Your ship's captain for a catastrophic anti-consumer cruise sponsored by Time Warner

Representative Harrell, we honestly cannot understand your surprise over the outrage and backlash that came after you handcrafted, on spec from Time Warner and its lobbying lawyers, an incredibly anti-consumer, anti-competitive, nightmare of a piece of legislation designed to destroy municipal broadband across the state of North Carolina.

Rep. Ty Harrell (D-NC), who normally considers himself a progressive Democrat, has so bumbled his way through this entire affair, he’s managed to end up on the same side as the ultra-big-corporate friendly Americans for Prosperity, which is now war-dialing its way through North Carolina with push polls and fear-monger phone messages.  If that doesn’t sound alarm bells that something isn’t right, what will?  He admits he didn’t realize North Carolina has been through this anti-consumer nonsense before.  In 2007, largely the same bill was bought and paid for by big telecom special interests, but failed to pass after elected officials realized it would antagonize their constituents into voting for anyone but them in the next election.  No kidding.

Harrell said he introduced the legislation, which amazingly channels industry wishes word for word, because ‘Time Warner approached him and asked for it,’ and even worse:

Opponents suggested a study bill, but Harrell says the industry representatives refused to consider it. “Having gone through those battles last time, the proponents of this bill were basically saying, ‘We’ve gone down that road before and we want to have it heard in committee. I said, ‘OK, since my name is on it and you’re in my district.’”

Time Warner evidently has direct access to the Ty Harrell’s Legislation Hotline, because when consumers call asking for protection from sky high rate hikes and municipal broadband competition, the only question from his office apparently is, “how did you get this number?”

Our conservative readers here get it. They know the best way to fight monopolies is to promote competition, which this bill certainly does not. Our progressive readers here get it. They know that an unregulated duopoly of providers (or monopoly in many areas) will deliver the slow service at high prices, so when private companies aren’t interested in delivering, their own community should step up and provide better service.  Your bill trashes the dreams and hopes of both by making competition impractical and monopolies/duopolies a sure thing across the state.

It’s a real shame the only ones that don’t get it are elected officials who do the bidding of big cable and don’t have the wisdom to realize the way to survive this consumer catastrophe is not to be a part of it in the first place.  Perhaps voters will need to remind them.

Contact Information:

Phone:      919-733-5602
Email:     [email protected]

Rep. Ty Harrell
NC House of Representatives
16 W. Jones Street, Room 2121
Raleigh, NC 27601-1096