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Protecting the First Amendment and the Verizon fiasco.

« H E Eternal Hope :: email
posted Tuesday, 2 October 2007

Verizon had egg all over their face when they tried to stop pro-choice groups from using their text-messaging service. Now, they blame an overzealous employee for their gaffe. But it is important for Congress to pass laws that protect our rights to free speech over electronic communications. In the past, Congresses have passed common carrier laws that required phone companies to respect free speech over their phone lines. Now, they must pass similar laws for text messaging services as well.

And I would go even farther than this -- I suggest that Congress make Net Neutrality the law of the land, so that Internet providers do not censor content based on political affiliation. Already, countries like Burma and China are restricting access by their citizens to the Internet. And the Soviet Union used to do the same; they went to the point where people who wanted a Xerox machine had to get a license from the government.

The concept, as discussed in the editorial, is simple -- freedom of speech and expression should not be left up to individuals. Instead, it should be protected by the government under the powers granted it by the First Amendment. For too long, our corporations have had special rights in this country, and the Verizon gaffe was one such instance of them exercising special rights that none of us have.

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