Congress and the courts are making law and considering future regulation of the Internet. It probably won't be free, or as free as it is now, and it may not be as free-wheeling. Good, or bad? Hard to say, but the Internet is becoming more and more important to most of us, is something impacting all of us and is something we should pay attention to. And it isn't like most of us even realize just where a problem comes from when we encounter it. We should not be content to let the backbone providers (AT&T, Comcast, Verizon and others) lead the way. Most will want to control the price of access, who is allowed access (they could easily squelch competitors) and how it is prioritized (or put off). Nor can we assume any higher motives from the content providers (Yahoo, Google, Amazon, Microsoft and others). And we, as users, will tend to gravitate to the easiest, most cost-effective and most available services if providers are allowed to "rig" the marketplace, we all lose.

What to watch for? The key words are "network neutrality." Do an internet search on the term and see the pros and cons. Judge for yourself and don't let this contest pass you by. I searched for a relatively balanced, neutral, reference piece and came up with one from the Washington Post. The link follows: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/21/AR2006012100094.html