Analysis of broadband affordability deemed “extraneous” by FCC chair.
The Federal Communications Commission is ditching Biden-era standards for measuring progress toward the goal of universal broadband deployment.
The changes will make it easier for the FCC to give the broadband industry a passing grade in an annual progress report. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr’s proposal would give the industry a thumbs-up even if it falls short of 100 percent deployment, eliminate a long-term goal of gigabit broadband speeds, and abandon a new effort to track the affordability of broadband.
Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act requires the FCC to determine whether broadband is being deployed “on a reasonable and timely basis” to all Americans. If the answer is no, the US law says the FCC must “take immediate action to accelerate deployment of such capability by removing barriers to infrastructure investment and by promoting competition in the telecommunications market.”
This screws over Trump supporters primarily, so go right ahead.
Dumb take. When the Trump supporters can’t get good internet speeds from their local broadband infrastructure thanks to crap like this, they turn to Starlink, prop up fascist Elmo, and to boot they have it reinforced to them once again that the ‘government is useless, only the Free Market ©® can provide good quality services’.
Why shouldn’t they turn to Starlink if it’s better than their local ISPs? If it offers better service I’d use it too. Objectively, Starlink is pretty great. If local ISPs don’t invest in their infrastructure they deserve to lose customers. I don’t understand your take at all. If you don’t think the folks on the boards of those ISPs aren’t just as evil as Musk you’re not paying attention.
It’s only better if the ISPs don’t use the money the government gave them to do the thing they said they would do. Which is literally what this article is about, or have you already forgotten?
Starlink is only ‘better’ (in some cases, certainly isn’t better in all nor at all times as its speed is highly variable), because your US cable and ISP giants have lobbied for decades to remove any oversight the FCC may exert on them - up to and including banning local communities from building their own networks, and ensuring that they have more or less monopoly control in many rural markets.
The only way to fix this is with the hammer of the FCC regulation. The ‘free market’ cannot fix a monopoly.
So when you laugh at your rural citizenry getting shafted by FCC policy changes that will benefit nobody but the large ISPs & cable companies, because you’re in a city and have lots of optiond with the competition that high-density living affords, you’re shooting your own regulatory powers in the foot for the sake of spite.
This is all setting aside of course than a huge proportion of rural Americans are not MAGA.
So yeah that’s why it’s a crappy take.
The difference is Musk: 1. Actively funded and orchestrated fascism, ruthlessly cutting government services such that an estimated 14 million people (including 4.5 million children under 5) will die in the next five years due to USAID cuts alone, 2. Is continuing to fund and orchestrate fascism in the form of his new political party, and, 3. Is a Nazi.
So, yeah, fuck Musk and fuck Starlink. I don’t care how great the product is if it funds Musk’s fascism. (And yes, the majority of his wealth comes from Starlink and Tesla.)
also it will be more expensive in the long run.
Say what you will about Musk, and he is an irredeemable piece of trash, but at least he’s open about it. I’d much rather have my Nazis out in the open for the world to see. The CEOs of mega corps/elites are the real enemy, which Musk is one.
I want good things, and this is a bad thing that hurts stupid people more
That doesn’t make it a good thing
I never said I’m happy about this, but leopards eating faces is the only thing keeping me sane.
I want to say “fair enough”, but they’re trying to do a genocide
I kinda think you might have to keep yourself sane by getting involved in the resistance. Phone bank for progressive victory, get involved with your local DSA… Or something
Do what you can, but do enough that you won’t feel ashamed when children ask about it. It will make you feel better today too