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Why We Have Abysmal Broadband in the U.S.
What bothers me about the U.S. broadband situation isn’t how bad it is, but that many people seem to think the reason is a mystery.
Other advanced nations are providing tens, hundreds, and even gigabits of bandwidth to their citizens, while we wallow in the relative modem-ages.
People enjoy saying it’s the size of the country that matters, i.e. that it’s easier for those smaller nations to upgrade their infrastructure while it takes us much longer.
That’s rubbish. We’re the country with the most bandwidth available, and we’ve been at this for years. The problem lies elsewhere, and once you hear it you can’t unhear it.
In those other countries that have surpassed us, they have a central authority that says crazy things like:
Seems pretty straight forward, right?
Nope, not in this country.
See, here in this country, when the President of the United States gets up and gives a speech about bandwidth availability and speeds, the corporations that provide those services sit in their boardrooms and giggle uncontrollably.
It’s comedy.
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In this country, we don’t have anyone planning a future that’s best for the nation as a whole. What you have is a massive collection of very powerful companies acting in short-term, parasitic self-interest against the country. The easiest way to show this is to track the incentives:
The United States wants better broadband for itself, because it’s good for the future of the nation.
The companies that provide these services want—by definition—to provide the least amount of service for the highest possible price.
Read that second one again.
That’s why healthcare—I mean broadband—is so bad in this country. It’s elegantly simple. The people in control are trying to make as much money as possible while providing as little service as possible.
That’s how you make the most money, silly goose!
So, especially for my right-leaning, free-market friends—don’t ever “wonder” why your broadband sucks so much. Or why healthcare costs so much. Or why America has fallen behind in x, y, or z. It’s because the corporations that you find so magical are running the show, and they have an agenda that directly opposes the long-term and strategic goals of the United States.
Quite simply, American big business is anti-American.
Go research it for yourselves online, but if you watch any videos watch out for those bandwidth caps.