Way to Aim Low: US Telcos Embrace Mediocrity and Low Standards

Read it and weep for the glory that was once America...

"US telcos have hit on a clever idea to provide universal broadband to every US citizen - they're calling on the government to define broadband as anything over 768 Kbps downstream and 200 Kbps upstream." TG Daily - US Telcos call for lower broadband speeds

Just to be clear on how utterly absurd and abysmal this is, American phone and cable companies are openly embracing a broadband standard of well under one Mbps, repeat, less than 1 Mbps. Compare this to:

Japan : 92.8 Mbps
Korea: 80.8 Mbps
France: 51 Mbps

That's right, Korea's idea of broadband is something 80 times better than what America's telcos have in mind for us. Way to go AT&T, Verizon, Comcast. Way to show our kids that aiming high is no longer the American way. Once the envy of the world, American telcos have officially embraced a "whatever" attitude to excellence.

First it was the American car makers giving up to the likes of Japan, Korea, and France. Now it's the telcos. They are so reluctant to do their duty and provide proper broadband to rural homes and businesses they are prepared to throw in the towel and admit they can't match the performance of their foreign counterparts.

Before anyone comments that "duty" has nothing to do with free enterprise, ask yourself whose roads and rivers and airspace it is that these companies use to conduct their business? Their business model relies on the use of resources owned by Americans as a whole, their duty is to serve Americans as a whole, and they know it.

For those with strong stomachs and citizens who promise they have taken their blood pressure meds, there are more absurdist remarks and patronizing quotes from the telcos in this Reuters article.

p.s. Before anyone comments that France is not a powerhouse in automobiles I should point out that the French car company Renault owns 44% of Nissan (making Nissan/Renault bigger than Ford, i.e. makes more vehicles than Ford) so it is the world's 4th largest, while the French PSA Peugeot Citroën automaker is 7th.