The Philadelphia Inquirer printed a passionate endorsement of the muni wireless network there this weekend. “Philadelphia is working out on the cutting edge with its wireless initiative. Much as its critics anticipate a meltdown, there is still more reason to be upbeat than not,” the newspaper stated in an editorial.The Philadelphia Inquirer printed a passionate defense of the muni wireless network there this weekend.
“Philadelphia is working out on the cutting edge with its wireless initiative. Much as its critics anticipate a meltdown, there is still more reason to be upbeat than not,” the newspaper stated in an editorial.
The Inquirer was responding to the demands of Councilman Frank Rizzo, a political opponent of Mayor John F. Street and long-time critic of the mayor’s muni wireless initiative, to hold hearings on the project.
Recognizing the implicit politics of the demand, the Inquirer nevertheless endorses the idea of hearings, saying “The good news is that City Council hearings could be a forum to tell a mostly upbeat story about the city’s Wi-Fi project.”
However, the editorial also looks to the future and asks pertinent questions, such as: Will EarthLink’s subscription service attract enough customers to keep the network viable? If it doesn’t, will the city have to support the network?
Click here to read the Inquirer’s editorial.
I’ve been waiting for several years for this “Wi-Fi project” to reach my house and it still hasn’t gotten there. I’m a senior citizen on fixed income with no phone service who needs internet service to send and receive emails, and do various kinds of research. Going to the library is a crap-shoot because of the hours, especially in the summer, and all of the kids who tie up the limited number internet access terminals that are available at the times when they are open. Bud