This is Fucking Awesome

The city will build out the infrastructure and then sell wholesale access to Internet service providers, telecommunications companies and nonprofit organizations. ISPs and other providers will handle all billing, marketing, customer service and the at-home equipment needed to pick up the signals.

Philadelphia will become a customer of the network by allowing city departments to buy broadband access to communicate with one another. As part of this new technology plan, the city will also establish a nonprofit organization that will provide computers and technical training to low-income residents.

The fact that Verizon lobbied like hell to block this and got a law passed to make it nearly impossible to do it elsewhere in PA is disgraceful. Preventing municipalities from offering services that compete with private corporations? Are you fucking kidding me? This is infrastructure, people. You want it to be Public, Open and Cheap. You want to give cities the ability to offer you internet access for the same reasons you let them fix the streets and put out fires.

On a base moral level, cities are more important than corporations. The interests of the city and its citizens should outweigh the interests of shareholders and CEOs. That should be obvious, but for some reason in this day and age it isn't.

Of course, this anit-municipal movement is nothing new. Telco corporations have been trying to restrict this for years, why? Well...

Comcast and SBC both know that once a decent municipal alternative emerges, they've got legitimate competition and will be forced to lower rates. Competition harms the bottom line; it also forces them to work harder to improve their product and keep you happy - or lose you. There is no scientific mystery here.

One of the roles of government is to regulate the market. Another role is to offer services. People act like this is communism or something, but that's total bullshit. We're not talking about nationalizing that ass, we're talking about bringing some real fucking competition to the table.

Man this shit pisses me off. But bully for Philly. Here's hoping they lead the way for us all.