Political season is looming again, and where do the many critical issues in telecom rank? Listen carefully, and it's soon clear there is little political importance attached to matters deemed critical to service providers.

National video franchises, Universal Service Fund, ubiquitous broadband and even the hysterical debate over Net neutrality don't just take a back seat, they get buried in the political trunk when election time looms.

The argument can be made that there are much larger, more crucial issues looming for our country, including the war on terror, the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, economic globalization, oil dependence, Social Security.

But even those outside the telecom industry realize that the future of the U.S. depends, in no small measure, on our ability to compete in the global economy, and that depends, in turn, on the telecom infrastructure. Woven together in that canvas are the many issues listed above, which will determine who gets broadband services and at what price. If U.S. citizens don't have high-speed access equivalent to that found in Asia and Europe, there is a real possibility of negative economic impact, the likes of which we've already begun to see. Education can suffer, and that will have long-term impact. Jobs vanish, and other jobs fail to be created. Quality of life diminishes from one generation to the next — something unprecedented in U.S. history.

There are those within the telecom industry who are probably delighted that there is little public debate over broadband access — they would prefer that some complex issues remain the bailiwick of well-paid lobbyists and Congressional staff members.

When key issues are left unresolved, however, there is almost always a negative impact, on Wall Street, if no where else. And if left untended for long enough, the resultant harm can be irreversible.

ONLINE

Do a search on Net neutrality on our Web site to read about where the debate stands today and the history of the controversy.
www.telephonyonline.com