The infrastructure of the internet was paid for out of public funds and has never been the private property of any corporate shareholder. It is a public resource; it is part of the commons. "Enclosing the commons" means allowing private interests to claim public resources as their own private property.
Many of the resources that Americans own as a people --forests, minerals, government R&D, the broadcast airwaves, public schools, cultural spaces-- are increasingly being taken over by private business interests, often with the full complicity of our government. This trend represents a modern-day "enclosure of the commons" --a vast appropriation of common assets that is siphoning revenues from the public treasury, shifting ownership and control from public to private interests -David Bollier
Most "net neutrality" discussions focus on freedom of speech. But this is "the perfect storm" --for when "the commons" is information based, its enclosure is
simultaneously a corporate give-away and an attempt to severely constrain free speech! (...isn't it funny how they seem to go hand in hand)
The commons were traditionally defined as the elements of the environment - forests, atmosphere, fisheries or grazing land - that we all share. These are the tangible and intangible aspects of the environment that no-one owns but everybody enjoys.
But there are other conceptions of the commons. Today, the commons need to be understood within the cultural sphere as well. The commons within this sphere include literature, music, performing arts, visual arts, design, film, video, television, radio, community arts and sites of heritage. The commons can also include `public goods' such as public space, public education, health and the infrastructure that allows our society to function (such as electricity or water delivery systems). There also exists the `life commons' - the human genome that makes us a unique species. Though a central government may `manage' these, realistically we have inherited them and any governing body only holds them in trust for the public as well as future generations.
The Commons Institute
The corporate-sponsored Republican party has ridden to power, in part, by exploiting people's fears of the government's power over them. And these fears are legitimate: totalitarian states have been amongst the most obvious sources of evil throughout the 20th century. But what Republicans have cleverly done is equate "big government" to "excessively powerful government," and "liberty" to "private property."
Hierarchical organization and the detail of moment-by-moment control a modern corporation exercises over the lives of its employees, however, is far in excess of anything even the most totalitarian state could achieve, even in its wildest dreams. And, however imperfect our current democracy may be, we would do well to remember that there isn't even the semblance of democracy within a corporation.
As long as public resources remain public, there is at least some mechanism by which we can exercise control over how they are utilized.
The standard argument of the Republicans, however, is that corporations serve the public interest better than democratically-controlled government. How? Because of the "logic of the market." This is far too big of a topic to get into, but we all know how well corporate media has been doing at serving the public interest...
Also, behind most "private enterprise" success stories, there is a whole other story of direct and indirect give-aways: The automobile industry triumphed over the railroads not simply because Americans like cars, but because of the highway system built and maintained by public funds, foreign policies aimed at maintaining the flow of oil from the middle east (and simultaneous withdrawal of support for public transportation).
All these direct and indirect subsidies amount to a massive transfer of wealth from the taxpayer to the shareholders of Exxon, GM, etc... and, yes, the individual automobile owner benefits too (only not in a way that accumulates in her bank account).
But next to the transfer of wealth to corporations via subsidies, outright privatization is a whole different ballgame. And the sad thing is that once it's gone, you can never get it back. Because once some two-bit congressman has passed a law that gives public resources away to private corporations, those resources become "private property" --more sacred in America than either the Bible or the flag.
You can't even talk about taking private property back into the public domain... for if you even discuss such a thing as a legitimate choice, you will be swiftly labeled a "communist" [and, in a very literal sense, the label will be accurate].
And if you already... take part in mcjoan's front page action call: Net Neutrality Action
It is often easier to contact a Senator's state offices; you can use this page to find your own Senators' local numbers; I tried to find a list containing the local numbers for all Commerce Committee members but could not locate one. Will update if anyone supplies this info via comments.
Complete list of Senatorial phone numbers (because it can't hurt to call your representatives even if they're not on the Commerce Committee... 'cause chances are, they know someome who is.
TCP's free internet-based fax
Also, did you know many computers can be used as fax machines? DKospedia has page telling you how.