extinguish the control.

over the last three months, more than 23,000 free press activists (myself included) demanded the federal communications commission stop comcast from blocking web traffic. yesterday, the fcc responded, announcing that it would investigate the cable company's net neutrality violation.

the fcc is seeking public comment before it decides to punish comcast. by speaking out now, you can force the fcc to stop all the would-be gatekeepers from tampering with the free-flowing internet:

*tell the fcc: protect the open internet*

late last year, the associated press caught comcast secretly blocking users' ability to use peer-to-peer software to share information with one another. comcast was using web-filtering technologies similar to those used in china to censor the internet. ap called the violation "the most drastic example yet of data discrimination."

free press and other internet rights groups filed a petition with the fcc calling for urgent action to stop comcast's internet blocking. tens of thousands of activists sent letters to the agency in support of our petition (again, myself included). public pressure is now forcing the fcc to act.

comcast blocking of online content is the canary in the coal mine for corporate efforts to gate-keep the internet. The fcc must send a stern message to stop other phone and cable companies that want to follow comcast's lead and control our internet experience.

*tell the fcc: don't let comcast off the hook*

blocking our access to the internet should never be tolerated. The longer the fcc waits to punish comcast, the more companies will continue to invest in technologies to censor and manipulate what we can do online.

we need to keep the heat on the fcc to make sure all gatekeepers are punished.
(from freepress.net)

we must *do*, lest our rights be jeopardized.
visit: savetheinternet.com

poor washington school.

this is the school i went to from kindergarten to fifth grade. when i went there 25 years ago it was terrificly old (drafty windows, creepy basement cafeteria, tucked-in coat rooms, dark back staircases, unused rooms and uneven floors) and really fun (tucked-in coat rooms, dark back staircases, unused rooms, uneven floors ...).
sometimes, i'll catch just the right chemistry of wet boots, pencil shavings, chalk and miss zeitlin's clean, quiet smell and i'll be standing right back there, in my third-grade coat room, digging in the pocket of my favorite pink coat.
washington school has been empty for probably 20 years. my dad had thought about buying the building once, for use as boat storage - and what a grand idea that was!
but she just sits.
i really really really want to go back inside and remind myself what the coat room *looks* like, too - what it really looks like, and how long it is and whether there's another oddly placed closet within it. i want to sneak up a back staircase - although rodents debilitate me, so i hope it's not *too* dark - and peek into the library on the corner; i even want to go down to that dungeon that smelled like bologna and bananas and stale chips.
i hope i get to before they take her.

smile.

i'm not always so angry. i'm disappointed and fearful of sedentariness (i looked it up; it's a word).
but.
i'm hopeful and passionate. i *yog* (not a word, didn't need to look it up) so my mind does good for my body and my body is nice to my mind. i'm excited for crocuses in march and religious about sunscreen; i'm amazed by complexities and i'm spirited. i'm overwhelmed by the miracle that is a sunset, and a rainbow. i eat my veggies and volunteer for causes which inspire me. i love the world, and i'm happy to be in it. i recycle and plant flowers, and i laugh loud. not always am i angry.

easy to buy. frustrating to own.

my difficulties communicating with large companies i've paid big money to didn't just begin.
when i worked from home this summer, i was obligated to internet service, which is still not working. i had to log into a local unsecured network to get online today. mine isn't working; it was sporadic yesterday, too. probably 5 of 7 days it's faulty. i do nothing anymore.
way back in june, at&t told me - after about 40 hours of holds and explaining - it was a problem with my internal network card, and i should call dell.
i did.
it wasn't easy.
and it still hasn't been resolved. and i've given up.
it fell on deaf ears. the faceless voice on the other end didn't care whether my issue was resolved; she was paid for a day of work either way. i called the better business bureau and was told this wasn't an issue they handled.
i wrote this letter and sent it to both a local newspaper and a local television station, hoping their 'fixers' could help me be heard; it didn't work either:

Well, first off, I hope you’re seated. You might want to grab a coffee or refreshment, too, because this story is long, wild, and very, very disturbing.

On June 20, AT&T came to hook up my phone line. They had to re-visit the following day, June 21, to hook-up my Internet. After troubleshooting with both my AT&T technician and with technical support at AT&T’s call center, I was re-routed to Dell, as the issue I was having (my Ethernet light on my modem was not lit, meaning my computer could not read the Ethernet connection) was a computer problem, not an AT&T service problem.

