You Use the Bandwidth, You Pay the Price

The article posted by the Washington Post in January of 2006 entitled The Coming Tug of War Over the Internet reported that AT&T was contemplating charging a fee for newer, faster internet. Doing this could have a massive impact on the internet as we know it. The article states, “The telecommunications companies' proposals have the potential, within just a few years, to alter the flow of commerce and information -- and your personal experience -- on the Internet.” Companies that opt to pay for the high-speed internet would probably transfer the cost to the consumer while companies that can’t afford the upgrade are likely to get overlooked in the searching process thus narrowing and possibly eliminating the competition for the big companies.

Careful What You Search For

In 2006 CNET news published an online article entitled FAQ: When Google is not your friend which highlighted the oversight of online privacy in the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. They state that because the act was written previous to the invention of the internet at a time when no one could’ve imagined its impact the act doesn’t cover several key issues of online privacy. For this reason, the government is able to subpoena people’s individual search histories to use as evidence against them in federal cases. This is a difficult issue to argue because sets at odds two fundamental principles on which our country is based. First, citizens of this country are obliged by the laws of the land which protect ourselves and our property. However, citizens are also entitled to those freedoms which were the cause for our revolution. As the Declaration of Independence says, “Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from consent of the governed”. In other words, this document set the standard and the expectation that the people will deliberate and decide what is right for them while officials act accordingly. I personally believe that the justice served by using Google search information would outweigh the benefits of not doing so; however, the decision should be left to the masses.

E-mail Etiquette

In 2006 Enron executives Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling were prosecuted and sentenced to 24 years in prison for investor fraud. Inter-office e-mails documenting their participation in illegal acts were key evidence in their prosecution. This case spurred Corporate America to be more conscious of what they communicate and how. However, if companies know how to follow e-mail ettiquite, e-mail will prove a very useful tool for communicating.