WGXC-90.7 FM
Radio News: Net neutrality, TPP, and Star Wars
Mar 02, 2015 11:02 pm
[caption id="" align="alignright" width="300"]
Emperor Palpatine, from Star Wars wiki.[/caption]
The opposition to net neutrality -- which was passed on a 3-2 party line vote Feb. 26 at the Federal Communications Commission -- reacted strangely to the news that there would be no fast lane for corporations who have more resources than the average consumer. Republican commissioner Ajit Pai choose to quote a character from "Star Wars" to illustrate his opinion. Did he choose the heroic Luke Skywalker, the swashbuckling Han Solo, or the thoughtful Obi-Wan Kenobi? No, he picked a quote from Emperor Palpatine: “Young fool, only now, at the end, do you understand.”
[audio mp3="http://newsroom.free103point9.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/DarthSidious_EmperorPalpatine_quotecitedbyFCCcommish_in_netneutralitydebate_20150303.mp3"][/audio]
That's from the end of "Return of the Jedi," just before Palpatine attempts to kill Luke Skywalker. A strange choice for a quote buttressing a political position. Evan Greer, campaigns director at Fight for the Future, retorted with his own adapted "Star Wars" quote: “What they didn’t know is that when they struck down the last rules we would come back more powerful than they could possibly imagine.” Verizon, the phone company unhappy with the idea of net neutrality, also had a strange response to the FCC's action last week. They released a press release in morse code, saying the ruling was rolling back the clock to 1934.
[audio mp3="http://newsroom.free103point9.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/JohnOliver_NetNeutrality_Verizon_morsecode_20150303.mp3"][/audio]
But just because multi-national corporations are tapping out dots and dashes, does not mean that the internet will be free forever. Next week, Congress will consider the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which may include jail terms for downloading TV shows. We can't say for sure, because the TPP is being secretly negotiated. The White House is claiming the trade agreement is, "the most progressive trade agreement the world has ever seen." Massachussetts Senator Elizabeth Warren disagrees, saying, "this enormous new treaty would tilt the playing field in the United States further in favor of big multinational corporations. Worse, it would undermine U.S. sovereignty." Fight for the Future, an open-Internet advocacy group, has criticized the proposed trade agreement as a plot that "would force SOPA-like Internet censorship on the world." So, if the TPP passes, perhaps this quote from Obi-Wan Kenobi in "Star Wars" might be appropriate.
[audio mp3="http://newsroom.free103point9.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/excerptfromStarWars_LukeObiWan_deathstardestroysAlderon_20150303.mp3"][/audio]
"I felt a great disturbance in the force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and then were suddenly silenced." LISTEN TO AUDIO VERSION HERE. (2:14)
Emperor Palpatine, from Star Wars wiki.[/caption]The opposition to net neutrality -- which was passed on a 3-2 party line vote Feb. 26 at the Federal Communications Commission -- reacted strangely to the news that there would be no fast lane for corporations who have more resources than the average consumer. Republican commissioner Ajit Pai choose to quote a character from "Star Wars" to illustrate his opinion. Did he choose the heroic Luke Skywalker, the swashbuckling Han Solo, or the thoughtful Obi-Wan Kenobi? No, he picked a quote from Emperor Palpatine: “Young fool, only now, at the end, do you understand.”
[audio mp3="http://newsroom.free103point9.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/DarthSidious_EmperorPalpatine_quotecitedbyFCCcommish_in_netneutralitydebate_20150303.mp3"][/audio]
That's from the end of "Return of the Jedi," just before Palpatine attempts to kill Luke Skywalker. A strange choice for a quote buttressing a political position. Evan Greer, campaigns director at Fight for the Future, retorted with his own adapted "Star Wars" quote: “What they didn’t know is that when they struck down the last rules we would come back more powerful than they could possibly imagine.” Verizon, the phone company unhappy with the idea of net neutrality, also had a strange response to the FCC's action last week. They released a press release in morse code, saying the ruling was rolling back the clock to 1934.
[audio mp3="http://newsroom.free103point9.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/JohnOliver_NetNeutrality_Verizon_morsecode_20150303.mp3"][/audio]
But just because multi-national corporations are tapping out dots and dashes, does not mean that the internet will be free forever. Next week, Congress will consider the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which may include jail terms for downloading TV shows. We can't say for sure, because the TPP is being secretly negotiated. The White House is claiming the trade agreement is, "the most progressive trade agreement the world has ever seen." Massachussetts Senator Elizabeth Warren disagrees, saying, "this enormous new treaty would tilt the playing field in the United States further in favor of big multinational corporations. Worse, it would undermine U.S. sovereignty." Fight for the Future, an open-Internet advocacy group, has criticized the proposed trade agreement as a plot that "would force SOPA-like Internet censorship on the world." So, if the TPP passes, perhaps this quote from Obi-Wan Kenobi in "Star Wars" might be appropriate.
[audio mp3="http://newsroom.free103point9.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/excerptfromStarWars_LukeObiWan_deathstardestroysAlderon_20150303.mp3"][/audio]
"I felt a great disturbance in the force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and then were suddenly silenced." LISTEN TO AUDIO VERSION HERE. (2:14)