Flood Them With Calls on Net Neutrality!

The disastrous COPE bill, which would hand over our internet pipes and content control to the big telecoms, is set for a hearing on the Senate side, in the Commerce Committee, this week. Recall that it passed the House recently, with the support of too many Democrats, including our own Rep. Tom Udall. If we want to preserve the open source, equal-access-for-all internet that we've had from the beginning, we need to act NOW. Net neutrality is a must if the web is to continue to be equally open to all points of view, not just those offered first class treatment for big bucks paid.

Here's a video of a debate between industry lobbyist Mike McCurry and Paul Misener of Amazon about net neutrality. The website of the Save the Internet coalition has text excerpts.

Now's the time to call members of Senate Commerce committee to urge them to reject any bill that doesn't guarantee net neutrality:

You can contact the Senate Commerce Committee at the main switchboard toll free at 1-888-355-3588. Here are their individual phone numbers:

Chairman Ted Stevens (AK): (202) 224-3004
John McCain (AZ):  (202) 224-2235
Conrad Burns (MT):  202-224-2644
Trent Lott (MS): (202) 224-6253
Kay Bailey Hutchison (TX): 202-224-5922
Olympia J. Snowe (ME):  (202) 224-5344
Gordon H. Smith (OR):  202.224.3753
John Ensign (NV):  (202) 224-6244
George Allen (VA):  (202) 224-4024
John E. Sununu (NH):  (202) 224-2841
Jim DeMint (SC):  202-224-6121
David Vitter (LA):  (202) 224-4623

Co-Chairman Daniel K. Inouye (HI): 202-224-3934
John D. Rockefeller (WV):  (202) 224-6472
John F. Kerry (MA):  (202) 224-2742
Byron L. Dorgan (ND):  (202) 224-2551
Barbara Boxer (CA): (202) 224-3553
Bill Nelson (FL):  (202) 224-5274
Maria Cantwell (WA):  (202) 224-3441
Frank R. Lautenberg (NJ):  (202) 224-3224
E. Benjamin Nelson (NE):  (202) 224-6551
Mark Pryor (AR):  (202) 224-2353

And it's never too early to start contacting Sen. Jeff Bingaman about this issue, as the bill may well be on the Senate Floor sometime soon, maybe even this week. At the moment, he has taken no position on net neutrality. We need to change that. Click here.

is keeping track of who's currently supporting the bill in the Senate. Josh Marshall will be updating it often.

PS: I know that Rep. Udall's website says he supports net neutrality and he did vote for Rep. Markey's unsuccessful amendment to COPE that would have required it. However, he also voted for the very flawed COPE bill that lacks the necessary protections for neutrality, which to my mind isn't exactly standing strongly behind the concept. I also question his belief that the COPE bill will result in broadband access being rushed to rural and poor areas. There are no teeth to require compliance in that regard and, even if there were, we shouldn't trade equality on the internet for increased broadband. Moreover, telecoms have already received more than 200 billion dollars over 15 years to build out nationwide broadband. Why don't we have it?