I immediately called Dell. This would have been around 11 a.m. or noon on June 21. I called Dell’s toll-free number I found online: 800-624-9896. After the typical electronic voices, holds and transfers you get with EVERY company you call these days, I was finally in the hands of someone who could handle my problem (although understanding someone who does not speak English as a primary language is difficult and frustrating).

Anyway, to the meat of the story: After 2 hours of troubleshooting w. the Dell rep, he told me my computer needs replaced or fixed. He said it’s my choice. I chose for it to be replaced. He then told me, as a courtesy, they could upgrade my computer with a computer with a 17-inch monitor (mine is 15), and extra features. Great! The next opening for replacement delivery was Saturday, June 30, at noon. I accepted that time (and canceled a boating trip with friends to be home!). I was given a confirmation number (085***451) and my technician told me that if I had problems, I could call 800-999-3355, and his extension was 72***32.

So, June 30 arrives, but no computer arrives. I called the 800-number I was given, at about 3 p.m. on June 30. After the electronic voices, transfers, holds, I finally spoke to a non-English-speaking rep about an hour later. He told me there was no such confirmation number. He told me there also was no call from my number to Dell on June 21. I’m growing increasingly angry. Aside from being called a liar, I’m being told there was no order placed, and I have to start over. This is NOT good enough for me. I’m sick of wasting my time, relying on what I thought was a reputable company, and being told I have to start over.

I continually ask to speak to a supervisor, and I finally do. This person (Lena, 800-624-9896, Ext. 8***3) tells me the same thing: my loss. I was told that, as Dell’s policy, there are no replacements made, only repairs. This, to them, is proof that no one told me I would have a replacement/upgrade. I’m livid! I ask whose extension is 72***32. They tell me they can’t look that up. So, at this point, I wonder (aloud) – you can tell me that my phone number never came through HOW MANY call centers you have, but you can’t tell me whom an internal Dell extension belongs to??? No way!

At no point did Dell want to figure out who on their end was giving erroneous information to customers. This could be why we continually receive terrible customer service: they aren’t interested in fixing what is wrong!

Fast-forward to present: I cannot reach Lena. When I call 800-624-9896, they tell me her extension does not exist.

I have logged a total of 30++ hours on the phone with Dell. This problem has not been resolved, because I’m not willing to start over. I want some answers! In the meantime, my warranty expired on July 16. I tried several times to reach Lena before my warranty expired, to no avail.

I have had it. I will NEVER buy from Dell again – and now I’ve been paying for AT&T Internet service that I cannot use (since my computer’s Ethernet connection is faulty), and I can find NO ONE in Dell who is willing to take the time to help me with this.

Can you please, please help!? I am honestly at the breaking point.

*and i am.*

psst.

we are being watched, being tracked, and allowing it to happen because it's offered with a convenience: trackable user cards offer lesser fees, ease of transport, discounts. so we oblige, and we think, who cares if my habits and whereabouts are tracked, i've nothing to hide.
but that's not the point. the point is, we're giving up a freedom. we're allowing *some* control, some small and perhaps seemingly innocent and trivial control, because it's easier. we're lazy. we'll take the discounts and use the fast lane and buy that handy little card because it's cheaper.
i sound paranoid. i am; i'm scared we're allowing things to happen before our very eyes and not watching.
a few months ago, i read 1984 (embarrassingly for the first time), and the parallels to present-day right-here blew me away.
of course, the book is wild, and of course, we're not quite there yet. but it's not so wild as it was when it was published in 1949. maybe that's why it's been banned so much.

(i took that there picture this summer. i like to document improper apostrophe usage. it's everywhere. it's laziness. it's another post.)

peeved.

we've become accustomed to accepting; i'm guilty, bet you are, too. it's because i don't know what else to do. i've written the letters and logged my hold time, i've spoken clearly to ms. electronica and repeated my choice of options when it wasn't audible the first time. i've tried to keep my foul mouth to a minimum and have learned to forgive being misunderstood. i've asked to speak to superiors - and theirs - and kept my own notes, called back during unusually high call volumes and explained my *simple* problem to many people during a single call.
i can't do it anymore; it makes me crazy. but i think i have to.
welcome to customer service. welcome to something that will not get better. welcome a new addition to your things-to-do, welcome to hours of waiting and no voice and no reciprocal ear and becoming accustomed to poor service. it's everywhere. and we sit. and hold. and wait. and accept.