Election Agenda

Posted on June 25, 2008

There are plenty of platforms developing for discussion in this year’s election process in the US.

Being thrown into the fray for part of this discussion is this country’s lack of true commitment to broadband saturation. I waxed eloquent (sorry) on this subject some time back so am particularly glad to see this getting some push.

Candidates’ discussion topics are being set - war, economy, environment, etc. A new advocacy group wants the next president and lawmakers to add one more item to their list - a national broadband policy that ensures high-speed Internet access for all Americans.

The group, InternetForEveryone.org, features a number of technology experts such as Vint Cerf who helped write the protocols for the Internet; and Jonathan Adelstein of the Federal Communications Commission.

InternetForEveryone.org has not developed any specific proposals for Congress to consider, but members are urging the public to help pressure lawmakers — and the next administration — to develop incentives that will result in higher broadband speeds at more affordable prices in all parts of the country. And that’s a good thing for everybody.

On the website, you can click on a map of your state and it will show what percent of households have broadband access now and the total number of citizens in that state who do not. The numbers are appalling.