In this edition of Web Enlightenment we'll be talking about why Barack Obama got my vote.

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Why Obama Got my Vote

So today is the big day - and if you haven't voted already, please get up out of your chair right now and go do it.

This election has been difficult for everyone and the issues we face as a nation are incredibly significant - the war, the economy, and our position in the world are all on the line.

Fortunately I'm a web geek, so I didn't need to even think about any of that when I cast my vote. You had to know this newsletter would somehow be about the Internet, it is definitely fair to say I am ludicrously passionate about the online world.

There are some things that are so important that if the candidate agrees with you on just that one issue you'll vote for them regardless of all other circumstances.

I'm glad to have an issue like that this year - to me the most important thing about a candidate is their position on net neutrality.

Lots of geeks agree - Jack Love (the Publisher of Internet Retailer) had a full page endorsement for Barack Obama in the October issue, the first time he supported a candidate in print after 40 years in the publishing business.

So you might be wondering what the heck net neutrality is and why you should care - it seems like a bit of a geeky issue but is something that could impact all of us in a big way.

Right now the Internet is neutral - the folks that operate the pipes simply deliver the traffic as it comes. On a practical basis this means that Internet Entrepreneurs have websites that are just as "available" as huge mega-corporations.

Have you ever read a story about a Wal-Mart store coming into a town? They reliably ask for changes to the local road system, traffic lights in front of their store and access lanes. They change the way the road system works to give them an advantage over other retailers.

Large corporations would love to do the same thing to the Internet - and the ISP's (Internet Service Providers like AOL or Netzero) would be very happy to accept their money and fundamentally change the way the web works. They would create several "classes" of traffic and prioritize the websites of people who pay them.

Imagine if the telephone system created classes of customers. Those that paid the most would never hear an "all circuits are busy now, please try again later" message. It's not hard to imagine what that would mean for people who didn't pay - lots of busy circuits and a telephone that fundamentally didn't work as well.

The open nature of the web - and the fact that all the people on it are fundamentally equal - is such a huge part of the magic. It is one of the core reasons why anyone can succeed online, it is still possible to start with nothing and create a thriving online business.

John McCain has made his position on Net Neutrality clear - he thinks the giant (more than occasionally greedy) large companies that operate the net should be able to do whatever they want.

Barack Obama is a supporter of net neutrality - he is in favor of laws and regulations that will keep the Internet the open and free system it has been from day one. He understands that is is quite possible to kill the golden goose and we need to make sure we don't.

If you are like me, and what you care about is an environment in which e-commerce can flourish, I ask you to please cast your vote for Barack Obama.

Some Press ...

It is always nice when you appear in a publication, and US News & World Report is no slouch. Appearing in the Entrepreneurs section of UsNews.com definitely made me smile, and they even spelled my name right.

They interviewed me about the decade I spent founding and running KISS Computing, my old website design and development company.

Click here to see my name in lights.