Battle for the Net, July 12th

As you may have noticed, today is the Battle for the Net, a Fight for the Future sponsored day to bring awareness and solidarity on the issue of Net Neutrality; an issue that was "resolved" in 2015 but has been challenged by big companies ever since. It's a tiresome fight that seems to be, like many things, a losing battle. It's difficult for the average citizen to have their voice heard on a subject as big as Corporate Interest vs Neutral Creative Landscape but today attempts to bring together disparate voices into one louder shout.

There's lots of big companies joining in - from Amazon to Vimeo to GitHub and tons more. You can read a nice-and-simple overview of the history of the issue over on the The Guardian and keep up with latest developments on The Verge.

But what can be done aside from a pop-up ad that asks for mailing list signups? Specifically, you should be leaving a comment for the FCC for their review on July 17th. Not a scathing, screaming, Internet lambasting of a comment but, rather, a rational bit of feedback that explains how a level playing field benefits you.

I think it's safe to say that having your voice heard by a government agency is even harder than having it heard by a corporation (particularly with any meaningful feedback) but this filing is setup to allow exactly for that kind of direct contact. Pop-up windows and avatar changes create awareness but talking to the FCC allows you to actually contribute. Today you should be working to get anyone you know that isn't mired in Internet all day to also do this.

Good luck to us all.