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I just switched my long distance and international phone service

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Home » Discuss » Archives » General Discussion (01/01/06 through 01/22/2007) Donate to DU
 
Eric J in MN Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 08:50 PM
Original message
I just switched my long distance and international phone service
to Working Assets.

I found this text in an email I received from them to be persuasive:


Big telecom companies like AT&T and Verizon are spending tens of millions of dollars to push a law that would abandon the "First Amendment of the Internet" -- a principle called network neutrality.

As the Internet grows, it's not surprising that the big corporations want to seize control, discriminate against people with alternative viewpoints, favor certain types of content, and set up tollbooths wherever they can.

Without network neutrality, AT&T, Verizon and others will be free to slow down or block emails and Web sites they don't like -- including the Web sites of their critics and of people who don't share their politics.

Today, our free and open Internet allows individuals and organizations to speak truth to power. But if AT&T and Verizon have their way, an Internet provider who objected to the views of Working Assets, MoveOn.org Civic Action, Michael Moore, or Planned Parenthood could slow down our Web sites or even block them altogether.

...Send a message to Big Telecom by switching to Working Assets

In addition to helping you raise your voice to Congress, Working Assets has a unique role to play in the fight to save the Internet. We're the only phone company participating in the Save the Internet coalition. But we also make it easy for you to stick it to AT&T and Verizon and help organize for Internet freedom with one simple act: switch your mobile phone and long distance service from the bad guys to Working Assets.

The best way to make AT&T and Verizon pay the price for this attack on our Internet is move your dollars to another company. So far, they say recent scandals aren't causing them to lose customers. If you're currently with AT&T, Cingular (AT&T's wireless arm) or Verizon, we can help you send them a message and raise money for the fight to save the Internet.


With AT&T making plans to discriminate between websties, and paying lobbyists to persuade Congress to let them, I don't want to reduce the amount of money I give AT&T.

http://www.workingassetswireless.com/campaigns/sti_waw_wald/index.cfm


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helderheid Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 08:52 PM
Response to Original message
1. I've been with them for years - they're great (though watch your waistline
with the free Ben and Jerry's!!)
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Eric J in MN Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 08:53 PM
Response to Reply #1
2. I'm a vegan, so coupons for ice cream won't affect what I buy.
Edited on Mon Jun-12-06 08:54 PM by Eric J in MN
Vegans eat no meat, no dairy, and no eggs.
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helderheid Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 08:56 PM
Response to Reply #2
3. that I knew. Send me the coupons.
:evilgrin: :evilgrin: :evilgrin: :evilgrin: :evilgrin:
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Cha Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 11:47 PM
Response to Reply #2
20. I'm a Vegan, too ..
Lot's of good stuff left to eat.
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smokey nj Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 08:58 PM
Response to Original message
4. I agree with helderheid......
Working Assets is great. I have them for wireless too.
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meisje Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 08:59 PM
Response to Original message
5. Who owns the phone lines?
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GrumpyGreg Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 09:40 PM
Response to Reply #5
7. The local companies own the phone lines but lease them out.
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TexasProgresive Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 10:08 PM
Response to Reply #5
9. Nobody ever wants to hear this but
every long distance call ends up on leased lines from AT&T, Sprint, MCI and a few others. So you are still putting money in their coffers. And VoIP calls are going to end up on some big telecom's backbone. There ain't no way out except smoke signals or the ubiquitous oatmeal boxes and waxed string.
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Eric J in MN Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 11:04 PM
Response to Reply #9
13. Am I at least giving less money to AT&T?
NT
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TexasProgresive Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jun-13-06 10:10 AM
Response to Reply #13
21. Since it's wholesale the net profit could actually
be higher since there is less administative overhead and no individual billing to contend with.
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Psephos Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 09:08 PM
Response to Original message
6. I'm a HUGE supporter of net neutrality, but...
...this text is not a correct portrayal of the issue. It is a distortion, or worse.

Here's the deal. The backbone providers like Verizon and AT&T believe that demand for video over the internet is about to skyrocket, and that TV will soon be shifting to net delivery. They want to set up special high-speed "lanes" on the net that content providers with big bandwidth demands will pay more to use. In short, if you (by this, I mean a big company) are using lots of internet capacity to deliver your content, you will probably end up paying for these fast lanes, one way or another.

This is not about blocking political content or critics or whatever. It will not affect emails. Email uses very small amounts of bandwidth. It will not affect access to controversial sites, competitors, etc., unless one of the backbone providers acts criminally and secretly to suppress - and in our hacker-swollen world that will take about four seconds to be discovered, outed, and punished.

There are powerful reasons that "tiered" internet is a Bad Thing, but the arguments in this text seem directed more towards Working Assets' marketing.

Here are a few sites for a good overview of the real reasons why we should oppose the tiered internet movement.

http://www.effaustin.org/

Here's one that addresses some of the technical issues:

http://technocrat.net/d/2006/6/6/4150

If you want to make an impact, call your Congressperson and ask him/her to support the Markey Network Neutrality Amendment to the COPE Act.


Peace.
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kaygore Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 10:08 PM
Response to Reply #6
10. Very informative. Thank you.
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Eric J in MN Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 11:08 PM
Response to Reply #6
15. Websites which have a lot of traffic and/or
a lot of video already pay more to make the connection from their servers to the internet.

When customers are connected to the internet, they pay for their connection.

There shouldn't be a third charge where popular websites are told by the ISPs we'll give lousy service in connecting our customers to your website unless you pay us.

Regarding the issue of censorship and email: while it isn't the ambition of AT&T to start censoring at this time or messing with email, if Congress gives them a greenight, they may do so sooner or later.
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GrumpyGreg Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 09:42 PM
Response to Original message
8. Man,you were an easy sale !
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Sadie5 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 10:12 PM
Response to Reply #8
11. Have a contract with SBC/ATT
for DSL which will end I think in August. If I cut off the long distance before that the DSL price goes sky high plus I will have to pay a $200 fee for canceling.
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Eric J in MN Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 11:11 PM
Response to Reply #11
17. Who would you switch to for internet access?
Is any ISP promising to follow the principle of Net Neutrality?
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Eric J in MN Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 11:10 PM
Response to Reply #8
16. Do you disagree with Working Assets' text?
NT
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GrumpyGreg Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jun-13-06 06:56 PM
Response to Reply #16
22. Nope ! I just have a deep seated distrust for any kind of
solicitation for any kind of product.

Call me a skeptic but that's the way it is.
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enid602 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 10:56 PM
Response to Original message
12. 1010
I've been using the 1010 'wrap around' numbers to call Argentina for 3 4 cents per minute. The last two I've used (656 and 629) no longer work. Does anyone out there know of a good 1010 number for low international rates?
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proud patriot Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 11:04 PM
Response to Original message
14. Great
been with them for years
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Nabia2004 Donating Member (566 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 11:18 PM
Response to Original message
18. Verizon is charging me $21 for canceling my service!!!
Just got the bill today. I canceled my state and international long distance service but kept local basic service. We get a lot of power outages so I was keeping the local for emergencies, but after getting this bill I'll be canceling that too. A backup power supply will give me my phone and PC.

I hate these blood-sucking parasitic corporations!
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Eric J in MN Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jun-12-06 11:30 PM
Response to Reply #18
19. What are you switching to? NT
NT
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