Tom Keating is dead set against the broadband stimulus plan proposed by President-Elect Obama. He believes in government getting out of the way of people and generally I agree with him. I do however believe that broadband is like air, water, highways, bridges and other core infrastructure and the government should aid in ensuring the US is a leader in internet access.<\/p>\n
Yes, industry is getting broadband to the masses but that is not enough. Broadband is strategic and allows workers to work for companies anywhere in the world. I for one believe the ingenuity and inventiveness of Americans is something we have which differentiates us from workers in many other countries.<\/p>\n
This means a new wave of entrepreneurs could start companies like Google and Yahoo given access to better and faster broadband connections.<\/p>\n
Tom is simply wrong on this matter. He is passionate and he makes great points but in the end, where would this country be without our highways and byways.<\/p>\n
In case you didn’t notice – Tom and I do work for<\/a> the same company<\/a> and this is a great example of the diverse views TMC presents to the market. TMC and TMCnet does not rely on just my voice or Tom’s but a blend of hundreds of voices from thought leaders mixed in with the latest news and comments of the community of readers. This community ranges from 2-3 million viewers per month.<\/p>\n This potentially ironic situation was not lost on the sharp people over at snapvoip in a post titled Tom Keating, Rich Tehrani et al Battle IT Out For Barack Obama’s $40 Billion Broadband Stimulus Package<\/a>.<\/p>\n