The Benton Communications-Related Headline for Wednesday, May 17, 2006 stated, “The public now has a choice. It can live in self-ignorance, or it can fight for an open-society.” (Jonathan Turley, George Washington University.) That’s rather blunt talk about one of our favorite themes – Our Cyberspace. Even though the focus for this blog has been Our Cyberplace – Petaluma, what happens in Cyberspace impacts our community’s ability to make greater use of computer technology and telecommunications in our schools, businesses, hospitals, government center, and non-profit organizations. This quote was in reference to the current debate in the Congress concerning legislation pertaining to “Net Neutrality.” Congressional members and the committees they serve on are having their differences over pending legislation. Once again, we are facing a dilemma.

Back to our trusty dictionary to look up dilemma (n) – (1) a situation in which somebody must choose one of two or more unsatisfactory alternatives. (2) in logic, a form of reasoning that, though valid, leads to two undesirable alternatives.

Network neutrality refers to the concern that Bell and cable operators could charge Internet companies for preferential treatment in their delivery of high-speed bits, a concern that has become a prime worry in the technology industry. Those groups that prefer legislation that will preserve the unfettered high-speed currently available on the Internet vs. the fear that the companies providing this service will end up acting as Internet gatekeepers.

The San Jose Mercury News stated that, if Congress doesn’t adopt Net Neutrality rules, the results “would be disastrous for Internet users, for Internet companies and for innovation itself.” There is more – “The choice facing lawmakers is stark: keep the Internet as a decentralized network that no single company controls and where all users and all Web sites are treated equally; or hand control over it to an oligopoly of cable and telephone companies.” Thus the dilemma.

We could fill page after page with quotes and support for both sides of the issue. Our purpose, however, is to make sure that you – our readers – are aware of this debate and encourage you to use ICT “tools” to become more informed. One quick way is to simply enter net neutrality in a search engine. Also check out the National Journal’s Insider Update. http://njtelecomupdate.com/ and http://www.savetheinternet.com/blog/