Dear Newsmax Reader,
Next Thursday, January 14, is your last chance to send your message that you oppose the Obama Administration’s attempts to regulate the Internet. I am contacting you as one free citizen to another, to help you send that message.
Radical leftists such as Robert McChesney, an avowed Marxist who has said controlling the media is the first step toward bringing his socialist agenda to America, founded an organization called “Free Press” which is the principal advocate for regulating the Internet.
Founded in 2002, McChesney's Free Press seeks to transform the media landscape - on radio, television and the internet – one tactic being sweeping rules changes at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Changes that would dramatically decrease private ownership of the means of news and information delivery, with the federal government assuming an ever greater replacement role.
CLICK HERE TO SEND YOUR MESSAGE NOW
Over the past year, we have heard the radical left – not just in the Universities and Hollywood, but also in Congress and in the Obama Administration – calling for a return of the so-called “Fairness Doctrine” that is meant to shut down conservative talk radio, the only outlet many Americans have to hear an alternative viewpoint to the President's cheerleaders in the mainstream media.
But what if the President, in addition to quelling dissent on the airwaves, could also have his cronies begin taking control of the Internet as well?
Unfortunately, this is no longer an academic question. As you read this, the Federal Communications Commission is considering sweeping new regulations on something called, again ironically, “Network Neutrality.” As with the “Fairness Doctrine,” “Network Neutrality” is a code word that means something far more sinister – “Government Control.”
The irony, of course, is that their proposal wouldn’t make the internet more “neutral.” Far from it. It would regulate it like a big-government utility, taking away the very competitive forces that have made internet technologies the cutting-edge of innovation. Part and parcel of their proposal is a foray into content regulation which could effectively squash dissenting viewpoints.
When government regulates a business, that business must be cautious about criticizing the government. Just look at how the Obama Administration is choosing the CEO, and even the union ownership, of General Motors. When the government begins to take over an industry, that industry becomes in large part a servant to that government. Is this what we want with the internet?
CLICK HERE TO SEND YOUR MESSAGE NOW
Think strong-armed government tactics would not be employed? Keep in mind what the White House did over the summer, during the heart of the outpouring of citizen protest over health care reform proposals. They asked for their friends to report on any “fishy stories” or “misinformation” that they saw. Obama loyalists were asked to report stories critical of Obamacare to the White House directly, including any e-mail addresses and website links associated with the offending stories.
Now, the White House called the move benign, but quickly shut down the operation.
If you’re like me, this episode raised a serious red flag. Is the United States government really going to start tracking their critics by having loyal supporters report them to the government? Couple this gathering of e-mail addresses and dissenting websites with the increased control over the companies that manage our Internet accounts, and I shudder to think of what might happen.
So I ask you, please Click Here to voice your concern. You’ll be taken to the Institute for Liberty website, where we have made it easy for you to send you comments to the FCC. Please help us preserve liberty. Speak out now.
Thank you!
Yours in liberty,
Andrew Langer
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