Reasonable caps for reasonable prices?

Usage based billing. It is a term that most Canadians had probably never even heard of until quite recently. I had, but that is because I handle most of the technological aspects of my family, and my family is a Rogers customer.

We switched to Rogers almost 5 years ago, and even then a bandwidth cap was imposed on us. We subscribe to highspeed lite, which at the time of purchase carried a 25GB cap. If my mom and dad were living by themselves this cap would be no problem. 25GB per month would certainly be enough for them. But they dont live by themselves. I have an older sister (now married), an older brother (now married), and two younger sisters. While it is true that my older brother and sister dont live at home anymore, and I am only at home for 5 months of the year, 25GB for 4-7 people just doesn't cut it. On a good day, when I am not home, there are four people in my house. 3 laptops and a wifi enabled Wii. 25GB. The CRTC estimates that a normal user will use at least 15GB per month. See the problem. And now Rogers has lowered the cap on this package to only 15GB.

Most people reading this are probably thinking, well why dont you just get a better package, and the answer to this comes down to price. This plan already costs $35.99 per month. Combine that with TV, home phone, long distance, and cell phones. My family simply cannot afford a more expensive plan.

I have taken the liberty of comparing the pricing between some of Canada's largest ISPs:

	Rogers	Bell	Cogeco	Shaw
Less than 10GB	2GB – $27.99	2GB - $31.95
10GB-25GB	15GB – $35.99	25GB – $41.95	10GB - $36.95	15GB – $35.00
25GB-40GB	n/a	n/a	30GB - $42.95	n/a
40GB-60GB	60GB – $46.99	50GB – $51.95	60GB – $56.95	60GB – $47.00
60GB-80GB	80GB - $59-99	75GB – $61.95	n/a	n/a
80GB+	125GB – $69.99	n/a	125GB - $81.95	175GB - $107.00
	175GB – $99.99	n/a	n/a	350GB - $150.00

The prices for these caps are completely outrageous. Small ISPs currently offer unlimited bandwidth for $30-$50. Their speeds are often slower, they are only available in certain areas, service time lags, and customer service isn't always the best. But that is the trade off for reasonably priced internet.

The CRTC recently made a decision that would force the small ISPs to limit their bandwidth, and worse, practically gave the big ISPs the authority to choose the limits! This would destroy the competition, stifle innovation, and cut off access to the internet for thousands, if not millions, of Canadians. Luckily, the government and all opposition parties agree with the small ISPs and the vast majority of consumers when they say that this CRTC decision just makes no sense.

I do understand the need for limits in some cases, however, the caps currently in place are completely ridiculous. They do not fair nicely with their global competitors, but they dont have to because together they have a near monopoly. This isn't fair to the small ISPs, but mostly it isn't fair to the consumer.

The fact of the matter is this: reasonable caps for reasonable prices. Give me 200GB for $50. Will I use 200GB? Probably not, but I certainly wouldn't be complaining.

LIVE BLOG: Kitchener Open Mike Event

Real Canadian Politics is happy to be Live Blogging this event live from Bingemans Conference Centre in Kitchener, Ontario. Unfortunately, I have a hockey game at 2:00pm this afternoon so I will have to leave the event early, at about 1:30pm.

Dear Afghanistan, we're not going anywhere yet!

The Conservative Government has finally unveiled the plan for our troops in Afghanistan, and surprise, surprise... we aren't going anywhere.

Canadian troops will no longer be used in active combat roles after 2011, rather the 950 troops will take on a strict training only role in the relatively safe city of Kabul. The Conservatives promise that not only will our troops not be used in combat, but they will only be training on safe bases, and will not be used in the dangerous Kandahar region.

Despite criticizing the Government for taking too long to outline their plan, the Liberals are generally happy with the decision. The plan takes into account many of the recommendations that the Liberals put forward, including the central idea that Canadian troops should remain in the country post the 2011 withdrawal date. The NDP however are not happy with the decision, and are asking the Conservatives to put the mission to a vote in the House. The Conservatives have retaliated saying that it is well within their authority to conduct training missions, and are pointing at the Haiti earthquake disaster for precedent. At the time, the Government sent troops to the Caribbean nation without a vote in the House.

I have to agree with the Conservatives and the Liberals in this matter: We can't leave the Afghan people this way. The Taliban Government has been toppled, but leaving the untrained Afghan military to keep them at bay won't work at all. The least we can do on our way out is to give them the training they need to keep their citizens safe, while they work to rebuild their nation.

We have been their for 9 years, and that is a long time. Over 150 Canadian soldiers have died, and that is far too many. The war is costing us over $1 billion per year, and that is far too much. But if we leave now, without training our replacements, will it all have been for nothing? I would hate to think that so many people have lost their lives for nothing.