Re: re: Why is everything suddenly a threat to our (US) democracy?
Because people have confused democracy with getting their way. Democracy means we hold elections, allow everyone to vote who is eligible and no one else, count votes completely and accurately, and respect the results. Far too many people -- mostly but not exclusively the hard-left -- are now using it to mean "elections have the outcome I think is obviously best", and in this case the telco CEOs are using it to mean "we get to turn on our equipment".
While in this case I agree with the telcos on the underlying issue, they are also abusing the word and that has cost them whatever good will I might otherwise have offered. Democracy does not mean that you personally get what you want, and not getting your way does not mean democracy is under threat. It's gotten to the point now that I pretty much always mentally replace "this is a threat to democracy!" with "I'm not getting my way so I'm going to whine and be melodramatic now". In that sense it's very much this decade's "think of the children" or if you prefer it's the same kind of language abuse as saying that anyone who disagrees with you is "worse than Hitler!".
Isn't it bad enough that you bought a license for this band for $80b from the government after a lengthy technical review process and are now being deprived by that same government of your right to use it in the exact manner prescribed by the license? And by the way, the people who are depriving them of that right were appointed, not elected, by the very President the "omg democracy!" whiners wanted in office. If their point is that SecTrans and the FCC commissioners should be elected instead of appointed by the President, that's a valid position to take but doesn't really explain why they think it would address this particular problem. That would be an opportunity to expand democracy, not a threat to it; those positions have never been elected.
Hopefully that answers the question.