I love how he gets right to the core of the problem: Corruption in the US Govt due to 'Lobbying', which basically boils down to the largest corporations running the country.
I hate the revolving door as much as the next person, but it's really hard to find people who are both qualified to regulate an industry and completely neutral in their politics and employment history. I'm sure a lot of us would prefer someone with a history of lobbying for net neutrality, but that is only better from a political point of view on our side of the argument, not from an ethical point of view.
You can't write a law that says "only hire regulators who agree with John Oliver's and SchizoDuckie's and sanderjd's politics". You can write a law that says "never hire any regulators who have been in any way involved with the industry they are regulating", but would you want to?
Yes, it's just corporations. Government unions such as the SEIU and NEA have bankrupted US cities and cost US taxpayers billions, and are equally responsible for the corruption.
Just finished watching that show, and (unrelated) it seems the show puts forth only two sides: you're either accept the corporations lording over you or you're a violent terrorist.
The problem is that even when people understand. No one does anything.
I told my friends, who are computer programmers, that we need to start fighting for net neutrality. And I give them the links to the video to the comments section.
And it's just blank stares. "Why would I go there?" kinda thing. I tried. I know nothing will happen. I'll tweet and comment. But it's just frustrating that no one cares even if they spend 10 hours a day on the internet.
And that's what I've realized lately, walking around NYC. No one cares. A ton of people don't even have opinions. A ton of people have very strongly held opinions that they don't research, or put any thought into. They just "know" things to be true the way they are. The homeless are lazy. The mentally ill are evil. And no one cares. Or ever does anything.
I can't say I'm much better in terms of actions. It has become a very shitty system where money holds the power and studies have shown your average constituent in some hideously gerrymandered district with options between two corporate funded parties has no say in the system[0].
Beware the despair of getting too focused on your world, and forgetting that others have worlds of their own.
One of my children has a rare genetic disorder you've probably never heard of. How much have you given to research for it? How much have you given for the thousands or tens of thousands of equally pressing causes?
Everybody carries their own burdens. It doesn't mean "they don't care"... it just means their burdens and yours may not overlap.
And sure, some people know little, care less, and do nothing. But you can't tell who that is just by looking at people walking down the street. You don't know. That mental model of your fellow man you're applying isn't necessarily accurate. You just don't know.
One downside is that the very platform he is broadcasting on could help pressure cable companies, but is perfectly fat and happy propping them up. HBO is a huge influencer and should join the others against these changes. Though I completely agree with his points.
