to plant my mailbox where their fiber is and "accedentally" cut it with a spade.

Is this on property you own? Are you in the U.S.? I can't see something like that happening around here.... They had to kiss my ass just to trim some trees in my backyard to clear a power line or whatever they were doing....

 

[TechLarry]

Lobbyists. Ban them.

 

[cleathco]

Is this on property you own? Are you in the U.S.? I can't see something like that happening around here.... They had to kiss my ass just to trim some trees in my backyard to clear a power line or whatever they were doing....

Yea, property I own, in the US. I went to the county about it, they claimed it was a utility line, and I couldn't do squat.

 

[Zarathustra[H]]

As much as I would LOVE faster internet (although I have fios and it's not THAT slow), I have a problem with this :

The ends don't justify the means here. We can't undermine the free market just so we can all have faster internet. I don't agree with forcing companies to sell THEIR infrastructure.

Now, if a company owns the infrastructure and wants to sell it, then by all means, go for it. But we don't need the government telling companies what they MUST do.

Also, many communities have opted to create their own networks which has worked out pretty well for them.

So yes, we need faster internet, but there are better ways to go about doing it that don't involve the government. They're already too involved in, well, everything.

Even a free market is not so free that it can allow monopolies. A underlying tenet of a functioning free market is that there exists competition. if competition ceases to exist, then we no longer have a free market. This is what has happened in much of the telecom industry. There may be many providers, but most localities have only one - if even that - broadband provider.

We already have laws on the books governing monopolies. These could be applied today to break up the monopolies and open up competition in all markets just like what happened to Ma Bell, but the problem is that the telecommunications industry makes too many political donations, so they pretty much own the politicias who would need to make this decision. Thus is the beauty of the "Citizens United" decision. It single handledly sold out our politics to those who have lots of money, and made the system even more corrupt than it already was.

 

[Zepher]

I am with Cox in Las Vegas NV. I am paying about $45/mo for 10 Mb down/768 Kb up, with a 200 MB combined down/up cap.

Cox here in Hampton Roads, $40/mo 30Mb down, 2Mb up. Unlimited. It's $40 since we have phone and cable and I asked for discounts. Normal price is $54 for the plan if you have only cable and internet.

 

[Bootleg Usher]

Lobbyists. Ban them.

Absolutely. Someone getting more of a say because they have the cash undermines the whole system.

 

[Methadras]

It's too bad the government is so far gone because even though I'm a conservative I'm in favor of a REAL infrastructure bill or situation to get it done. That's what our tax dollars are supposed to pay for anyways.

And I mean just for that. No pork. No bailouts. No union pay offs. None of the rest of the BS we've gotten over too many years.

The country is several decades overdue to have a serious infrastructure situation dealt with. Pick your poison: Bridges, electric, utility.

I'd say the first should be a revamping of the electrical grid first. It's 100 years old and needs a real overhaul. With new tech coming out that will require more capacity, the current system won't be able to handle it. That is where I would start and other things will flow from that.

 

[panhead]

And I mean just for that. No pork. No bailouts. No union pay offs. None of the rest of the BS we've gotten over too many years.

The country is several decades overdue to have a serious infrastructure situation dealt with. Pick your poison: Bridges, electric, utility.

Especially all the money we waste on defense. Who is the government so afraid of that we spend more than the next 15 biggest spending countries combined

Just as the Soviet Union fell trying to keep up with our arms race during the 80s, the current defense spend will lead to the US downfall

 

[Methadras]

Absolutely. Someone getting more of a say because they have the cash undermines the whole system.

No it doesn't and the system of lobbying has been going on for millenia. Until cash stops equaling free speech, you are just bloviating with meaningless platitudes. Lobbying is the life blood of representation of all kinds. If you oppose one type of lobbying, you are more than free to get up from the sidelines and gather enough like minded people and lobby your interests. Put your money where your mouth is. If lobbyists can do that in Washington, so can anyone else. There is no magic to it and it won't go away.

