“Cause it's the little things that mean a lot.
It's what you are not what you got.”
Sonny and Cher

There is a hot phrase bouncing in Washington right now called “network neutrality.”

While it sounds like a nuclear weapons treaty, it is actually about the future of the internet.

It is little thing that could change the world.

It comes down to a simple argument.  Companies like Google and Amazon allow us to search for information and purchase things over the internet.   They want to provide their services quickly and easily.

Companies like ATT&T supply the networks that the internet flows across.  They are looking for a way to make extra profits.

The internet carriers want to charge companies like Google to carry their content on their networks.  If Google and the others don’t pony up, the carriers will fix it so their customers do not receive information quickly.

They will hold the content hostage and hope we don’t notice.   We will.

I’m a big fan of New York Times columnist Tom Friedman.   I think every person, should read “The World is Flat” and an earlier book, “The Lexus and the Olive Tree.”

A revelation of Friedman’s shocked me.  The United States is far behind many other countries in internet technology.   If you want the best wireless technology go to Japan.  They are far ahead of the United States.

The United States has vast resources but also has big corporations giving contributions to politicians.

When special interests do the talking, long term vision does the walking.  

If the United States wants to compete in a global marketplace, it needs to focus on the cheapest and fastest way to get information to its citizens.   

People in other countries can access Google, Yahoo and the same information sources that we can.

 If someone in China gets information quicker and faster than someone in the United States, eventually the people in the United States will be working for the people in China.

That is the way a world marketplace works.

Survival of the fittest is true in the global economy.  Many American politicians are ignoring the world markets while they get bogged down on hot button social issues.

People in other countries think intelligent design has to do with putting together fast computers.

If the United States plans to stay competitive, we need to think like that too.

A little thing like giving a break to big internet providers could mean disaster in the long run.

Congress should be wondering why we aren’t ahead in the technology race.   The United States has superior natural resources to any other country.

 Most of the great technology companies are based in the United States.  Innovations should be starting here and flowing to other countries, instead of vice versa.

If you go back in history, one of the great events of the 20th century was something called rural electrification.   Not a sexy term but a sexy thing.  In the 1930’s, only 10% of rural residences had electricity.

Leaders at that time saw the need for everyone to have electricity and beat back powerful special interests to make it happen.

 When a farmer could quit using oil lamps and could turn on a light switch, it changed the world. 

We need today’s leaders to have courage, focus and vision.

Change is happening more quickly than any time since Gutenberg invented moveable type in 1436.

Moveable type was a little thing that changed the world.  It broke down barriers to providing information quickly and easily.  People could read and make decisions for themselves, instead of having government or the church make it for them.

Throughout history, there has been a trend towards people wanting to be better informed.   The internet allows them to do that.   Leaders in touch with their constituents should focus on getting people information as quickly as possible.

American citizens understand that.  I am not sure that all American politicians do.  Especially if they let the internet carriers make a few extra dollars at the expense of the American people.

The change in the law internet providers want  is a little thing but one that could mean a lot.

Don McNay is President of McNay Settlement Group in Richmond, Kentucky where we want little things to have big outcomes for people.   His award winning  column is syndicated on the CNHI News Service.  You can write to him at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or read other things he has written at www.donmcnay.com