Be It Resolved That The Goverment Should Nationalize the Internet.

Let's deal with some definitions; 'This Government' is herein defined as the United States of America, for the sake of simplicity. 'Nationalize' should be recognized as a buy-out of AT&T and Comcast, which accounts for 30% of the U.S market for internet service providers. Entrance to the market should not be restricted and no new regulations shall be put on the rest of the ISPs (internet service providers) in the market. I would suggest, though not require, that my opponent begin with a constructive argument for their case and leave the deconstruction for the next 3 rounds. ----- Friends, we find ourselves at a crossroads. The world's most vital technology is at risk. Our national dialog, our freedom of information and our children are at risk. On one side, the large internet service providers are rallying for a new system to government the internet, where an average person must pay for a subscription model to access the internet. Much in the same way one pays for cable, these ISPs want to limit your access to the internet. Consider this; you want to go on youtube, but you can only watch 3 today, unless you want to upgrade to the gold plan for $20 a month more. You want to download a torrent but that's a big no-no in the ISP's eyes, so you can't go on those sites at all. You want to go on skype to talk to your mother across the country, but that cuts into Verizon's long distance calling, so you're blocked from that, too. It's a scary scenario that I think damages the country. So what should be done? The people must demand that our freedom shall be protected, and a government-run 'public option' must be introduced. Given that AT&T and Comcast already have the infrastructure in place, it makes the most sense to start there. The facts, my friends, are in support of my case. Firstly, I would like to call attention to a travesty of American society; only 63% of households have high-speed internet. The United States trails the world in broadband penetration and it is hurting American growth. It is limiting our children in their education, it is hurting businesses and it making life more difficult for average Americans. Look, for example, at France. Internet penetration is at 68% and thanks to a recent recognition of high speed internet as human right, DSL in France is not only somewhat cheaper than the same service in American, it is on average more than 5 times faster, and in some places as much as 28 times as fast. In Finland where high speed internet is a legal right, there is 83% penetration. How can this same right be denied in America? My second point is that of competition. By establishing a large competitor to every other ISP in America, instant pressure is put on them to improve services and lower the needlessly high prices. Given that the government will only be taking on 30% of the market, there is a huge area of opportunity for small, local providers to enter the market. Right now, the current ISPs are not only complacent but in cahoots. Any semblance of real competition is merely a facade, as they are working together to crush net neutrality and establish a subscription model for the internet that will harm the forward-thinking way of life in America. My final point is that of security. By giving the government a stake in the internet business, the middle man will be cut out. Because the government has a vested interest in the safety of the internet users, it will give the government the opportunity not to censor the internet, but to protect against any illegal elements. That is to say that the government will be given the power to find and punish those in possession of child pornography or other illegal material. This -does not- imply that the government will become the digital Big Brother, but merely that they will continue to the monitor the internet as they do at present, but with more accuracy and openness. I look forward to my opponent's response. SOURCES: U.S broadband penetration; http://www.websiteoptimization.com... Finland case study; http://cnnwire.blogs.cnn.com... Internet in France; http://en.wikipedia.org... DSL speed by state; http://www.speedmatters.org... DSL prices around the world; http://goldsteinreport.com... E.U internet stats; http://www.internetworldstats.com...