 

[FrgMstr]

25Mb Up and Down here for like $70 a month. And is works....

 

[qdemn7]

You could move to where the service is, or pay for it yourself to be installed where you currently reside. Why should *I* have to pay for your ass to have internet way out in the sticks? I live in a place where DSL, cable, and fiber is all available and they constantly compete to get business.

Not sure why people always think they are entitled to things these days... Should probably spend more time working and earning what you want rather than bitching about you don't have something..... don't you think?

No I fucking don't think so. Not one iota. I don't agree with you AT ALL.

Access to the 'Net is getting to be just like electricity. You can't live if you don't have it. One day, we'll realize that, just like the rest of the civilized world already has.

It might have been fine 90 years ago to live by coal oil lamps instead of electricity, but not today. Government HAD to step in to electrify America because business was NOT doing it. The Free Market is NOT the solution to every problem.

And before you start that crap about "the sticks", what if those in "the sticks" tell YOU, "Hey, you want to EAT, why don't you move to where the food is?"

I'm tired of hearing only "ME, ME, ME, MY, MY, MY, my taxes, my this, my that... and as long as I have mine, then screw everyone else" from Free Marketeers.

Hey, you want to live with minimal or no government? I hear Somalia is available.

And maybe if we weren't try to nation build everywhere else, we could do some REAL nation building here at home. Like the 'net, roads, bridges, buildings that sort of thing.

 

[sweloop64]

The ends don't justify the means here. We can't undermine the free market just so we can all have faster internet. I don't agree with forcing companies to sell THEIR infrastructure.

The problem with a broken free market is that there isn't any options, the local telephone company that owns practically all the wires in the area and uses some pretty shady tactics to see to it that this is how it shall remain...
And about those wires, in most cases, the local government was probably involved to so extent(tax reliefs, forced land buys, cheap labor, taking bribes etc) in the original establishment of those, as this was an important infrastructure needed, with or without the collaboration of the company that eventually became the operator of those...
The "free market should apply, the government should stay the hell out" is often used by those who have no interest what so ever of a free market, as they are(often) in a monopoly/cartel situation. And when that situation already is, free market can (almost)never work.

Here in Sweden, the old monopoly phone company(owned by the government) was forced(by the regulating body) to give access(wire/data) to "their" infrastructure(paid with taxpayers money) to 3rd party operators, not for free of course. In the beginning the fee 3rd party operators had to pay the monopoly company was actually the same as the monopoly company billed it's own customers making it virtually impossible to compete. As the carrier part of monopoly phone company was kind of regarded as a subsidiary, the regulating body ordered the monopoly company that 3rd party operators should pay what the monopoly company internally pays the carrier subsidiary(not sure they are there yet).
But now when they sort of had no choice to give access they came up with the "there is no room for 3rd party equipment(dsl-hw) in the phonestations", as they had already preoccupied all(atleast that is what they said) space in case a customer would ever want dsl...
Eventually they have, unwillingly, accepted(or not) the new game rules...

As I haven't had anything to do with any phone company(wire) for the past 10 years or so, I'm not up-to-date on this issue...

If I remember stuff incorrectly, feel free to correct me =)

 

[Blown 89]

Yea, property I own, in the US. I went to the county about it, they claimed it was a utility line, and I couldn't do squat.

Something tells me we're not hearing the whole story here because they can't legally do that for planned service work.

 

[Pringals]

I don't have much time to post my 2cents, but I believe this picture sums it up some of it ...
http://www.pokeruniversity.org/images/crazy-telephone-lines.jpg

Perhaps this evening I'll have time to revisit and post my thoughts. I worked in the industry from 95-2002, when most of the upgrades were being designed and thrown up. When the company I was working for got contracted by a CATV or telecoms to upgrade their systems, the didn't have the foresight into the future that broadband would be in so much demand. Our design were limited to about a "20% take rate" meaning the providers only expected 20% of the given area to request or need the broadband. Everything there-after was quick throw up patch work so Joe Smo can have his Internet.

