Hysteria and 'Net Neutrality'

Here are a few things that everyone who is interested in forming a thoughtful view on whole issue of so-called “Net Neutrality” should keep in mind.

First, the ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius advocated on behalf of an idea that has since become enshrined in a doctrine that his followers recognize as “the Rectification of Names.”  To put the point simply, Confucius realized that in order to discern reality for what it is, we must call things for what they are. In order to resolve problems, we must affix to them accurate labels.

Confucian wisdom couldn’t be more pertinent to the issue at hand, for insofar as it is used to refer to the position for which the Obama administration’s has become the popular face, the term “Net Neutrality” is about as inaccurate and misleading a label as any demagogue can conjure.

An eminently and literally more accurate label is that of “Government-Control” of the internet.

In other words, the conflict over this issue is not, as the media would have us think, a conflict between the champions of Big Telecom, on the one hand, and, on the other, the champions of a free internet to which all have equal access. Rather, the conflict is between those who favor a government monopoly over the internet and those who oppose this monopoly.


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