Tony ArroyoAug 14, 2025
Ars Technica
Starlink tries to block Virginia’s plan to bring fiber Internet to residents
SpaceX urges Trump admin to reject Virginia's broadband grant proposal.
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/08/starlink-tries-to-block-virginias-plan-to-bring-fiber-internet-to-residents/?utm_brand=arstechnica&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social
Aug 14, 2025 at 8:33pmArsBot 🤖
Show threadKevin RussellAug 14, 2025

@arstechnica

Billionaires are made by restricting blood flow, so it balloons a part of the blood vessel, accumulating dangerously, even fatally, in the brain . . . no wait that's an aneurysm.

Billionaires are made by restricting access to the market, coercive business practices, bribing regulators, stealing pensions and not paying taxes, for example.

Show threadJWAug 14, 2025

@arstechnica
A quick read shows Starlink are overselling their service. In medium to high density towns, fibre is the best technology to deliver high speed broadband.

The problem with radio and wireless based services, including Starlink, is they hit local congestion problems, there's only so much bandwidth.

Additionally, Starlink and its competitors are fucking up the night sky.

Show threadRandall LeeAug 14, 2025
@arstechnica who is going to give the bigger bribe to the felon?
Show threadHTPC NZAug 14, 2025
@arstechnica as usual for the umpteenth time, tons of morons who supposedly more educated and earning big bucks compared to chumps like myself fell for the BS from their daddy fElon that starlink was supposed to be some sort of saviour for humanity & had nothing to do with their daddy wanting even more control.
Show threaddlaroeAug 15, 2025

@arstechnica

This is a travesty. What happened to me will likely happen to Virginia residents.

Starlink received Federal RDOF grant dollars to provide me (and only me since my single installation represented one Census block on a map) with the opportunity to pay full price for "beta" service.

For me and all my neighbors this meant that State GREAT grant funding to put fiber in the ground past my neighborhood cannot be used to provide us service.

Show threadLuna chanAug 15, 2025
@arstechnica If you can get fiber you won't want Starlink
Show threadToni AittoniemiAug 15, 2025
@arstechnica Their technology is the better one, no? Free market competition put them where they are? 😄
Show threadBramVanDrielAug 15, 2025

@arstechnica

America never got rid of their robber barrons. Let's use this effective characterization more often again.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robber_baron_%28industrialist%29?wprov=sfla1

Robber baron (industrialist) - Wikipedia

Show threadOut of Control   🇨🇦Aug 15, 2025
@arstechnica A not for profit brought fibre into the farming community in southern Quebec. Prices and service are better than any of the major ISPs. 1G speeds and unlimited data for $65/m. Shows a bit of what can be done when you aren’t shovelling all your profits out to share holders or other corporate greed.