... Crap, out of time. be back later...

 

[cageymaru]

But being spread out has EVERYTHING to do with whether or not ISP's invest in infrastructure. There is less incentive to keep infrastructure up-to-par in less dense areas. You'll typically find that ISPs that are located in primarily large population areas have better broadband plans than ISPs that also reach out to less populated areas. If you've got to upgrade 3 miles of cabling to give 10 customers better quality service, there is not much motivation to do so.

The only catch is that the highest population of Americans lives in those areas.

 

[cleathco]

Something tells me we're not hearing the whole story here because they can't legally do that for planned service work.

In that case, I don't have the whole story either, as it was literally they came in, dug up the property, and dropped the line. I dunno if they pulled the old "posted at the court house" thing or not. All I know is that there was no notification that the work was being done on my property.

 

[nutzo]

Yea, property I own, in the US. I went to the county about it, they claimed it was a utility line, and I couldn't do squat.

Only way they could do this is if you had a utility easement on your land (it would have been in your documents when you bought the house).
It's not that unusual, the association that maintains the greenbelts in my neighborhood has a narrow easement on my side yard for water pipes for the sprinklers. It’s just grass, and since I know there’s always the possibility they might have to replace a pipe, I probably will never build a planter over it.

 

[cageymaru]

To satisfy my curiosity what is the normal speed you guys get in america and what about the amount Gb is included in a moth? cuz i usually have 20Mb/s down and 3Mb/s up here in Romania and i pay 10 bucks a month for unlimited amount of data

In North Carolina, USA I get 512KB down and 200KB up. It only costs me $100 per month.

 

[trooper11]

This debate is one that has been going for a long time.

Lets assume it is a neccessity for everyone. Currently competition is not everywhere. As much as some of you talk about how locally there is not much choice, there are others that do have that choice. Im another one of those that has 3 choices (plus another two if you count cell phone internet service). This level of choice has developed over several years, but now Im quite impressed with the choices Ive got and the best part is that its resulted in prices coming down. Im not in a 'big' city (unless you consider knoxville, tn a big city lol) and its quite suprising to me to see new fiber being run all over the city from these various companies.

Even though I feel satisified with whats in my area, I know thats not the case everywhere. The question becomes whether government is neccesary in order to spread the internet wealth around so to speak. Competition does exist, its just that some feel its not reaching their area soon enough. I think its pretty obvious there is more then simply the greedy isps at work here. Every state has different reasons for the competition that does or does not exist locally. If the pace of the market is too slow for a majority of people, then i guess the only choice is more regulation to force that to happen sooner. that could be good or bad, regulation isnt a garuntee of positive change.

Also, even if ISP's own infrastucture thanks to the help of government grants (i.e. tax dollars), they do own them, so Im not going to hold it against them if the government offered them money to do it, nor am i anxious to allow the government to tell people what to do with it. All you can do is blame the government for giving out that money in the first place and deal with the reality of the situation.

If we are intent on making internet access a utility, we should own the infrastructure, then it would be up to us (the government) to keep up with it. Although its not like the government has done a great job keeping up with roads and other infrastructure, so who knows if itll be better.

Either way, this isnt going to be cheap, and with the need to improve all infrustructure like the electrical grid, roads, bridges, etc, I just dont think we can afford all of it right now. In fact, we unfortunately cant afford to do ANY of it right now. We really need to dig out of this hole in the economy and once we are paying off our debts, then we can talk about which infrustructure we should spend tax dollars on to bring up to date.

 

[ChairmanMiau]

I get 10 Mb/s down and 1 Mb/s up for $20. Sigh.

I get ~1Mb/s downstream and 480kb/s upstream for the equivalent of $31.78. The UK is a cruel joke.

