Assignment 4: Thoughts on Network Neutrality

There are many varying opinions on the topic of net neutrality in today's society. It can be a positive thing in that it helps information be viewed equally, giving smaller business the same chance at being viewed and spread online as bigger companies, without users fearing that they will be charged extra for viewing new material. It allows people to get into different things and find new products and information at no risk of extra charge, and ultimately allows for a better flow of a variety of goods and services. The cons of net neutrality, however, are that society already has enough legislation as it is, and that net neutrality could create unethical loopholes in the system. Some big companies are opposed to it because they can afford to invest more in their networks and attract more customers, while smaller businesses are in favor of it because it creates equal opportunities if they cannot afford to upgrade their networks.
Net neutrality has been in the news lately due to the Federal Communications Commissions wanting more power. The FCC wants to have the power to regulate the distribution of data and be in charge of what speeds different data will receive. The court would not grant them this power, however, they are trying to appeal the court ruling anyways.
Net neutrality is tied to the topic of freedom of speech because it allows for discussions and flow of information to flow freely online. If people had to pay to find and put information online, than in turn the information and right to speak your mind (freedom of speech) would not be free.
I know that the recent discussions of net neutrality would affect my life daily. I am a frequent internet user and spend a lot of time on things like YouTube, Netflix and Hulu. If I had to pay extra for these services, than I would not use them as much in my extra time in fear of the additional charges. I also would not spend time looking at different blogs because I would want to only spend my money on the additional charges that were absolutely necessary to me, like finding information online for school and listening to music.
I think that net neutrality is extremely important. I believe that certain things in life should be free, and that information is one of them. Without net neutrality, we would be giving more power to bigger businesses and taking away power to smaller ones. In this economy, the smaller businesses need all of the help they can get, and net neutrality helps make things more fair in that sense.
 https://www.aclu.org/net-neutrality
This is a reputable source because it is from the American Civil Liberties Union which is a reputable organization and the site ends in ".org". There seemed to be no bias in the article and it was a good source on the topic of net neutrality.
https://www.eff.org/issues/net-neutrality
This is a reputable site also giving information about net neutrality. It is up to date and the information is from the Electronic Frontier Foundation. It even gives off links to other sites and is an organization because it ends in ".org".

"When Rape goes Viral". Though the only lives that should be ruined in the releasing of rape videos and pictures are the lives of the ones doing the rape, that is often not the case. Yes, it is important for campuses to bring light to the fact that rape has happened on their campuses to make others more aware, often times the victims don't only become a victim  of rape, but also of online embarrassment. As if their lives had not been ruined enough by the act of the raping, and now there are pictures or videos for everyone to see and for that person to have to relive; it has been the cause of many suicides. However, sometimes, this media is kept private from ones that should see it (like family members or administration) until it is too late to help. In my opinion, there should be a place to anonymously send this information to get help. The administration should then post the happenings without using any real names or pictures in order to protect the lives of the victims. I know that social media spreads like wildfire, but it should be spreading awareness rather than things that can destroy an innocent person's life in a night that they can't even remember.

"I have nothing to hide.. so it does not affect me"... Or does it? These days, people look for reasons for other people to be wrong and often times, things are taken the wrong way. For example, say a friend takes a picture of you randomly and innocently eating a banana and posts it to UNH Banana Eaters and tags you in it. Then, a future employer sees it and suddenly you're at risk for sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior. When posting things online, you have to realize that the second you hit "send", that information is out there for anyone and everyone to see forever, even after you delete it. So yes, maybe a middle schooler is not concerned about this banana picture, but as an adult searching for jobs, up against multiple other employee options, it is an issue of concern. The way I see it is that the information that you put online is like a secret that you share in high school; you might post something to one person, send one picture to one person, but suddenly the whole world has access to it through the power of sharing. Though I have tried very hard to monitor my own social media, I know that some things could be taken the wrong way and the only way to completely solve this problem is to get rid of it altogether. But even then, the things I used to have posted would still be there. Its like the advertisements that you see when one candidate running for election bad mouthes another; many times it is just that person manipulating the information and making it seem worse than it is. Privacy is definitely a huge area of concern when it comes to the internet and everyone should be concerned.

CS408-03 Living in a Networked World

In this class, I hope to learn more about online privacy and the history of the internet. It is something that I use everyday, and would like to know more about what is to come in the future as well. Hopefully, knowing about the internet will allow me to use it more wisely and become more efficient in what I do with my time on it.