AT&T blocks access to 4chan, then restores it

The Net Neutrality war has begun

Today, another unfortunate sighting took place on the open subject of Net Neutrality. A now rather infamous telecommunications provider in the United States has taken its first slash in a battle that will wage on for months against consumer democracy and against and the digital natives of Generation Y until the FCC can intercede. Grab your coats Americans, and get ready for war. Today is the day that AT&T officially began censoring the internet.

In a rather vicarious attempt to fire a first shot in the Net Neutrality war, the Telco provider blocked rights to view certain sections of the highly popular imageboard 4chan.org throughout the night. In particular, the /r9k/ and the infamous /b/ sections were inaccessible and the site’s owner has confirmed that AT&T was in fact filtering access for many of its subscribed customers. Several social news blogs and websites have been circulating the information for several hours while many users nationwide are confirming that the site had indeed been blocked in a number of geographic US locations.

Recently as of 8am EST, AT&T has restored access to the site and has confirmed that the censorship issued was “following the practices of their policy department.” In particular, AT&T contacted the owners of 4chan and requested that specific undisclosed changes be made, of which 4chan’s owners have failed to comply. Meanwhile, several concerned activists have contacted AT&T support and have received very general statements regarding the status of the situation, including a few unique responses.

The global internets are already swirling in a storm of exasperated rage and fury at the company’s past statements regarding Net Neutrality and it’s current decision to blacklist 4chan for the time being. At this point, all we can say is that the newly appointed FCC Chairman Genachowski had better be diligently prepared to lead the internet generation of 2010 and beyond if the National Broadband Plan receives enough public interest.

Source

The main reason "Net Neutrality" is under attack is because of the rising case of identity theft. This problem is caused by dim-witted individuals, YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE, using their credit cards to buy bogus products on illedgtimit websites. Because of these shit for brains, dumbasses our freedom to use the internet, which is possibly our last form of freedom in a so-called democratic world, is now at the mercy of men who think with their wallets. Now if you want to help, here's what you do:
Step 1: Ask around and try to find a person who is a victim of I.D Theft.
Step 2: Invite them into your house for a cup of tea and a few biscuits.

Is Net Neutrality really dead?
Revisit the original Agonist Net Neutrality Project ~qB

Declan McCullagh | September 6

CNN - If you haven't heard much about Net neutrality this year, you're not alone. It went from being the political equivalent of a first-run Broadway show, with accompanying street protests and high profile votes in Congress, to a third-rate performance with no budget and slumping attendance.

So what killed Net neutrality? Here's a list, in no particular order:

(see article at site for in-article links)

1. The Bush administration. Democrats may control Congress, but the White House and federal agencies matter. And the administration made it perfectly clear on Thursday that no new Net neutrality regulations are necessary. That gives the Republicans in Congress their marching orders, and a unified GOP front means the Democrats are more likely to expend ammunition elsewhere.

For those who are complaining about net neutrality consider this; because the internet is an open space of information I found someone’s tax returns in London England along with Social Security numbers, birthdates and addresses which could easily be have been found and used by the wrong person. I found this info on a general search engine that has millions of users per day.

Having no restrictions is leaving anyone to invade your computer and take your private information without you even knowing. I guess there are some people who think it is more important to download a movie for free than to feel secured that someone across the globe doesn’t have your personal info!!!

Here is the link to all posts at The Agonist about Net Neutrality:

Agonist Net Neutrality Section

Like everyone else here I freaked out a bit when I started reading about this whole issue of internet neutrality, I am dependent on the internet for running my internet based businesses so I have a bit more at stake than the average internet user. Within the last year I have become an avid Linux user and have fairly recently begun making use of remote access technology so that I can access my servers using my laptop as I have the Verizon Wireless Network (which allows me to access the internet from just about anywhere as long as I am fairly close to an urban area). I will go into more detail about why this is important and could affect this issue in a positive way:

Bookmark the new Agonist Net Neutrality Section (combines news, diary, and forum posts)

Sen. Wyden bill S.2360 Title: A bill to ensure and promote a free and open Internet for all Americans.

Kaputska on Sens, Snowe & Dorgan Draft Bill: Internet Neutrality Act

Working Draft bill of Sens. Snowe-Dorgan Internet Neutrality Act

Sen. Snowe's web site

Rep. Ed Markey's Agonist article on Barton anti-net-neutrality bill

Draft of Rep. Barton Bill (against net neutrality)

Rep. Markey's proposed Net Neutrality Amendment to Rep. Barton bill

Rep. Markey's Net Neutrality Web Site

Agonist Guide to Activism Against the Barton Bill

Background: FAQ on net neutrality. Media giants are starting to control: where you go on the net, how fast you get there, and what you'll pay. See Rep. Ed Markey's site, his Agonist article, and Agonist Background thread.
Latest News: From Save The Internet Coalition and Public Knowledge.
What You Can Do: Act Now (Save the Net), and additional information on E-Mailing your Senator(s) and House Representative(s).
Bookmark the Agonist Net Neutrality Section.
The Agonist is a charter member of the Save The Internet Coalition

Here's what Team Agonist has found out so far about how to go about contacting Members of Congress in support of Network Neutrality, and against the Barton bill:

The markup on the Barton bill (the bill threatens to eliminate Network Neutrality) taking place right now (April 4) is in the
Telecommunications and Finance Sucommittee. Here is a list of its
membership.

The main Capitol switchboard is 202-224-3121. If you call that number,
you can ask to be connected to any Congressman's office and register

Agonist Net Neutrality Project: Open Thread