A traffic jam on the Information Superhighway
In 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act into law, establishing the system of high-speed roads to go between the states. The idea had begun in 1921 and had been hatched from a need for quicker deployment and movement for our nation's military, to boost the automobile business, to make it easier. In other words, our federal government had the foresight and the usefulness to spend a little money in order to improve our country.
Those same benefits could be, and to some extent have been, greatly enhanced again today by another highway system: the Information Superhighway. As the Care2 Campaign so eloquently put it:
High speed Internet means more than smooth web videos or fast downloads. Advanced high capacity communications networks can increase democratic and civic participation, improve the delivery of health care, education, job training, public safety and other vital services.
The problem is that, like with so many other things, the United States lags behind the rest of the developed world. We pay much higher prices for Internet services that offer half the speed and reliability of those in other nations, and many rural areas around the US of A don't even have access, regardless of how much they would be willing to pay.
The Care2 Campaign has put together a petition to tell Congress to get off their 9,600 bps-asses and catch up to the rest of the world. It is vital that these services be available to every American if we are to keep pace with the rest of the world. They have almost 11,000 electronic “John Hancocks,– but that's still short of their goal of 15,000.
So, if you have a high-speed Internet connection, zoom on over to the petition's website. If you don't, then definitely dial your way to the site; it's you who stands to benefit the most. Well, you and every American who needs better health care, a more level global business playing field, a better education for their children– ¦ you get the idea.
Photo taken by this traveler.
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