 

[trooper11]

oh and im getting 8mb down/512kb up with knology for $30 a month right now

knology is currently laying new fiber and will be offering some serious speed boost here (12mb down / 2mb up and a plus service offering 25mb down / 5mb up). not sure on pricing yet, so we will see if its also competitive. at & t uverse is also here, but their pricing sucks.

 

[LittleMeEgo]

This article stinks of FCC propaganda. The US has a pretty good Internet infrastructure. And South Korea or Japan might have fast 'last mile' connections but I think we have a great national network with a vast array of online products and services. Don't buy into the FCC BS.

 

[ccmfreak2]

But being spread out has EVERYTHING to do with whether or not ISP's invest in infrastructure. There is less incentive to keep infrastructure up-to-par in less dense areas. You'll typically find that ISPs that are located in primarily large population areas have better broadband plans than ISPs that also reach out to less populated areas. If you've got to upgrade 3 miles of cabling to give 10 customers better quality service, there is not much motivation to do so.

The only catch is that the highest population of Americans lives in those areas.

I agree that this is an issue. Another issue is the direction by which broadband is going.

As a company, why would I want to spend millions into upgrading the infrastructure when we might begin broadcasting our broadband service wirelessly over the old tv analog spectrum in two or three years? Why upgrade all those lines for broadband when we are looking at doing away with them in the near future?

These are corporations. They never make quick decisions wisely, and are often looking to something bigger and better that consumers don't see right away. This is no excuse for crappy service, but there is more to this than evil greedy ISPs.

What if this issue is pushed up in Washington? How long will it take for the government to actually do something with this issue to accomplish anything? Where will technology be by that point in time? I find it humorous that people want government to do something quickly, efficiently, and (when it comes to technology) "up-to-date". (Anybody remember the 10-year IRS computer "upgrades?") By the time Washington actually passes a bill to do anything about this, the demands of the bill will likely be obsolete.

 

[cleathco]

Only way they could do this is if you had a utility easement on your land (it would have been in your documents when you bought the house).
It's not that unusual, the association that maintains the greenbelts in my neighborhood has a narrow easement on my side yard for water pipes for the sprinklers. It’s just grass, and since I know there’s always the possibility they might have to replace a pipe, I probably will never build a planter over it.

Hmm, I'd have to check my papers for the house, but I won't say that could or couldn't be the case. I don't remember seeing anything like that, but there was a LOT of paperwork on this house. It was a former rental, and had some heavy damage done to the drywall and windows by the previous tenants that were evicted, so we got it on a steal of a price (2 acres of land and the house for $10,000). The property is slightly devalued by having a large power plant directly across the highway from it, but still, a great price for the place. I remember a ton of paperwork and legal crap that I had my lawyer go through, so yea, there's a chance something like that is in there and I didn't catch it.

Still, common decency would be at least to send a letter saying on such and such date we're gonna be doing some work on this part of said property, or at least leave a note on the door, have someone swing by, SOMETHING.

 

[cageymaru]

This article stinks of FCC propaganda. The US has a pretty good Internet infrastructure. And South Korea or Japan might have fast 'last mile' connections but I think we have a great national network with a vast array of online products and services. Don't buy into the FCC BS.

American internet is horrible unless you live in a city or darn lucky. The road across from me is using dialup because the phone company (Sprint/Embarq/CenturyLink) won't replace the lines they laid in the 50's. And they have exclusive agreement so that nobody else can service our area. There is no Cable TV or internet in my area.


If you think American internet is so fabulous do this for me.

1. Add a 56k modem to your PC. Any secondhand store will have a USB one.
2. Now limit that modem to about 13k. That is the speed my neighbors get.
3. Surf the web to your favorite websites. Youtube, NY Times, CNN, Hulu, etc.
4. Report back your findings to us.

I tried to take an online college course 2 years ago before I got 512KB broadband. The first file my professor sent us had a 180mb attachment. I emailed him and explained that 13k dialup couldn't download it in a feasible amount of time. He told me to drive to the campus and get it from him.

