Second Opinion

August 4, 2017
Dirty Rotten Internet Scoundrels
"Something's rotten in the State of Denmark!"
— from Hamlet by William Shakespeare

A few weeks back I mentioned my troubles with the 2 internet monopolies in my area – Spectrum and Frontier. I'm not angry anymore. I'm past that. I've accepted defeat. Let me explain.

I help manage 12 connected town homes in La Habra, CA. For almost 4 months now this nice neighborhood has been without internet access. Hard to imagine this is happening in the 21st Century.

When I first learned about the problem I thought this would be an easy fix. I mean, all that needed to be done was connect a few feet of internet wiring to the main line in the property. (I've talked to 2 competent men in the industry and this is true – I even did a physical examination.) But little did I realize that logic does not apply when it comes to monopolies – especially with conglomerates so large that responsibilities are often blurred. I mean here were 12 homes that were begging to pay a monthly service of $30 to $100+ each – you would think that a business would stop everything to start the cash flow, right? Wrong! The law of supply and demand trumps common sense.

It took forever to figure out who to contact from the inside of the local Frontier office in Camarillo --- a guy named Mark Francis. The lady from Spectrum in the Anaheim office is Diana Netherlain. You don't wanna mess up with these guys. On July 27 we sent both of them a signed petition via registered mail imploring them 1) to connect the line, 2) to explain what the problem was, 3) to let us know who really was in charge. To date we have not heard anything from either of them.

I can imagine Mark and Diana chuckling after receiving the letter, calling each other to crack jokes about our misery: "They think we're afraid of them? They think this will hurt our career! They actually think we have a heart!"

These little kings in their little kingdoms! Quite common in corrupt underdeveloped countries yet surprisingly (at least for me) in full operation here in America. I have heard similar nightmares from friends. The internet is rife with ISP complaints.

For almost 4 months Frontier and Spectrum have been pointing fingers at each other:

Spectrum: We are ready to install the lines but we need to get permission from Frontier who owns the line.

Frontier: We don't have enough manpower to install this. We need to get permission from Spectrum.

Spectrum: It's Frontier's line. We can't do anything without their signature.

Frontier: Even if we give our permission, Spectrum uses cable we use DSL.

The home owners: Who's really in charge? We want names!

Silence.

I gave up. After the petition, I raised the white flag of defeat. A gloomy cloud hovered above me last night as I watched TV and a commercial popped up: It was Spectrum! La di dah! "For the greatest internet service in the world, move to the latest technology man can buy!" Spectrum was spending ad dollars to get new subscribers. Say what?! Why advertise when you've got a monopoly?

Something's rotten in Denmark all right! And their names are Mark Francis of Frontier and Diana Netherlain of Spectrum!

TGIF people!

Second Opinion
Contributed by Lois of Whittier, CA

I believe Rodney Dangerfield was one of the funniest guys ever. He liked to tell about his visit to his doctor for a check-up because he wasn't feeling well.

After a complete examination, the doctor said, "I'll tell you what's wrong with you — you're crazy!"

Deeply offended, Rodney said, "I demand a second opinion!" whereupon the doctor said, "O.K. You're ugly, too!"

TGIF Videos