Letter to the Editor: Broadband Initiative Excitement

Letter to the Editor

I am proud that so many of Maryland’s forward-thinking leaders are working to expand broadband internet access across the state (“,” June 14, 2011).

Governor Martin O’Malley, Senator Barbara Mikulski, Representative John Sarbanes, and our very own County Executive Ken Ulman (among others) have all fought to make sure that our state can connect schools, libraries, emergency response centers, community colleges, and businesses through the high-speed Inter-County Broadband Network.

Our leaders recognize that those without access to high speed broadband are at a disadvantage in this digital age. Increased broadband access means that businesses can operate more efficiently, emergency responders can communicate more quickly, and citizens can engage with their governments and communities more actively.

We founded Columbia 2.0 with the idea of keeping Columbia alive and thriving by engaging a younger generation in civic discourse, and we would not have been able to connect with people as quickly or debate about issues as deeply without access to reliable, high speed Internet.

I can only hope that more Marylanders gain access to these critical communications tools.  Another key piece of the puzzle in expanding broadband access is the proposed merger of AT&T and T-Mobile that has been covered in The Washington Post and elsewhere. 

The merger could expand high-speed wireless Internet access to 95 percent of the United States—especially critical for underserved rural and urban areas.

Some of us would be surprised to learn that right here in Maryland, parts of the Eastern Shore and Western Maryland still do not have access to broadband connections. As many of take our summer vacations in these areas, the lack of high-speed Internet access may become more apparent.

Maryland needs to keep pushing to get all of its citizens on the right side of the digital divide.

Sincerely,
Brian Dunn
Founder, Columbia 2.0
Second Vice Chair, King’s Contrivance Village Board