I live 2 hours from the college campus, thus the reason I was taking it "online". I dropped the online courses. What's the point in trying to better yourself if you can't even get the homework?

 

[trooper11]

American internet is horrible unless you live in a city or darn lucky. The road across from me is using dialup because the phone company (Sprint/Embarq/CenturyLink) won't replace the lines they laid in the 50's. And they have exclusive agreement so that nobody else can service our area. There is no Cable TV or internet in my area.


If you think American internet is so fabulous do this for me.

1. Add a 56k modem to your PC. Any secondhand store will have a USB one.
2. Now limit that modem to about 13k. That is the speed my neighbors get.
3. Surf the web to your favorite websites. Youtube, NY Times, CNN, Hulu, etc.
4. Report back your findings to us.

I tried to take an online college course 2 years ago before I got 512KB broadband. The first file my professor sent us had a 180mb attachment. I emailed him and explained that 13k dialup couldn't download it in a feasible amount of time. He told me to drive to the campus and get it from him.

I live 2 hours from the college campus, thus the reason I was taking it "online". I dropped the online courses. What's the point in trying to better yourself if you can't even get the homework?

you made the point perfectly, internet access isnt horrible everywhere. its worst in mostly rual areas. so one of the big issues is covering those areas. if we all want to agree that tax dollars should be spent to cover those areas, then the government should simply build the infrastructure and then be responsible for its upkeep. if we cant agree to use tax dollars to do it, then as consumers we need to do what we can speaking with our dollars. I think its cell phone internet service that is the real answer here.

we dont need 25 down/5up everywhere, we just need the bare minimum for 'high speed' access for everyone, that could be something like 1 or 2mb down and 384kb or 512kb up. Thats plenty of speed for someone that needs it for online school or anything else you might deem 'neccesary' with high speed access. anything above that is luxury in my opinion. just getting everyone off dialup is the issue here.

if dsl/cable companies arent willing to take on the cost of making this happen, then cell phone companies could surely pick up the slack. we are now entering the LTE service era and its bringing huge speed boosts with it. If reception can be extended to these types of areas, then there woudlnt be any need to force the other isps to do anything.

 

[Blown 89]

In that case, I don't have the whole story either, as it was literally they came in, dug up the property, and dropped the line. I dunno if they pulled the old "posted at the court house" thing or not. All I know is that there was no notification that the work was being done on my property.

If that really was the case I would have been in my front yard with a shotgun in one hand and the phone calling the police in the other.

 

[Ibanezfoo]

No I fucking don't think so. Not one iota. I don't agree with you AT ALL.

Oh, so you ARE entitled to fast internet that *I* get to help pay for? So when I can I expect you at my house to do some manual labor to work it off?

Access to the 'Net is getting to be just like electricity. You can't live if you don't have it. One day, we'll realize that, just like the rest of the civilized world already has.

So where's this "civilized world" you speak of? Hint: make believe lands in your head don't count as what we like to call "reality".

It might have been fine 90 years ago to live by coal oil lamps instead of electricity, but not today. Government HAD to step in to electrify America because business was NOT doing it.

Business does things because they are NEEDED and they can PROFIT from it. We don't really need the government telling us what we need and then "forcing" people to do things.

The Free Market is NOT the solution to every problem.

I disagree

And before you start that crap about "the sticks", what if those in "the sticks" tell YOU, "Hey, you want to EAT, why don't you move to where the food is?"

Terrible analogy and completely nonsensical. Nice try though.

I'm tired of hearing only "ME, ME, ME, MY, MY, MY, my taxes, my this, my that... and as long as I have mine, then screw everyone else" from Free Marketeers.

If I work for something, it IS mine. How exactly are YOU entitled to it?

Hey, you want to live with minimal or no government? I hear Somalia is available.

