Ajit Pai Repealed Net Neutrality Although Almost Everyone Said He was Wrong

There is a lot of worry what will happen to the Internet due to the repeal of net neutrality rules. Many think that finding high-speed Internet Service Providers in their area that don't treat content unfairly will be hard.

Tim Berners-Lee, the founder of the World Wide Web, along with several dozen US Senators, countless technical experts, a bunch of advocacy organizations and several million American citizens all asked Federal Communications Commission Chairman, Ajit Pai not to repeal net neutrality rules. Did he listen? No. He was doggedly determined to have his way. Or I guess we should say the way of big corporate Internet Service Providers like Comcast, Charter and others. And Berners-Lee had even told him he doesn’t even understand how the Internet works. Pai didn’t seem to care. On Thursday December 14th, he repealed the rules. Ironically Pai called his destruction of net neutrality rules “Restoring Internet Freedom.”

Mayors and City Officials Had Sent a Letter To FCC’s Pai Opposing the Open Internet Repeal

To protect the Internet service in their towns, dozens of mayors and other city and county officials from around the country sent a letter to the FCC head, Ajit Pai (adding to the host of other people and groups speaking out against the repeal of the rules) expressing their opposition to his planned gutting of the rules put in place two years ago. The mayors of Boston, San Francisco, Seattle, Tallahassee, Chicago, Chattanooga, Pittsburgh, and New York City are among the officials who signed the letter which reads: “we strongly oppose the Commission’s proposal. It offers carte blanche to powerful service providers but little more than promises to consumers. The Commission’s approach puts those few companies ahead of millions of Americans.”

Attorneys General of Several States Sue FCC Immediately After Pai's Net Neutrality Repeal

The New York attorney general announced that he will be launching a multi-state lawsuit against Ajit Pai and the Federal Communications Commission right after the repeal of the net neutrality rules. So far the AGs from New York, Massachusetts and Washington have signed on but more will likely be joining in the next few days. The day before the vote, the AGs of eighteen states wrote Ajit Pai and the FCC a letter calling for a delay of the vote until the questionable web site comments posted in response to the FCC request could be sorted out. The Attorneys General of California, District of Columbia, Iowa, Illinois, Delaware, Hawaii, Kentucky, Maryland, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, and Washington all signed the letter to Pai so they may all sign on to the lawsuit against him to get good high speed Internet service in their states.

Cox Communications Works to Make a Difference.

Cable TV and Internet Provider Cox Communications is working to create change in the environment by reducing their impact and increase their sustainability. Cox has been working since 2007 to reduce their carbon footprint as they say.

In December of 2013, Cox signed an agreement to increase the efficiency of their set top boxes. Cox has received several green awards including awards from the city of San Diego, Orange County Metro Magazine and the Louisiana Cable and Telecommunications Association.

It is important for Internet and Cable providers like Cox to try to lessen their impact on the environment. Cox often work with the Trust for Public Land, giving Cox Conserves Hero awards.

Cox has a project they started in 2008 in Arizona called TWIG (Turning Waste Into Growth) that collects recylable materials and sells them to recycling companies and donates the proceeds to fund grants for youth education and development programs.

If more Internet Service Providers like Cox became involved with environmental and community programs it might make a difference in the world.