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Comcast Pays For A Friendly Crowd |
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Not only does Comcast want to block the Internet, they also want to block public opinion. At the public FCC hearing in Boston dealing with Comcast’s selective blocking of Internet traffic, seats filled up quick. But some were paid to be there:
Comcast  or someone who really, really likes Comcast  evidently bused in its own crowd. These seat-warmers, were paid to fill the room, a move that kept others from taking part.
[Update: Comcast admits to paying people to stack the deck in their favor. Read the report.]
They arrived en masse some 90 minutes before the hearing began and occupied almost every available seat, upon which many promptly fell asleep.
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Here’s why this is a problem. Comcast clearly paid disinterested people to fill seats. This barred interested citizens from entering.
More than 100 people who arrived at the appointed time for the hearing were turned away by campus police because the room was already full.
This is poor form, even for a faceless corporation. If you want to block internet traffic, fine, but at least have the balls to stand up and face public outcry when you do something this unpopular. Stepping on your customers is one thing, trying to step on free speech and public opinion is quite another.
Comcast, of course, denies any wrongdoing:
Khoury said the company didn’t intend to block anyone from attending the hearing. “Comcast informed our local employees about the hearing and invited them to attend,” she said. “Some employees did attend, along with many members of the general public.”
Eyewitness reports, like the one cited above, say different.
Hopefully, even through the gerrymandering, the FCC will get the message that throttling the Internet is not acceptable. (Personally, I doubt it, however)
It’s bussed, not bused.
This is typical of these corrupt corporations!
I live in Chandler, AZ and a Walmart was proposed for a corner adjacent to an upscale neighborhood, but the upscale neighborhood didn’t want it and neither did the other surrounding neighborhoods. Everyone in the area protested the Walmart proposal at the Chandler City Council held meetings.
Guess what? Surprise surprise! WALMART PAID THEIR EMPLOYEES OVERTIME TO FILL SEATS AT THE CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS! It still didn’t work out for Walmart though, NO ONE wanted the stupid big-box Walmart, and eventually Walmart capitulated and built elsewhere.
The City of Chandler fought on Walmart’s behalf the whole time, so they must’ve signed a contract with Walmart BEFORE they checked with residents in the area(I know they didn’t check with ME!)
Now they are trying to lengthen the runway to allow corporate jets to land at the Chandler airport! The problem is, the airport is surrounded by residential areas (the mayor was also in the area but he moved, of course) and the residents don’t want it and have already voted it down TWICE. They are going to continue to try and cram this down our throats!
There are all kinds of dirty deals pushed through city council meetings all over the country every day. Not enough local citizens attend to protest and change the outcome of the council though, so the sweeheart deals, land grabs, taxations etc go through unimpeeded,
SO FIGHT THESE BASTARDS! YOU CAN WIN!!!
Now, granted, these kinds of publicity stunts (paying people to cheer for your corporation) are silly, and I sure hope no public official actually falls for it. Still, when government opens itself up for public comments, the comments should come from the actual public. No gerrymandering.
Like you say, dirty deals happen all over the place, and resistance is necessary.
Here’s a graphic if anyone wants to display something on their blog:
Image file is located at http://www.savetheinternet.com/graphics/comcast-hearing.jpg
Here’s the problem: Comcast takes the same approach to public debate that it has to Internet access: that it can wield substantial political and market power to shut out debate and shut up people. For too long, communications policymaking has been rigged against us. We need to send a wakeup call to phone and cable giants and their powerful lobbyists that they will no longer set the agenda. Check out this new video we just released: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYGtNmmb2y0
The purpose of the Internet is to give power over information to everyone. The role of our elected leaders is to protect our basic right to communicate from those who want to take it away from us. Whether it’s on the Internet or at public hearings we must stand up for everyone’s right to connect.
Who “likes” Comcast?