Colorado Neighborhood: We Want Our DSL
Rocky Mountain high-speed Internet access has been tough to come by for inhabitants of a Colorado mountain enclave isolated from connections via digital subscriber line (DSL) and cable modem.
Life in that picturesque country is a laid-back experience, but the past 10 months have been far from mellow for a group of homeowners who wanted DSLs badly enough to rig their own system.
The outcome, if all goes according to plan, could give these folks present-day pioneer status for breaking new ground by overcoming 21st-century obstacles posed by the telecommunications industry, namely Qwest Communications[NewsBytes.com]
It should come as no surprise that Qwest would spend so much time and energy fighting this. After all, they have a corporate policy to fight compettition and maintain the status-quo monopoly anywhere they can. For a company who's seen its stock fall so far, perhaps they ought to try some customer service for a change.
I spoke with an old friend today and he confirmed just how bad things have become inside Qwest. People are afraid of losing their pensions, the company is playing musical chairs with the work and jobs. They have brought in so many contractors, and raised objectives so high that 80% of the employees fail to meet them.
The effect of this is a workforce living in terror, and a company that has the freedom to fire pretty much anyone they want, anytime they want. What a way to drive a company into the ground...mj
4:29:01 PM 
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