I hear they also have faster internet than most of the U.S.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communications_in_Somalia

And maybe if we weren't try to nation build everywhere else, we could do some REAL nation building here at home. Like the 'net, roads, bridges, buildings that sort of thing.

If you want to pay for those things, be my guest. I'll decide how my work gets spent, thank you very much.

 

[Gmok Bonecrusha]

Is that why VZN refuses to wire my hometown with Fios? I live in fucking Boston, seed of the country, and I'm stuck with shitty ass Comcast.

Nah. It's Menino. VZ only wants to wire the affluent neighborhoods. He says you wire everyone or you just don't get into Boston. Hence Comcast.

Seeing that I live in Roxbury (keepin it real!)...Go Menino!

What is Comcast speeds anyway? 30/5 for the triple play default?

 

[Ibanezfoo]

Competition does exist, its just that some feel its not reaching their area soon enough.

Right. Why would a company spend 50 grand (or whatever it costs, I don't know) to run a line to your house and then get a measly 30 bucks a month from just a few people? If theres 1000 people ready to spend that it makes much more sense.

 

[TwistedAegis]

If you want to pay for those things, be my guest. I'll decide how my work gets spent, thank you very much.

Yeah you tell 'em! F' society, I can live on my own! I will allocate my own money to build interstate highways, soldiers to protect my borders, police and fire protection, ad naseum! Democracy or die! Wait, you voted in someone I don't like?! Revolution, this sucks!

 

[Ibanezfoo]

Yeah you tell 'em! F' society, I can live on my own! I will allocate my own money to build interstate highways, soldiers to protect my borders, police and fire protection, ad naseum! Democracy or die! Wait, you voted in someone I don't like?! Revolution, this sucks!

Sorry, tell me again how other people are entitled to what I've worked for?

 

[trooper11]

Yeah you tell 'em! F' society, I can live on my own! I will allocate my own money to build interstate highways, soldiers to protect my borders, police and fire protection, ad naseum! Democracy or die! Wait, you voted in someone I don't like?! Revolution, this sucks!

so your basically saying that if we dont want to pay for providing internet to every household in america, than we also dont want fire protection, border security, etc? its pretty much all or nothing with you then?

wow man, way to prove your point.


and what does that have to do with voting?

 

[-PK-]

To satisfy my curiosity what is the normal speed you guys get in america and what about the amount Gb is included in a moth? cuz i usually have 20Mb/s down and 3Mb/s up here in Romania and i pay 10 bucks a month for unlimited amount of data

I live less than a mile down the road of a high school with almost 2000 students and 2 miles from a small college.

Only one internet provider and my choices are:
A) $35/mo // 1.5 Mbps down / 384 Kbps up (designed to replace 56k for web browsing, cant watch any streaming video)
B) $55/mo // 4-8 Mbps down / 384Kbps to 2 Mbps up
C) $71/mo // "up to" 16 Mbps down / "up to" 4 Mbps up

Using B and my actual speed is: 6.5 Mbps / 2 Mbps


In this case, some competition would be great. I'm not living in the middle of no where, but I'm still stuck with one provider, their rules and their prices. And as you can see by their broad speed tiers they can get away with about any speed hindering they feel like.

 

[Dreaz]

It's no surprise the mistake came in 2002, during the reign of the fool in America.

 

[obs]

Yeah you tell 'em! F' society, I can live on my own! I will allocate my own money to build interstate highways, soldiers to protect my borders, police and fire protection, ad naseum! Democracy or die! Wait, you voted in someone I don't like?! Revolution, this sucks!

Pretty sure most people would be pleased is this was an accurate description of what government does.

 

[jiminator]

eh, there are always options. anyone with a view to the south can get satellite. may not like the prices. As for "broadband as a right" - well broadband is not essential for anything. if it is essential for your job then move to someplace that has it. if I was a farmer and I wanted a lot of land for crops I sure as hell would not look for it inside a city. Kids used to do fine with libraries and card catalogs. My suspicion is that the internet is really making a lot of "educated idiots".