HELP: Net Neutrality Letter

Point of Thread (that I posted also on Reddit): I may have the chance to speak with Senator Marco Rubio later today (Thursday) about Net Neutrality. Here is my basic speech. What would you suggest I change/add/remove to make it as effective as possible?

Background: My parents just called me to say that they are coincidentally on a vacation that Senator Marco Rubio (Republican from Florida) happens to be on. My parents said that tomorrow they will try to get five minutes of his time to call me so I can talk to him about Net Neutrality - an issue in 2011 he said is "ridiculous".

I'm hoping to use this random opportunity to change his mind or at least provide doubt in his mind that he should seek out opinions other than from lobbyists.

I quickly wrote up a letter to read to him over the phone tomorrow (if that chance occurs) or to send to him if I don't get that chance. Below is the speech/letter in full, and I was hoping we could all "groupthink" the best, shortest, and most impactful "elevator" speech possible.

Keep in mind that we are trying to make this the most impactful TO Senator Marco Rubio, so please excuse my dropping of the facts in a somewhat slanted way. My apologies.

Thanks in advance!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Letter I'll Send

Senator Rubio,

My name is Joshua Pavlica and I am a student at the University of Michigan. I believe you talked to my parents in Hawaii and I greatly appreciate your time in taking this phone call or reading this message.

As you know, Net Neutrality is a big topic in the FCC and in Congress right now. The FCC’s Chairman, Tom Wheeler, is a former lobbyist for cable companies that was installed by President Obama even after our President declared that lobbyists have no place in his administration.

Tom Wheeler, who will most likely earn a board position at a cable company once his stratified and mutated version of TRUE Net Neutrality passes in 100 days, does not deserve to be the head chairman and a Republican should be named the head Chairman in his stead.

As that process is difficult, we are at an impasse:

Cable companies want to create a “fast lane” to double-dip in their profits from both the user at home trying to watch a movie on Netflix and the company Netflix as well. By creating a “fast lane”, any new start-up companies that are creating innovations to better our future won’t be able to have the same, equal opportunity that the American dream is supposed to ensure.

The way to prevent that everyone has the same freedom of expression and improve innovation in our Internet Speeds (which, according to multiple independent studies is 5x slower than Europe and costs us 10x more for inadequate service) is to reclassify the Internet.

The one way to ensure the freedom and openness of the Internet is to reclassify the Internet as a Title II service. This allows for the government to regulate the Internet and ensure that everyone has equal access to the Internet.

Mobile Broadband, often seen as an opponent to traditional cable, is actually as fast as it is today due to it being classified as a Title II service. Companies like Verizon have invested BILLIONS of dollars in improving their network capabilities because of the fierce competition that a Title II classification creates. Even with these improvements, however, Mobile Broadband for an entire family of four, like my parents beside you, would cost over $400 a month for an equal quality of service that I can get for $50 a month from a local cable company.

If you take away one thing from this phone call, I URGE YOU to reclassify the Internet as a Title II service. Companies like Netflix, Google, Facebook, and even the people that CREATED the Internet support it.

If TRUE Net Neutrality is not preserved as it was created in the 1996 Telecommunications Act, then in our future we will have to pay to access Internet websites like Facebook and Twitter like we do HBO and Starz – and all innovation in the technology industry will move AWAY from America and move to Canada, Europe, and Asia.

The Internet is at a turning point in its history: Either the FCC and the American government protect its openness and neutrality so that everyone has an equal shot at using its services, or the Internet becomes a commodity to be bought and sold to this highest bidder, restricting its access to all and forever changing and tarnishing American history.

I implore you to consider how the Internet got to where it is today - through its openness and neutrality. If that changes, as the telecommunications companies and the FCC currently want it to, the Internet will never be the same.

Thank you for your time, and I hope you have a blessed day.

-Joshua Pavlica

If I get a chance to speak with him on the phone, however, I plan on using this:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phone Call

Hello Senator Rubio, Happy Birthday!

My name is Joshua Pavlica and I’m currently attending the University of Michigan. I am honored to speak with you and I’ll make this quick so you can get back to some fun in the sun.
_____
What is your current stance on Net Neutrality? What do you know about it?
_____
I grew up with the Internet and it has become an amazing place where people can connect with each other, share videos, and find information. The Internet today thrives on its equal availability to everyone without restrictions in access.

The true version of Net Neutrality, which is supported by Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, Reddit, and more – including the founders of the Internet, aims to keep the Internet the way it is today: Open and Neutral.

What the former-lobbyist and now-Chairman of the FCC Tom Wheeler has recently proposed aims to split the Internet in two – a “fast lane” where companies pay to get faster connection speeds to consumers, and a “slow lane” where everyone else gets to be.

With the creation of a “fast lane” the Internet becomes a divided marketplace where only the Big Companies get to have premium access while small businesses and start-ups, the backbone of America, get lost in the dust.

An easy solution to this problem would be to reclassify the Internet as a Title II service, otherwise known as a common carrier.

A Title II service mandates that said service be Open and Neutral to all by its definition, and prevents telecommunications companies like Comcast, Time Warner, AT&T, and Verizon from cannibalizing the Internet into whatever they want to make it.

Nobody owns the Internet, and no one ever should. That’s what makes the Internet great today.

The simplest solution to both improve service for the American people through competition, and to ensure that innovation continues to occur is to reclassify the Internet as a Title II service.

It’s a simple change that can ensure that the Internet we know and use today will remain the open and neutral place for new ideas and innovation to be shared.

Thank you for your time, and have a great vacation.

-Joshua Pavlica

Any suggestions or changes I should make to either the letter or the phone speech? Thanks!!