Picture this: a classroom full of students sitting quietly in their seats before the bell rings. Cell phones kept away, desks cleared, and the faint sound of footsteps in the hallway is the only thing preventing silence in the classroom.
No need to talk about the newest Twitter beef, the latest Instagram post, or the tedious Facebook poke, and class can begin without the usual “quiet down” from the teacher; what’s the cause for this bizarre scene? Net neutrality was suddenly repealed. Yes high schoolers, the everyday lifestyle of checking your phone every twenty seconds will soon be over, and teenagers everywhere will be overwhelmed with the expensive price of checking that once loved application so often. Although the concern is already high in regards to the net neutrality issue, the newly proposed act has not been set forth, and if an overwhelming abundance of people protest, the concerns of the social media frenzied people would ease everywhere.
So what is it? Specifically, net neutrality is the principle that internet service providers must treat all data on the internet the same, and not discriminate or charge differently by user, content, website, platform, application, type of attached equipment, or method of communication. Simply sated, various internet carriers such as Verizon Wireless and AT&T would potentially be able to select random social media applications and charge unnecessary prices to use them. So, rather than having the easy ability to send a selfie to your best friend, these excess photos will now pay their price. In the internet world, net neutrality creates an internet realm that has equal access, rates, and freedom to do as you please; but these new laws prohibit these actions.
In today’s technological state, social media platforms allow breaking news to reach the public quickly, while also permitting random people to speak up for what they believe on countless subjects.
Overall, with the constant use of the internet by millions of people around the world, the net neutrality rules set in place are completely capable of maintaining the steady rate of growth the internet has as new users join daily. The intended acts government officials are trying to implement only diminish the importance of the internet, and would greatly upset the people of the world, and more importantly, the teenagers. Net neutrality laws set in today’s time are more than perfect for the large amount of internet users in the world, while also staying beneficial to the West Albany students who use the internet everyday.
As adults age, they look to younger generations to have aspirations and take their place in the various roles today’s society has to offer. Modern teenagers have grown up on the use of telephones, televisions, and more recently, social media. While many deride social media platforms, these spaces allow people to express their personality and lifestyles entirely without feeling judged. The ones against this net neutrality act don’t realize the conflicts that will follow these new rules, and the outrage that will set in could possibly be bigger than anything this century has ever seen. As I like to call it, The “Teenage Crisis” would disturb the peace the future generations have to look forward to; and the most hormonal group in all of humanity would thrash out faster than a fan tweeting about One Direction.
So rather than creating chaos for the future world, why not keep things the same as they’ve always been? Life will move along, and as technology continues to advance, the internet will remain free, while maintaining its noble status as a public accessibility for the world.
