Sen. Wyden and Rep. Issa introduce vague ‘Internet Bill of Rights’

Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Representative Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) want to make sure that Congress doesn’t try to pass another piece of legislation like the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) that failed spectacularly earlier this year. The Hill reports that the two lawmakers are now calling for an “Internet bill of rights” that will effectively block Congress from passing bills that attempt to restrict online freedom. According to The Hill, the proposal gives “digital citizens” the legal right to “a free, uncensored Internet” and an “open, unobstructed Internet.” The Hill also says that the proposal mentions “rights of equality, privacy, sharing and property on the Internet.” All of this sounds nice, but it’s also incredibly vague, especially since the lawmakers introduced no mechanism for actually enforcing all of these great principles. What’s more, both lawmakers seem to have a different personal definition for what an “open, unobstructed Internet” means since Wyden is a strong proponent of net neutrality while Issa has voted to repeal the FCC’s net neutrality rules for wireline services.