[TriLUG] mostly OT: Tech Lobbyist

[Steve Litt via TriLUG]

On Fri, 25 Sep 2015 17:14:17 -0400
Tim Jowers <timjowers at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi Steve,
> 
> I worked with a guy about 15 years ago who had spent some time with
> towns in GA. Its common for the towns to sell cable service, phone
> service, etc. We all know the model around water; but there is no
> reason the town/city should have a monopoly on water any more than
> Internet, or even power.
> 
> Cheers,
> Tim

But there is. By the very nature of the thing, the municipality must
grant permits to all who dig. If the government were to give permits to
everyone wanting to start a new water company and dig up everyone's
yard, everyone's street and everyone's parkway, homeowners would be at
city hall with pitchforks. The government must restrict who digs (or
who hangs overhead wires for that matter), and therefore by its very
nature is creating a monopoly. To give its citizens reasonable value,
it must either regulate the providers, or compete with them.

Remember the 5x price implosion of dialup between 1995 and 2000? That
could only be accomplished because dialup phone lines were regulated
under utility laws, so anyone with a Linux box and a little knowledge
could start (and then grow) an ISP. You had tens or hundreds to choose
from. No need for the government to enter the competition.

SteveT

Steve Litt 
August 2015 featured book: Troubleshooting: Just the Facts
http://www.troubleshooters.com/tjust