"The nation's largest telephone and cable companies are crafting an alarming set of strategies that would transform the free, open and nondiscriminatory Internet of today to a privately run and branded service that would charge a fee for virtually everything we do online."

....and restrict others outright. [Hey, they're not stupid - just evil! - they want to control it for the same reason we want it uncontrolled]

http://prisonplanet.com/articles/june2008/...8_pull_plug.htm
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20060213/chester
http://www.savetheinternet.com/
http://www.aclu.org/freethenet/

Yes Peter, and we know Congress won't listen to our pleas over the wishes of the elite anyway.

It's the sound of inevitability:

http://prisonplanet.com/articles/june2008/...8_pull_plug.htm

And

I think this is the greatest danger facing those of us who do this kind of research and outreach. I fear we may soon be talking about 'remember when we had the internet for communication'. Those in control and those who stand to profit from the control want the internet to only be [repeat only!] for pay-to-view/play of approved content. The technology already exists to overnight shut down/block selective sites - just as they do in China now. Coming to a country near you soon. Individuals labeled as 'internet conspiracy theorists' may soon be banned as posible terrorist risks, or some such nonsense. Laugh now, but you've been warned. They have been practicing internet 'war games' in the intelligence community against bloggers and forums, etc. All they need is the pretext (excuse). Without the internet, we'd be virtually without communication and community - they know it and they love the idea.

The internet as Orwell's memory hole, how you feeling now Winston?