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Opinion and editorial articles.

moving-from-an-age-of-internet-scarcity-to-abundance
Article filed under Broadband | Written by Christopher | No Comments | Updated on Mar 4, 2013

Moving From an Age of Internet Scarcity to Abundance

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.muninetworks.org/content/moving-age-internet-scarcity-abundance

The Seattle Times has published an opinion piece I wrote about the need to move from Internet access business models based on scarcity to those based on abundance. Many of us have grown accustomed to the speeds offered by modern cable networks. They aren’t particularly speedy, but we are used to them. When we find… Continue reading

op-ed-nc-in-bottom-of-broadband-barrell
Article filed under Broadband | Written by Christopher | No Comments | Updated on Jan 29, 2013

Op-Ed: NC In Bottom of Broadband Barrel

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.muninetworks.org/content/op-ed-nc-bottom-broadband-barrell

Common Cause’s Todd O’Boyle and myself have just published an opinion piece in the North Carolina News & Observer to highlight the foolishness of the General Assembly revoking local authority to build broadband networks. Todd and I teamed up for a case study of North Carolina’s most impressive fiber network, Greenlight, owned by the city… Continue reading

broadband-is-essential-infrastructure-for-communities
Article filed under Broadband | Written by Lisa Gonzalez | No Comments | Updated on Dec 13, 2012

Broadband is Essential Infrastructure for Communities

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.muninetworks.org/content/broadband-essential-infrastructure-communities

In August, we reported on the results of a report on UTOPIA by the Office of the State Auditor General of Utah. As you will recall, the results were less than favorable and presented more fodder for those opposed to municipal telecommunications infrastructure investment. The same old arguments often rest on the financial investment in… Continue reading

slate-commentary-want-to-pay-less-and-get-more
Article filed under Broadband | Written by Christopher | No Comments | Updated on Aug 1, 2012

Slate Commentary: Want to Pay Less and Get More?

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.muninetworks.org/content/slate-commentary-want-pay-less-and-get-more

Today, Slate published an opinion piece by me and Sascha Meinrath from the Open Technology Institute at New America Foundation talking about the important role of community broadband in solving the nation’s broadband problem. A snippet: In the meantime, local communities are taking matters into their own hands and have created remarkable citywide fiber-to-the-home broadband… Continue reading

wally-bowen-open-wireless-is-essential-infrastructure
Article filed under Broadband | Written by Christopher | No Comments | Updated on May 29, 2012

Wally Bowen: Open Wireless is Essential Infrastructure

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.muninetworks.org/content/wally-bowen-open-wireless-essential-infrastructure

Once again, we are reprinting an opinion piece by Wally Bowen, founder of the nonprofit Mountain Area Information Network based in Asheville, North Carolina. The op-ed was originally published in the Asheville Citizen-Times. Once upon a time, Internet enthusiasts made the following comparison: the Internet is to 21st-century economies what navigable waterways and roads were… Continue reading

the-future-of-the-internet-by-tnr-and-vint-cerf
Article filed under Broadband | Written by Christopher | No Comments | Updated on May 27, 2012

The Future of the Internet, by TNR and Vint Cerf

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.muninetworks.org/content/future-internet-tnr-and-vint-cerf

In a recent editorial (May 24 issue), The New Republic argued that the Obama Administration was doing a decent job on Internet policy and obliquely referenced an article discussing carrier opposition to community broadband. The op-ed begins, Politicians aren’t always especially thoughtful about, or even familiar with, information technology. George W. Bush used the term… Continue reading

Article filed under Broadband | Written by Christopher | No Comments | Updated on Feb 16, 2012

Bloomberg: The Case for Publicly Owned Internet Service

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.muninetworks.org/content/bloomberg-case-publicly-owned-internet-service

Susan Crawford’s op-ed in Bloomberg makes a tremendous case for publicly owned broadband networks.
She notes the importance of broadband and the failure of big cable and DSL companies to meet… Continue reading

BloombergNewsSquare
Article, ILSR Press Room filed under Broadband | Written by Christopher | No Comments | Updated on Feb 14, 2012

Bloomberg’s Susan Crawford Cites ILSR’s Municipal Broadband Work

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/bloombergs-susan-crawford-cites-ilsrs-municipal-broadband-work/

In an Op-Ed for Bloomberg, Susan Crawford highlights the advantages of publicly owned broadband. She notes that ILSR is tracking advances as more communities decide to build their own networks to ensure they are not lost in the race for advancement Continue reading

nc-capitol.png
Article filed under Broadband | Written by admin | No Comments | Updated on Jan 31, 2011

Whose Internet? NC Communities Should Defend Freedom to Build Networks

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/whose-internet-nc-communities-should-defend-freedom-build-networks/

Who should decide the future of broadband access in towns across North Carolina? Citizens and businesses in towns across the state, or a handful of large cable and phone companies? The new General Assembly will almost certainly be asked to address that question.

With the fastest and most affordable networks in North Carolina being owned by the public, the answer is obvious. 

Continue reading

fdr
Article filed under The Public Good | Written by David Morris | No Comments | Updated on Dec 14, 2010

Obama vs. FDR on Social Security

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/obama-vs-fdr-social-security/

Today, 75 years and 4 months since Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act, a Democratic president is ignoring his wisdom and abandoning his strategy for protecting the program from shifting political winds. If congressional Democrats go along with Obama on this, it could mark the beginning of the end of Social Security as we have known it. Continue reading